Sales and logistics leader Deborah Newton shares her journey from childhood loss to building a career rooted in relationships. In this episode, we talk about the whirlwind of 2024; starting her own business, losing her mom, and navigating grief, plus how resilience, faith, and connection have shaped her path from aspiring attorney and investigative reporter to thriving in sales and logistics.
Check Out These Highlights:
Deborah Newton opens up about losing her dad at age five, watching her mom’s resilience, and how those early lessons shaped her drive to succeed. She reflects on the devastating loss of her mom in 2024, the guilt she still carries, and the strength she draws from her mother’s example of perseverance and grace.
She shares her winding career path — from dreams of law and investigative reporting to discovering her true fit in sales and logistics. Along the way, Deborah explains how problem‑solving, grit, and building authentic relationships became the foundation of her success, and why she believes “everything is figureoutable.”
We also talk about the importance of community, the lessons she’s carried from family survival skills into business strategy, and how starting her own company, Newton Steele, became both a leap of faith and a tribute to her mom’s legacy. Her story is a powerful reminder that the hardest seasons often prepare us for the work and life we’re meant to build
About Deborah Newton:
Deborah Newton is a sales and logistics leader and founder of Newton Steele. Known for her gift in building lasting relationships, she helps organizations strengthen their sales strategies while carrying forward the resilience and lessons she learned from her own life journey.
Connect with Deborah:
🌐 Website: https://newtonsteele.com/
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahchristinenewton/
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About Me: https://tobymyles.com/about/
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Okay, you guys, this one might make you tear up a little. Uh, I know it did for me. My guest today is Deborah Newton, a sales and logistics leader with a real gift for building relationships that last. In this episode, we talk about the whirlwind that was 2024 for Deborah, a year that included starting her own business and unexpectedly losing her mom. She still carries guilt around her mom's illness to this day. Deborah talked about losing her dad when she was just five, witnessing her mom's resilience and how that shaped who she is today. We also talked about Deborah's winding path to where she landed. She once dreamed of being an attorney, then an investigative reporter, before stumbling into sales and realizing it was where she belonged all along. This is one of those conversations that's a good reminder. The hardest moments often move us toward the work and the life we're meant for. Are you ready to dive in? Let's go
Toby Myles: Hey, Deborah. Welcome to the podcast.
Deborah Newton: Thank you for having me. How are you?
Toby Myles: I'm good. I'm excited, um, for you to be here. Um, I usually like to share how we know each other, um, because I find it interesting sometimes there's, like, this little trail of, oh, this person connected me to this person, to that person, to this person.
Or sometimes I'm on with my guests, and we actually cannot remember who first- Oh my God ... connected how many dots, right? Yeah. Um, but, uh, Amy Loken, who I've known for many years, was, um, on the podcast, I don't know, a month or so ago, and I always ask my guests to introduce me to other amazing women. And she said, "Oh, well, you have to meet Deborah."
And so that's how we're connected. I think it's one of those things, and I think you and I even talked about this too. It's like amazing women always know other amazing women, right? And if you and I connected, and we're, like, you know, we're feeling connected, I'm pretty sure that you will introduce me to someone that also I will feel connected to.
So, um, so shout out to Amy. Thank you. Mm-hmm. And, um, and here we are. We made it here. So I would love for you to take me back to a moment in time, or maybe it's more than one moment in time, that you feel like really, um, put you on the path that you're on right now
Deborah Newton: Yes, no, it's a good question. I think it is brain freeze.
I'm immediately flooded with 8,000 thoughts. Mm-hmm. Just, um, there's so many of the little things, like what is the, the main as it, as it compounds all the way through. And, and since meeting you, again, thank you to Amy, uh, I've been thinking a lot about it. And, you know, all the things that get you to where you want to go or where you thought you were going or what has shifted, um, most recently that I can...
With starting Newton Steele and, and going out on my own, always being that true intrapreneur and WTF- ... outside, that's, that's just what I lived. It was safe. It, it was comfortable. And I always looked at people outside of that and like, "Wow," like, "Good for you. This is something that I could just never do." And if anything, never say never.
So in that case, when it comes to starting this, it, it was 2000... Gosh, what year are we in? 2026. So 2024 was a very challenging, interesting year, and obviously it's most current. But I think everything in life up to 2024 as a whole was for a reason. And, and-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: now looking back, hindsight, I mean, I'm not done yet and it's, I'm not over, but I think to answer your question, that where I am right now, it set me up for being able to step out on my own.
And, you know, I've been in corporate my entire life. To be able to start that, it was very tragic. It was very... It was a lot. It was a ve- a lot to unpack. I think it was a, a big year of testing. It was a big year- Mm-hmm ... of, of faith. It, it was a big year of questioning everything. Um, you know, I, I had lost my corporate position that I moved back to Michigan for, uh, earlier on in the spring, and my cousins moved to Italy.
We're all super close. I helped them move. It's great. They're there now in Florence thriving. It's, it's, it's an awesome, awesome, beautiful place if you haven't been. Um, only to when I came back from Italy, my mom, um- Fell ill and with a UTI, which again, I will stand on every platform and yell it as loud as I can for those of, for those that do not know how much the UTIs impact elderly- Mm-hmm
and, uh, I, again, still handling and carrying guilt of not knowing that, but, you know- Yeah ... so now if I can educate and help people that way. But within a month, um, unfortunately the infection just got out of hand and she had passed away.
Toby Myles: Oh
Deborah Newton: my
Toby Myles: gosh.
Deborah Newton: That I'm still understanding. I was mad, I was angry at...
