We recently connected with Charlynne Boddie and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Charlynne thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

There are several:
1) Being on the production team for the
Take It Back Foundation solid waste music video with record producer Jolie Jones, daughter of music icon Quincy Jones, that was seen as a trailer in all US movie theaters. This music video took a look at the hazards of environmental damage through solid waste and used music icons from all genres of the music industry to share the message of how to prevent solid waste. I was a regional press officer for the US Environmental Protection Agency at the time and Ms. Jones asked me to work with her on this project and help procure some federal funding to finish the video which had Bugs Bunny, Bette Midler, Kenny Loggins, Queen Latifah, Quincy Jones, Ozzy Osbourne, Stevie Wonder, Pat Benatar, Leta Ford, BB King, Natalie Cole and Barry White singing on it. (You can check out the music video on You Tube by looking for: Take It Back Foundation – Yakety Yak (Take It Back) music video.)

2) Creating five Rocky Mountain Entertainment Summits or rejuvenation retreats for entertainment industry professionals from LA, Nashville, NY and the United Kingdom. I created an atmosphere where celebs in music, TV and film had a safe place to unwind and be rejuvenated in my beautiful home state physically, mentally and spiritually.

3) Creating a unique funding project for the victims and first responders of 9/11 for a White House Event that involved Hollywood celebrities. I was able to bring in Hollywood funding for a non-partisan event that served the needs of families affected by the 9/11 attacks on America. That assignment landed me my second White House commendation.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Charlynne Boddie and I debuted on television at the early age of five with my sister Shaunya. I am a model and TV producer/host and radio presenter with a sister who is an award-winning screenwriter and director. Ever since that first time on TV, I wanted to be in front of the camera with my own TV show. By the time I was 20 years old, I had already written, produced and starred in a music video TV show that was sold to the Baptist TV Network. I had been chosen by a soap star to create that show from scratch. I had already started producing TV news in Denver, Colorado as a teenager, where I am from. And I ended up graduating with an honors degree in Communications with an emphasis in TV, film and journalism. While at college, I also started a catering company that paid for my first summer trip to the UK, where I led a drama group. (Cooking has always opened doors for me in business.)

After graduation I edited a national food magazine for about a year and then was offered a job with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Denver to be a regional press officer for six states. From there I decided to ask for a White House job. Bill Clinton was President then and the letter I sent to the White House landed me a job just six weeks later. That assignment lasted three years. I received a White House commendation for the special environmental assignments I did during my time serving that administration.

I left the EPA in 1998 and decided to begin to work on creating ColorBlind Productions with my sister Shaunya. We prayed hard for doors to open for us to meet with Oprah Winfrey at a time when there was a two-year wait to get tickets to her show in Chicago. We got tickets in just three weeks for me, my sister and my new assistant. We met Oprah on her birthday and got some real private time with her after the show taping. She was very intrigued with us and the vision behind our new company ColorBlind Productions. That was miracle number one.

Miracle number two was that I was asked to come to a TV network in the Chicago area to do an interview about my life coaching book: True Grid. As the executive producer sat in the booth watching my interview, he decided to ask if I’d consider being the film critic for his network. I said yes and he said I’d have to get the Hollywood door to press junkets open by myself. So I signed the deal knowing that my sister and I already had a completed TV demo for the film review TV show we wanted to call “Reel Sisters”. Now we just needed that Hollywood door to open. I coach that each one of us is only one conversation away from greatness. I was preaching to myself for that next door to open.

Miracle number three happened right after that. As soon as we got home from signing the deal to broadcast our “Reel Sisters” film review TV show worldwide, I got a phone call from an LA publicist who wanted to represent me. He called me on a Tuesday and asked me if I was going to be busy on Friday night, just three days later. I said I’d just returned from Chicago where I signed a deal for a new TV show. He asked what the ‘handprint’ on the show was and I said 312 million homes worldwide would be watching me. He then asked for the name of my show and I told him. Then he said if you get a call from Universal Pictures in the next hour, just say yes. So in less than one hour, I received a call from Universal Pictures saying that they had booked me on a flight to LAX and they welcomed me to Hollywood to interview Oscar-winner Kevin Kline for the movie The Emperor’s Club. That was my green light to enter the Hollywood press junket circuit that only has 500 places for the international press. The first Hollywood dream of my sister and me had come true! The Reel Sisters TV show ran from 2002-2006, with that open door from Universal Pictures.

In 2006 I relocated to the United Kingdom to give more attention to my life coaching work and there I created a charity to help people all over Europe and the Mediterranean. I modeled, created a catering consultancy there, wrote a book, did radio and TV shows, helped people young and old in trouble, spoke in British governmental circles, spoke in every level of education, coached business leaders and entertainment leaders and counseled women who had been trafficked.

I left the UK in 2023 and am currently working on a new travel book and developing a new entertainment podcast with my screenwriter sister.

What makes what I offer as a life coach different from most folks is the wide range of spheres that I have worked in throughout my life: government and military, business, education, religion, media, arts and entertainment and family. I have been given insight into helping people from all walks of life to help them reach what I call their Xtreme Dreams. Not only have I written the curriculum for what I teach but I first taught myself how to move in and out of these spheres, affecting change and then paying it forward by helping others to do the same. I have worked for several US Presidents and also been successful in Hollywood—two of the most influential places on planet Earth. I believe every single person on the planet has a unique package of God-given gifts that need to be discovered, used and stewarded in such a way that not only is the person fulfilled but that person has the ability to live out that greatness so that it touches the lives of others, bringing positive changes to the communities they are called to.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The best source of new clients for me has always been word of mouth referrals. Over the years, my life coaching clients, young and old have shared insights from the journey I have walked with them to others who are looking for ways to reach their own Xtreme Dreams. Though I have written the textbook and workbooks for my Xtreme Dream Coaching Program, I often create custom-designed strategies for others to reach the manifestation of that dream they have. Having worked in all seven spheres of societal influence, there are multiple stories of success to draw upon with various clients around the globe.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I moved to the UK in 2006, there was a ton of speaking, coaching and teaching that I was asked to do all over England and Scotland. Then there was a period where some of that slowed down. When that happened, I began to ask myself: What now?

I come from a family of real chefs and my grandfather was a five-star chef in New York. So when my speaking gigs slowed down during one season in the UK, I began to think creatively about creating an American food consultancy that would help area business leaders add to their restaurant businesses. So I created tasting trays of all of my best American desserts. Soon I had created: C.A.K.E. Charlynne’s American Kitchen and Events. That opened the door for me to created menus and special desserts for various British restaurants that wanted to feature American fare. Restaurant owners also began to have me taste their entrees before selling them to the British public. I grew red and green apple trees on my property and had a cherry tree too. I used my own produce to make American Apple Butter and sell it. No one had ever had apple butter and it was a big hit. British tea rooms even asked me to create signature sweet breads for them. That caused British gourmet stores to ask me to do American Cooking Classes for British food fairs. My American Cooking classes always sold out in about 30 minutes. It was the right pivot at the right time and loads of fun.

Contact Info:

• Website: HTTPS://www.charlynne.com
• Instagram: @charlynneboddie
• Facebook: Charlynne Boddie
• Linkedin: HTTPS://www.linkedin.com/in/charlynne-boddie-ba154014
• Twitter: @CharlynneBoddie
• Youtube: HTTPS://www.youtube.com/charlynne boddie

Image Credits

My head shot is by John S Miller