We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Patricia Gras a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Patricia, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
We recently finished a documentary on sex trafficking (Modern Day Slavery) that we shot in Houston, one of the hubs for this type of trafficking. As a producer with over 3 decades of experience, I decided to do this with a team of talented award winning friends without paying too much attention to funding the project. We donated our time and talent to get it done because we felt it was important for our community to know what is really going on in secret inside our borders. We raised 6500 dollars and paid those in the team who had the greatest need, but it was much less than what they deserved. Most Americans believe trafficking happens elsewhere by foreigners which is a serious myth. Trafficking is happening right here in the United states online and has increased by 40 percent due to the Covid pandemic and children spending so much time online.
The mission of my company is to cover issues people don’t like to cover and also to do positive stories about interesting people. There is too much despair and fear in our society but our goal is now to focus on solutions, not problems.
Patricia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
After studying international business/economics in undergraduate and getting a dual masters degree from Thunderbird in Arizona and Esade in Barcelona Spain, I worked for two years as a product manager in Spain and France. Then life took another turn and I became a broadcast journalist for Telemundo in Houston. I then chose to get my masters in journalism from Columbia University in New York city. Fortunately the local Houston PBS station hired me right after and I worked there for the following 22 years as a producer/reporter/anchor. In 2013 many of us over 50 were laid off at the station. I then started my own production company called Love Smart Living Smart Media LLC. It is also known as patriciagras productions LLC. Since then I have worked on several features of extraordinary people and most recently our documentary on sex trafficking (Modern Day Slavery)
I would say what sets my company apart from others is my Emmy award winning team with the same values. We want to make the world a better place by focusing on solutions to serious problems and featuring those whose mission in life is to serve others.
I am most proud of my team, especially because they live purpose driven lives. We all feel we are not on earth just to occupy space or make lots money. We are here to make a difference through our work. We are here to serve our community. Of course we have to make a living, but it is not our ultimate goal. We believe in integrity, education and wisdom. We hope our work shows our values.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
I have worked in the Houston market most of my working life. While working I have won over 170 broadcasting awards including 8 TV Emmys, but the reason I have been able to build my reputation is my commitment to excellence in the stories i have produced or the shows I have hosted. Living Smart with patricia Gras aired in over 200 PBS stations across the nation. Then I continued to interview interesting guests in Passion Time with Patricia Gras. Reputation is built by word of mouth. If you do a project well, all you have to tell your next client to talk to those you have served. In my case that has worked very well.
How do you keep your team’s morale high?
To manage a team and maintain high morale you must respect and honor the talent of your team. You must give them credit for everything they do. You must cheer them on when mistakes are made with love and compassion. Most importantly don’t ever think you alone have done “anything” in production. I takes a team. Whenever I talk about any project I talk about my team and refer to the project as something WE have done, not I have done. I have never taken credit for anything someone else on my team has done. In fact I truly believe that my success depends on making the people around me successful, allowing them to shine and enjoy the work.
Contact Info:
- Website: patriciagras.com
- Instagram: patricia_gras
- Facebook: patricia Gras
- Linkedin: Patricia Gras
- Twitter: patricia Gras
- Youtube: Living Smart with Patricia Gras