Again, there's still a lot of emotions to go through, but I think that- Sure ... trying to pack that up and deal with grief and deal with life and deal with like all these other changes, especially the identity piece of she's my person, you know? Mm-hmm. That was my, what my identity was wrapped to, my reason for working so hard, my reason for wanting to give her everything and what she had ever wanted so she never had to worry like we did growing up, and- Mm-hmm
you know, any way that I could be successful in that monetary sense.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: Uh, and it was great, you know? I, it, I absolutely, I would, I've done, I, I would do it again a million times over, no question.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: But I feel that that, and still trying to figure it out and piece it together, but a lot of hindsight- Mm-hmm
and watching her grow up as I was younger, watching my mom- Dealing with things, handling things the way that she did with such elegance and grace, and it was hard. It was really hard. I mean, I got... Again, hindsight as I get older, I had a happy, great childhood.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: I don't remember much of it, but when you get older you start to fill in the blanks.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: And, well, how, how'd this happen? What, what, why were we here? What was... So there was a lot. I mean, it was... We didn't have much of anything. Mm-hmm. My father passed away. Um, I was five. He got into a car accident- Oh,
Toby Myles: wow ...
Deborah Newton: and, um, was 13 weeks in a coma. It was all head trauma. Wasn't wearing his seatbelt, so kids you hear it here.
Mm-hmm. And adults, I should say. Yeah. Here it... I'm coming with all the PSAs. Yes. You can only say wear your seatbelts.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Wear your seatbelt. Nothing to laugh about, but yeah.
Toby Myles: No, I know. I know.
Deborah Newton: Yeah, it is, for sure. But the, um, you know, gosh, it was up north. We were in Detroit, um, getting that phone call and, um, but then after 13 weeks unfortunately he had passed away, uh, and he wasn't paying his car insurance.
So insult to injury. Oh my gosh.
Toby Myles: Oh my gosh.
Deborah Newton: Insult to injury with all of that. I mean, this, this- Yeah ... again, I'm five. She's putting it together. He passed away, well, it was 10 days before, before my birthday so that would've been two weeks before Christmas.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And we still had Christmas.
Toby Myles: Mm. You
Deborah Newton: know, so for her strength to push through-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm
Deborah Newton: I know of people that have been in that situation to where it really is gonna go one way or the other. It's either the kids- Yeah ... or yourself because they just can't.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: But I, I, I don't know which way I would... I would like to think that I could power through and be like my mo- I just, I can't imagine.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: For her to pick herself up and she, she had us to raise and things to do and, and again, going through all of that, but never losing faith. Never. And sure, it was, it was challenging. You know? Sure, there was nights of crying, you know, all- Mm-hmm ... all of the things. It wasn't always great, but to deal with that, still, still live and be able to carry on, to be able to still be present for my sister and I and give us such a great life.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Everything that she... Those now, if I'm flipping it, I've always thought like, "Wow, if I could be half of that woman." Yeah. But now looking back and the problem-solving and the figuring things out and the- Mm-hmm ... it's not as bad as it seems. Just keep going. Just keep plugging away.
Toby Myles: Right. You know,
Deborah Newton: it's, it's, yes, you need to deal with things, sure.
You don't want to push them under the, the rug, but I think that taking all of that, all that to say, taking all of what had happened and all the other things I've learned through- If she can do it and we made it through, why can't I? Sure. There's- Yeah ... there's with, with now being educated and, and successful and all the other things that weren't available.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Like, it's so... Th- that's really, I always having that in the back of my head, but now piecing it together of that's, this is just one more way in which all that she taught me is pushing and shining through.
Toby Myles: Sure. Right, and when you're little, you don't know, right? You just, you're a kid, and you have this person, your person who's the person- Mm
who's the one you rely on to, for all the things, you know, your shelter, your food, to get you to school and all those things, right? And so that's, at that time, what you knew was like your mom was still there for you. She... And like you said, it could go two ways, right? She could have like totally- Yeah ... just said, "I just can't.
I just give up," right? And gone a whole nother way, but she just kept going. But then your perspective as an adult looking back and realizing like, wow, okay, I face hard things, too, but mom, like, look what mom- Yeah ... had to deal with. I mean, and, and then wondering like what would I have done in that situation, you know?
I have found m- myself doing similar thing. I know before we hopped on, I was sharing about my brother who passed away in 2023. He had Down syndrome, and he was born in 1966 when there were not the resources or the awareness that are, that there is now. My parents were young parents, and the doctors at that time said they, they should put him in an institution, that he would not have much of a life and they should just put him in an institution, and that would be the best thing for everybody.
And I don't know how my parents knew that that was not the right thing for them, for my brother, or for our family. And so they didn't listen to that advice, and then they had to fight for every resource and dig for every resource. They didn't have the internet to, you know- Right ... at their fingertips. They had to- Different
Deborah Newton: time
Toby Myles: do all the legwork. And I find myself now, I'm writing my memoir, and there is a chapter about my brother, and I find now that I'm just amazed that they did what they did with my brother. Mm-hmm. Um, and he led an amazing and very fulfilling, and I'm doing air quotes, "normal life." He lived in a group home. He had a job.
He, you know, had a better social life than I did. And so- Yeah ... like, like you, you know, you can look back and see, wow, that was pretty amazing what your mom did. You know, I, I can see that. I feel the same way about what my parents did. Um, and it's inspiring.
Deborah Newton: For sure. And, and to that same point, like, it could have, it could have drove the family apart.
It could have absolutely... But to link arms and to, you do it- Yeah ... you know? And to get through. And I'm sure a lot of the things, like, again, not having the internet and not having... Yes. Mm-hmm. Which I remember. And again, I have to laugh because, and my sister would absolutely laugh as well, because my mom never drove on the highway.
Like, it was- Mm-hmm ... yeah, we were... She lived and grew up downtown Detroit, and we were living inner city, and it's just, you know, the stoplights, some of the streets like Gratiot are like an expressway, but- Yeah ... it's just like, it was very intimidating for her. Yeah. We had an old station wagon, and we would go up north, where we ended up going to, um, I started fourth grade, my sister started eighth grade, um, up north where we've had property in our name for a few generations.
And, um, just 'cause where we lived in the city was just not safe at all. Mm-hmm. At the Nexus City Airport, it just wasn't. It still isn't, but I digress. But I remember, um, we would go at night because the highway wasn't as busy.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And we had a station wagon. She'd lay down the seats and kinda, like, make a bed almost- Yes
with ice, uh, for... And also she was getting on, and of course, you remember the big windows out the, the back of the station wagon.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Like, having her, like, get... Yeah. You could just see her little white knuckles and-
Toby Myles: Gripping.
Deborah Newton: I... Yeah, my Diane and I looking back, "Just go, Mom. You're good. Go." Like, turn right into the...
You figured it, it, it wasn't... It just, those memories of, of those types of things that there wasn't a GPS. I mean, to this day, I, I think from what my m- my mom has told me- Like my dad could go one place and had great directions and get back 10 years later, and I'm like that Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. I, like, I don't know if, if that's something that you can get or if it's because we were constantly getting lost- Yeah
that I had become good at it. Oh,
Toby Myles: yeah. Mm-hmm. It's,
Deborah Newton: I'm like, to be able... And, and in the same city that we would live in. Like, it wasn't- Mm-hmm ... just anywhere. So those types of things. There wasn't GPS. Like, there wasn't- Right ... and our cars breaking down, and being able to know how... I mean, those are survival skills that, you know, yes, we laugh at them, but I wouldn't, uh...
They're great party stories and, and, and a party trick if you need to jump a car or change a, change a flat tire. But someone else was gonna do it, you know? Mm-hmm. It's walk till you find someone's door and knock out. And well, this is when you used to be able to knock on somebody's door. When
Toby Myles: it was safe, yeah.
Deborah Newton: Right. But we didn't have anybody to call or if, you know, cell phones or what have you- Mm-hmm ... or to find a payphone. Mm-hmm. You know? So those types of things that, sure, y- but that helps build up the grit. Like, it's gonna be okay. It, you're gonna get through. Yeah. And then similar to what you're saying with your parents, like, I'm sure- the resources that were or weren't there, whether they knew of them, they very well could have been part of something to get new resources or to get more that no one had ever thought of.
Toby Myles: Right.
Deborah Newton: You know? Like, I mean, at that time, which is exciting, exhausting, sure. Mm-hmm. You know, it's a lot of hard work for them. But ultimately, it was for your brother. Yeah. And same with, like, the sacrifices. I'm sure they would do it 10 times over, too.
Toby Myles: Sure, absolutely. You know? So, d- so you mentioned your mom not driving.
Was that because of the accident, or did she just never drive anyway?
Deborah Newton: She drove. No, she drove. She just didn't drive on the highways. Yeah. The highwa- expressways, the expressways are what kind of scared... My grandma, her mom never drove.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: Like, that was just something that she never did and, and never learned how, which, which, which I think is o- I mean, which I think is okay.
Mm-hmm. She, she was different time, right? She was born- Yeah ... in 1916. But, um- Mm-hmm ... but no, so she, my mom would drive. I mean, absolutely. Mm-hmm. But it was more the en- the merging onto the expressway and- Yeah ... all the cars trying to, you know, come in and at her and just-
Toby Myles: Absolutely ...
Deborah Newton: take over. So that was-
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: And then she got used to it, and the same with her, like, the, the constant having to evolve and, and level herself up without even knowing or realizing she was doing it.
Toby Myles: Yes.
Deborah Newton: I think a lot of us don't, myself included, give ourselves credit for the, those types of milestones where it was something you could never think that you could do.
It was so intimidating and so scary.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: But you just, you, you did it. You did it. And, you know, for her, like, seeing that and, I mean, the old home now plus 150 years old, I mean, it's old. It had cracks, and we had bats that would come in, and we would sleep with badminton rackets. Like, you make- Oh. ... you, that's, you know, it was one of those, like, what are you gonna do?
We couldn't get on the roof to fix it, so you just, you know-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: work with what you have to get until you can get it better. Mm-hmm. You know? So I think those types of, I don't know, I always live by everything's figureoutable. Marie For- Yeah ... says that all the time, and it truly is- Yeah ... because someone's going to do that.
And, and same with business. Like-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: excuses and, and now working, uh, strategy and, and building sales organizations, the someone's going, someone's do- there's always a competitor, and someone's doing this. So you can- Sure ... complain and not do it or figure out- Right ... a way to do it.
Toby Myles: Right.
Deborah Newton: And I think that a lot of that, now it's great 'cause YouTube is there, and
Toby Myles: you can- You can learn how to
Deborah Newton: do anything.
You can, you can, you can take to ask questions or, you know- Mm-hmm ... just Google. I was with my cousin, um, recent- well, just a couple, few weeks ago, and we were pulling weeds, but we didn't know if it was a flower or if it was a weed 'cause-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: I know in my mi- like, where I plant, but she wasn't certain. Mm-hmm.
But we were taking pictures and asking like, "Is this poisonous?" Like, you know, and back then it was- I don't know, the, the hairdresser or the, the people at the bar you're learning things from- Yeah, exactly ... they don't have Wikipedia.
Toby Myles: Yeah, no, you would ask somebody, "Oh, tell me about this," or, you know, you'd ask your neighbors.
You believe them. Mm-hmm, you did believe them. Yeah. Yeah, I think that, um, it's interesting too because, like in the moment when we're struggling with something, it feels really hard, and then you do it and you get through it. Um, and the outcome is whatever it is, and then you move on to the next thing and to the next thing and the next thing.
And it's only when you look back and you realize, like, "Wow, I actually did some of those things," and they were hard at the time, but I think each one is like a building block. Yeah. It sort of builds your confidence in yourself that you have the ability to figure things out when they get hard, right? For every- Yeah
little thing that you, you problem solve or figure out- Mm-hmm ... no matter how it goes, you know, there's a- another layer, another row of bricks of like, "Oh, okay, well, I've done this before, so surely I can figure out-
Deborah Newton: Right. Yeah, so it's like- ... this
Toby Myles: other thing" ...
Deborah Newton: if all of these things in this particular process, I just need to add on to it to get-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm
Deborah Newton: yeah, the result. Yeah. Yeah. Which, which, which again is... That, that's what I love about life. That's, that's what I... And again, b- before I s- um, now working with sales organizations, I was in the, uh, logistics and supply chain transportation space. Mm-hmm. And, um, which I just fell in love with that industry. I mean, all industries I can work with now because, again, back to that point exactly, sales are sales.
Mm-hmm. The foundational pieces are the foundational pieces. A lot of things come from this piece and then compound and build on top. So if we're starting-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: back to those basics-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: it builds up from there. Yeah. I think, and within logistics, uh, w- global supply chain, whatever, all, all the things. I was telling this story just the other day.
I was at an import/export conference in Baltimore, and there was a man that was there from China. Um, we ended up, 'cause I couldn't quite understand him messaging back and forth through LinkedIn, but the, he literally was there. The, the ship, the, the vessel had already left and is on its way from China, so it's like a month sail-
Toby Myles: Yeah
Deborah Newton: I have here. And he was sent because, of course, it's less expensive to collapse, to, to break down. Again, people are p- so smart to send these racks over if they were collapsed and assemble them here and then bring them to the manufacturing site. Mm-hmm. So he n- he needed to find trucking to bring it there, a warehouse to have it, and then a crew of people to assemble them, and then a truck to bring it, all of this stuff.
And I'm like, I remember sitting there, I'm like, "So wait, wait." The, the, the, the, it's already on the ship? There are co- you have three weeks?" He's like, "Yeah." Yeah. And I'm, that, I'm like, "This is how the world, this is how it all starts."
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: Someone's just figuring it out, not having to have it all, everything's perfect 'cause-
Toby Myles: Exactly
Deborah Newton: if you told me how, this is where I'd be, you know-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: five years ago, I'd be like, "No way."
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: No. We might have- Yeah ... a plan, but it doesn't always go that way.
Toby Myles: Yeah. But to me- So, um, I'm curious then how did you end up, um, in the logistics field? I mean, m- you know, we could go all the way back to, you know, Deborah as a little girl.
I, you know, did you... That surely this isn't where you thought you would be. Did you have ideas of I wanna be a doctor when I grow up, or I wanna be a teacher or a nurse or a... I wanted to be a ventriloquist, which that didn't happen, but- Did
Deborah Newton: you really?
Toby Myles: Yeah, I did. Oh, that's a whole other podcast. But, um- That's...
Deborah Newton: Willy,
Toby Myles: don't forget that ... um, but did, did you, do you remember, like, thinking what you wanted to be, and then what was the path like? You know- Okay ... you watched your mom struggle and, and all those things, you know, so college and, and your first job. Can you take me through that?
Deborah Newton: Absolutely. Absolutely. And, and I love, I've always wanted, when I was
I always wanted to be an attorney. I always wanted to go into law and, and- Mm ... I know that it's a, a lot of work, and again, I'm not afraid of hard work and usually run towards it, not away from it. Um, a lot of money for schooling and a lot of time, and I'm not a big... We were talking earlier, but there's people that are career students and career learners.
Like, for me, I couldn't get out of there fast enough.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: You know, it's something that I love and I love to do and have more hands-on- Mm-hmm ... sure, but it just, it was... I mean, my mom's dys- dyslexic, my aunt, my niece, like, there's dyslexia. I have a cousin. I know that, right, so it's always a little bit more challenging.
Um, which again, you- As my mom would, she used to say, "We didn't know what it was. You just figure it out."
Toby Myles: Exactly.
Deborah Newton: Yep. It wasn't or talked about. Yeah. Um, but I always wanted to be an attorney. Um, the amount of schooling and all that, when I found that, I was like, "Meh." Then I, um, investigative reporting was- Mm-hmm
I really, I want Diane Sawyer. She was always somebody that I looked up to, and I loved that. You know, there's actually, uh, here in Metro Detroit, uh, when I was at Oakland University, uh, Mike Lewis, he's now tenured at Michigan Flint. He was a field an- excuse me, a field reporter and a weekend anchor at WDIV, the NBC Channel 4 that's here.
Mm-hmm. He got me in on the assignment desk. Um, I took every class, even if I didn't need to. I just loved them. Just was such a- Mm-hmm ... great, so to do that, Karen Drew actually, who's a local investigative reporter now, it's right when she first started, he had her come into our class, and I'm like- Mm-hmm ... "Oh my gosh, this is the path."
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: This is exactly it. So again, having that, like, detective lawyer brain and- Mm-hmm ... trying to, you know, dig down, find the root of the problem and- Yeah ... and find it. Play MacGyver.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: That's what I've always loved to do. Getting through that, um, especially this is, um, when Detroit was super bad, and we're talking 23-ish years ago.
Like Detroit's- Mm-hmm ... huge turn since then. Yeah. Um, there's still some scary spots. So it was, it was a lot. It was, it was, it was very heavy, heavy emotional- trying to, knowing that that was the path you have to take to- Mm-hmm ... to get the stepping stones of that. And which again, is it, it's great. I would love to have done that, but I took those same skills just more so for continuing on.
They call it, like, you get your... It's like an internship and then post-grad school, so you're hitting those stepping stones to make it into a larger market.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Um, which I am was fine, and for me, um, it just wasn't something that I wanted to pursue. But I kn- I know the skills that I have, and I know the problem-solving and finding things and, and searching and digging to get to the root of the problem has always been important to me.
Mm-hmm. So I got into sales. Mm-hmm. So sales it was. So most recently was the logistics side, but, um, one of my good friends that, um, I actually moved to Dallas with her back in '07. She's still there. Um, she worked for a company in Grand Rapids and-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: said they were hiring, 'cause I was like, "Hey, looking to move up that way."
Toby Myles: Yeah. "
Deborah Newton: You know anybody?" And I was serving, bartending. She's like, "Well, my company's..." I had no idea. It was medical staffing.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: I didn't, I didn't even have medical insurance, enough to tell you- Yeah. ... know what medical staffing was. I'm like, "I can learn anything." And I think that that's, that was my first big girl job, and, oh, it was great.
It, it was great. It was a great culture. It was a great team. I learned a lot. Um, it was a lot of fun. Mm-hmm. Like, we had a manager, made, made it a lot of fun. Moved to Dallas and stayed in that medical world down the doctor side. Um, liked it, but it's very different when you're working with small, rural hospitals- Mm
and not from the area. But-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: and then segued into marketing channels, and then moved to Chicago, then did some dentistry, and was looking for a position- And I'll never forget, on... Thank God there wasn't Zoom, it was just a phone call. So on the phone call, um, like Googling what's an OEM. Like-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: they're asking me, 'cause it was for auto transport- Uh-huh
which I'm like, you know, I'll learn anything. So I guess- Yeah ... that's a true testament of, you know, what... In each of those roles I was extremely successful in. Mm-hmm. So, you know, it's, it's figuring it out and, and learning and, and sponging and-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: it just so happens that I stayed within that industry since 2015 in, in different facets.
I mean- Yeah ... which are very different culturally within this huge umbrella of, of logistics, if you will. And it really wasn't until the pandemic that people really knew when they hear supply chain or, you know- Yeah ... really what
Toby Myles: it was. Right. So it's crazy. When they weren't getting the stuff that they wanted.
Right,
Deborah Newton: because it comes out of the sky, right?
Toby Myles: Exactly. It just shows up right out my door.
Deborah Newton: Drops right there. Here it is. Yeah. So I... But that is, I mean, every... It's just how things and how they can move around, and when somebody challenges with, "That can't happen," or my favorite, "That's the way we've always done it"- Mm-hmm
which I most expensive- Oh, my
Toby Myles: gosh ...
Deborah Newton: right?
Toby Myles: Yeah,
Deborah Newton: yeah. Most expensive words you can say in a company. That it literally is then like, "Hold my beer." Like, "Let me show-" Yeah. Yeah. Like, it's like really?
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: Challenge accepted. Like-
Toby Myles: Yeah, yeah ...
Deborah Newton: the, like someone's going to figure this out. Mm-hmm. There's something or someone, and that's, again, having your community of people, having, having people to ask, "I might not be able to do it, but I got a guy," you know?
So it's some way to figure that out. Right,
Toby Myles: right.
Deborah Newton: And having those connections, so making the relationships as well as the, the, the brain power, that's, um, that's how it all evolved. Mm-hmm. And I think sales, as much as I try to run away from it, it really is relationships.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: It really is relationships. And-
Toby Myles: Yep
Deborah Newton: and I cherish them. I, I, I do. Yeah. They're genuine, authentic, and I think in this world of technology and all the fun stuff that we have helping us, it is a great help. It's a great tool. It does- Mm-hmm ... like people all over the world. Now, if it wasn't for that, you know, but there is still that human component.
Toby Myles: Absolutely. Yeah.
Deborah Newton: There's still that piece of it.
Toby Myles: Yeah. But- I think that people try to get away from that. You know, in marketing it's always the know, like, and trust, right? You gotta build know, like, and trust, right? And people hear it so many times that they just start to say, "Yeah, yeah, I know." But, but everything comes back to that.
Even in the simplest things in our day-to-day lives, I use this example all the time, that if I want someone to come paint my house- I'm gonna check with my neighbors who I know they've had their houses painted, right? Yeah. And tell me who you used, and did you like them? Did they g- do a good job? Were they fair?
You know, there's that whole trust piece of it. Or, you know, if I'm looking to hire w- we'll just say, you know, business coach since there's so many businesses c- business coaches out there. Right. How do I choose from thousands, right? It's gonna be the person that I feel somehow connected to, you know? Right.
Or I might hop, hop on a call and they're not talking all this fancy language. They're actually seeing me as a human with my own problems, and it's not cookie cutter and all those things. And I think really, like, that's what sales comes down to. It's not like- Right ... you pushing something on someone, it's building those relationships so that when they are ready for the thing, when they're ready to write that check or hand over that credit card or, you know, give you that purchase order, like, you're the one 'cause you have already established that you can be trusted.
Yeah. But also you can figure things out.
Deborah Newton: Right. Right, and if you can't... You know, I had a client that would say, "I want good news fast and bad news faster." Yeah. You know? Though i- in that same, we don't... I'm not gonna have all the answers. I don't have a magic- Right ... I'm not gonna come in and I, I, I can't. A- and- Mm-hmm If, if that's what the expectation is, then I will gladly, respectfully decline.
Like, that's- Mm-hmm ... and that's okay because if I can't or I'm not going to, to have those open conversations, you know my intention is to give you everything that you need and, and want- Yeah ... to help. So it's not anything that I'm holding information. Right. I think that goes a long way, too. You know? Yeah.
There's, there's different times, there, there's different circumstances, you know, but that's where the relationship-
Toby Myles: Yes ...
Deborah Newton: really comes into play. And, and yeah, there's... People will... I mean, granted there's reviews, which I, I read, I take them with a grain of salt because it's, it's known that people that are writing those are either happy or they wanna shout it from the rooftops how happy they are or how mad they are.
Mm-hmm,
Toby Myles: mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: You know?
Toby Myles: Yeah,
Deborah Newton: yep. It's really the extreme of, of that, so to kind of make your own evaluations based on those. Yeah. But it's true, the relationship piece of it and, and that trust, especially- Yes ... when you have somebody in your home. But it's just, I mean, the, my... When you were telling that story, it makes me think of, like, for doctors or for therapists or for, like, mechanics, like, that trust piece of it, you're going to
ask around for people that have had that similar-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: situation.
Toby Myles: Like- Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: that's a very... A- and again, coaching especially- Yeah ... you're getting, you're getting pretty intimate with your conversations, and you have to.
Toby Myles: Yeah, right, right.
Deborah Newton: And if you don't, then you're wasting your time.
Toby Myles: Yeah. But also for things more technical, and I love that you touched on this, like, it's okay s- it's okay to say, "I don't know, but I will find out for you," right?
Like, I come from a world of, uh, before I started my business, I was in direct response marketing, and I was managing huge national and international mail campaigns and email campaigns, and had been with my company for 15 years. So surely I knew if I didn't know the answer, I had been there long enough that I knew I could find somebody with the answer.
And I said that often as, like, a client would ask me something, "I don't know, but I will find out for you." And I would go and find out. And if I didn't know, I would say, "Okay, who, who do you know that can help me do this?" And I think, like, that's such a key part of building that trust, right? Like-
Deborah Newton: Yes, yeah
Toby Myles: it's almost more important than, like, trying to act like you know it all, right? I- 'Cause nobody believes that you actually do know it all. I don't mean you specifically. No, I think- I mean, like, all of us, right?
Deborah Newton: Exactly. No, and I think that that's great, and I think that there's... That, that's huge. And whether you're networking within your company, whether you've been there 15 days or 15 years- Mm-hmm
I think to network and to know people and to sponge from that, it does take a c- it's a community of people. I know, like- Yeah ... it takes a village. And, and nor- not everyone should have that, the an- to everything. The- Right ... which that's just not fair. But to network within your organizations as well as your, your family's- You know, you don't wanna be that guy at the dinner party trying to sell everybody.
But, but to learn and to gain more information and to, to have that person- Mm-hmm ... to call, whether it's your church community or, or again, family or friend groups or, you know, I think always having that. And what's, that's what I love to do. I love people and being able to kind of build them and, and, and put them into the fold so that way if somebody does call.
I had a client- Mm-hmm ... call once, this is when I was living in Dallas, and it was a bad, like, windstorm, and their fence blew over. Mm-hmm. Now, I wasn't in fencing. I didn't, but it- they knew I was pretty well-connected.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And was like, "Hey, do you know anybody?" And, uh, again, the Michigander that's there, I'm like, "Uh."
I'm like- ... "You know what? Let me call." And I called my friend Darryl and, and he was in the industrial space as far as, like, the en- working with engineers. And so by, it, it might have, like you said, going back to the connecting of the dots, but- Yeah ... someone got something for someone.
Toby Myles: Yeah. You
Deborah Newton: know? And, and that, that's when I'm like, "Okay, I've really built value."
Like, that was when a light bulb was going on. I really bui- built value with, and trust, where-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: this person's able to call me for something that has- Yeah ... nothing to do with work, that is absolutely... Which, I don't know. Again, hindsight.
Toby Myles: Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Right. So I mean, we started this conversation just by talking about, um, the challenges that your mom faced and just how she kept going.
Um, and looking back on it, you know, that really kind of inspired you to know that, like, yeah, I can do hard things. I can figure things out. Mm-hmm. Um, so when things get challenging, what is it that you tell yourself to keep going?
Deborah Newton: Oh gosh. A lot of things I have to stop. I'll, I'll admit, like I wish it, again, was rainbows and sunshine, unicorns always. But that, you know, understanding, realizing that I immediately flip to like the negative self-talk. Like I, I, I c- catch myself and, um, have made a very conscious effort to catch it and stop it i- immediately.
Like switching up that train of thought and like interrupting that, that negative thought is... I, I have to, 'cause then that's when you spiral and it goes out of control. But I, I think, I mean, to pray, I mean, to please God, usually starts with that . But also I've been repeat- Like there's certain... I was listening to a podcast recently, you know, to have something to say to kind of flip it around to, to change that frequency of the, the energy that you have going through.
I- it really depends. M- more recently than not it's, it's you're safe, you're safe, you're safe. Like it, you know, the sky isn't falling. So anything that can help me flip out of that and think of something different. It's, it's almost like s- type the email but don't hit send, you know? It's, if I can just- Yeah
you know, to be able to get out of that space, walk away from it, and to try to then work on it, um- Yeah, it's not, it's almost, it's not easy. It isn't. Yeah. But I, I think that having something to fall back on, and, and prayer has always been something that is huge for me to flip into, gratitude.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: You know, especially if you're, you're praying and, and just grateful for everything that you have that is good.
You know, you can't be- Yeah ... you can't be angry and gra- angry and grateful at the same time.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: I heard that once, and I'm like, "You know what? You, you really can't," you know? Yeah. Yeah. You really can't. So I think that the changing of the thoughts and, and coming in at it. I, I always would tell people because working with other, other companies and, or being in leadership and having a team of people and having to show up in different ways, like I almost have to take myself and remove myself as if I'm speaking to a client or-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm
Deborah Newton: someone that used to be on my team. Like, it's-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: you can tell, you can tell all the vice, all the advice and, and say all the things, but then it, it's taking it yourself. Mm-hmm. It's almost like if you-
Toby Myles: Yes. Exactly ... put
Deborah Newton: yourself out of it.
Toby Myles: I think that's so interesting, too, that, um, it, it... Sometimes we start to just spin, right?
Mm. And breaking that cycle of just going in that spinning of, you know, "This is terrible." Yeah. "This is awful. I can't figure it out. I..." You know, "The sky is falling. Everything's terrible," whatever. Um, and, and those things usually aren't true, you know? But the challenge is, how do you break that cycle, you know?
Mm. Or if you have a series of bad days and you just feel like, "I just... This is... I can't do this. I'm ready to give up," you know? Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And then- No, I think the breaking the cycle, I think that that... And, and it is. Mm-hmm. It, it's the patterns. It's, it's being self-aware of, "Okay, why am I feeling this way? What is it that-" Mm-hmm
immediately flood in all... If it's any type of failure or rejection or it's immediately all of the other stuff that's in the archives just-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: in the head. You know? Like, it's, it's going to that extreme and to a very manic side of it where it's like, "No, isolate it. This is this." Mm-hmm. "It's not anything else."
Right. But I think that awarene- that awareness piece is, is huge.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: It, it really is. And being able to... And that's why I like to interrupt the pattern. It's, or interrupt the thought, interrupt that so that you're not going in that loop. Mm-hmm. And again, it, it takes, uh, the awareness to understand it, you know?
Yeah. And then try to walk yourself, you know, walk it back. It- it's- Yeah ... challenging, yeah. So I'm not saying that I have it all figured out.
Toby Myles: Yep, right.
Deborah Newton: But...
Toby Myles: No. We'll see. Neither do I. Yeah. I mean, I feel like, you know, m- for me, some of the hardest days have, have been losing a big client, right? Like, it happens.
You're in business for... This is my seventh year. It, it happens for a variety of reasons. Yeah. And even though I don't take it personally, I know it's not personal, it's business, it feels personal, right? Of course. It feels very personal. Oh. And some stick with me more than others because of how the, they gave me the news.
Uh, but, you know, I always joke that I allow myself a little pity party- Mm-hmm ... you know, for, you know, a night, the rest of the night, and sit on the couch with my Ben & Jerry's and... But then the next day it's like, okay, like-
Deborah Newton: That
Toby Myles: happened ... uh, that happened. Now what? You know, now I have space to take on another client.
Maybe I didn't like that work anyway, and, you know, it is actually a blessing in disguise. Right. Right? Yeah.
Deborah Newton: Oh, that I've noticed a lot too, of, like, the things that, again, the hindsight.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: That might be your title for this, 'cause it really is- Yeah. I know,
Toby Myles: right? ...
Deborah Newton: hard in the moment. It's... And you know, it's crazy because that same piece is- E- especially when it comes to your business, and the clients and people that I'm talking to, business owners, the...
That's our baby.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm. Yes.
Deborah Newton: You know? We get it. So, and I mean, that actually was how you were putting food on the table for your family. You know, like-
Toby Myles: Right ...
Deborah Newton: any, any situation, it's, yeah, how you're paying your bill. It's your livelihood. So-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: again, having that self-awareness and kind of removing yourself out of it, not taking it personal, but also- Yeah
when I'm working with people and I need to lift under that hood and see a little bit more that's going on-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: it's definitely, um... It's a lot. Mm. And a lot of people get to that point and, and don't want to. Yeah. They, they, they want the change, but what they need to do to get there, they think- Oh, yeah
automatically overwhelmed. Automatically I've gotta do so much. Automatically it's like, no, we're gonna link arms and figure this out together.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: But that- Yeah ... awareness and are you in your own way?
Toby Myles: Yes.
Deborah Newton: And I do it to m- I do it myself.
Toby Myles: Yeah. I, I- We all do it, right?
Deborah Newton: I see- I've done it. I do it. I try to be aware of it.
But yeah, so, but to catch yourself-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: you know, when it's happening. Mm-hmm. Like, that's what I think I'm getting better at. I know I'm getting better at, so.
Toby Myles: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, but you can't- But- You're, you can al- it... We're always so close to it that it's, it sometimes takes someone on the outside. There's some saying about you can't read the label from inside the bottle- Yes
or something like that, right? Like, it's very much like that. I've had folks- And even with all of our experience and our awareness, it still, it still takes sometimes someone else pointing something out. Like, "You know, I've noticed this," or m- you know, maybe you're... I have an accountability buddy, and, um, you know, our businesses are both, uh, seven years old, and we can do that so easily for each other.
Deborah Newton: Mm-hmm.
Toby Myles: You know, our blind spots. Like I can see- Mm-hmm ... hers and she can see mine. And yeah, you know, it doesn't always feel good. I mean, it actually, at this stage in my life, it doesn't really bother me 'cause I know that it's just one person, but I also really appreciate it because I know it's done with the best of intentions.
Sh- you know, she's trying to help me, I'm trying to help her.
Deborah Newton: And that's the biggest, that's the, the biggest part. Our ego gets in the way and immediately throws up a defense.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And it really is- Taking a beat, taking a second to step back and understand the intention of the person that's telling you X, Y, or- Yeah
sure, there's jerks everywhere. Like, that's fine. But again, the people that you work with, the culture of the team that you've built and who you are and rather than it making insecure, c- catch yourself in that moment.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: It's int- their intention was only to make me better-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: and to do better because they, that's what they want for me, whether it's- Right
something personal because they love you, they care for you, if it's a, a re- whatever that it, it's a relationship. You trust this person.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Mm-hmm. You know, if it's a stranger, sure, but that's why I don't- Yeah ... read reviews.
Toby Myles: Exactly.
Deborah Newton: You know? There's, I mean, so many people, although some of the comments and reviews people are, are hilarious, but-
just don't. Mm-hmm. You really can't... Like I said, you're really good, you're really bad, and a lot of people can be that way behind a keyboard, and-
Toby Myles: Absolutely. It's one of the worst things-
Deborah Newton: People need to ... of- It really is. It is ... of
Toby Myles: the
Deborah Newton: online... Yeah. It is. And to say it doesn't impact or it's not, I mean, uh, you'll have thousands of reviews that are great, and those two- Mm-hmm
that were not, those are the ones- Yeah ... you'll talk about.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: It's human nature.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: You know? And it, and meanwhile, the energy for the thousands of other people that had taken the time to do that is gone.
Toby Myles: Uh-huh. Yeah.
Deborah Newton: So that, in that moment, stop yourself and, you know-
Toby Myles: Yeah ...
Deborah Newton: who are they? You know? Yeah.
Toby Myles: Right.
Deborah Newton: You know?
Toby Myles: Right.
Deborah Newton: Could've been somebody who made a fake profile for all you know.
Toby Myles: Right. Of course. You took
Deborah Newton: their boyfriend. I don't
Toby Myles: know. Yeah. Took their boyfriend.
Deborah Newton: Don't know.
Toby Myles: I remember you from high school. Sorry. You took my boyfriend.
Deborah Newton: Right? They still have access to Grindr in high school, something that, I mean, it is true, no matter where
Toby Myles: it goes.
Yeah, I know. I know. You're 17- That is true ...
Deborah Newton: 17 in your hometown.
Toby Myles: Mm. Always. Oh, always. So this is usually the point in the show where I, um, ask you to share, you know, your best piece of advice for somebody that's earlier on in their journey, maybe their entrepreneurial journey than you are. Is there one thing...
And we've covered a lot of ground, so I would say this whole episode is chock-full of, like, really juicy wisdom, but could you, like, pick one thing, um, that you could share with someone if they are struggling in business or maybe they're thinking about starting a business, um, what would you tell them?
Deborah Newton: Um, similar to what we were just saying, I think that the self-awareness piece and understanding- who you are and being comfortable with that- Mm-hmm
and n- not asking for forgiveness for who you are and what you're bringing. Your, knowing your intentions of why you're doing the things. Yeah. I, I, I go back to, I d- was having this conversation with my niece just the other day, um, literally yesterday, and the only thing that you can protect is your reputation, and how you carry yourself, and the values in which you display, protect that with your life.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: And being, and, and stand, and stand true in, in your beliefs and, and what that is. I think integrity is also one that I've always-
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm ...
Deborah Newton: my mom would always say, you know, m- that is huge, you know- Yeah ... to be, to have that. I think the awareness and, and the sensitivity part, that's where the self-awareness comes into play.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: Mm-hmm. But also wanting to protect, being okay, like you had mentioned, of walking away from things, or okay if things don't work out, knowing that God has a better plan behind it for you, that it's still going to work. That- Yeah ... one day, in hindsight, you're gonna look back and it all will make sense or start to make sense, and then it'll change again, so don't get too comfortable, so.
Toby Myles: Yes, that is true. That is true. And I do think, too, that, um, y- when you stay connected to, when you know you can help people-
Deborah Newton: Mm-hmm.
Toby Myles: Your root- Ind- individuals, right? Yeah. Your intention, yeah ... or corporations, right? You stay connected to that, and, um, you know, you can't help everybody, but when you stay connected to that, then when things don't go the way you want, you still believe in what you're doing.
Deborah Newton: Absolutely, and I feel that that is something, I, I can't remember when, but if you are, if the goal is X, if the goal is to make the- customer, client happy.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: And you're in a meeting and stressed out, like, is this making... Is what we're doing here going to make the customer or client happy? Like, it- Yeah
whatever that goal is, whatever that is, as long as you, when you're in that mix of what's going on or, or not what to do, like, what is it that you want out of it? Mm-hmm. And keep on pulling that back in and making sure that alignment is still aligned.
Toby Myles: Yeah.
Deborah Newton: That, yeah. Yeah. That, that I think is a... That is... I have to remind myself of that, okay, this, if I'm veering off of, you know, which I can easily do- Mm-hmm
like set that aside for a moment and finish this piece of it. So- Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm ... a combination of all of those things are... It does ul- ultimately come back to the self-awareness part and, and understanding, you know, what it is and why you're doing it, but-
Toby Myles: Yeah. Yeah, I love that. I love that. Mm-hmm. So, uh, for anyone listening, um, if they want to connect with you, um, are you online, and where can they find you?
Deborah Newton: I am. Um, LinkedIn is where I have the most... uh, well, where I spend my most, most of my time.
Toby Myles: Mm-hmm.
Deborah Newton: There's, um... So yeah, Deborah Newton, uh, I believe it's Deborah Christine Newton is the handle after the website. So it's at LinkedIn, and then my website, um, has more information of all the fun stuff that I do, and yeah.
Yeah.
Toby Myles: I love it. Your website is gorgeous, by the way. Of course, I was- Thank you. Very much ... snooping right after we first met. So, well, this has been so much fun and amazing. As always, I never know for sure where our conversations are gonna go. Mm-hmm. Um, I know you shared some, like, vulnerable moments, um, which I appreciate.
I know it's not always easy to talk about some of these things, but, um, I, I know it'll, it'll resonate with our listeners. So again, thank you so much for being here. I really appreciate you.
Deborah Newton: Thank you. Thank you so much.