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31. Gritty Is the New Pretty: How Tragedy Changed My Trajectory, Host Krystle Edwards
53 Plays1 month ago
In this episode we celebrate 30 episodes, 5,000+ downloads., heard in 29+ countries.
And since we’re celebrating all that Gritty Is the New Pretty has become…I’m taking you back to where it actually started. My leadership journey wasn't linear or wrapped in achievement. It showed up in the wreckage. This episode is the part of my story I’ve never told start to finish — the actual origin of Liz Rocks, Grit City Women, and why “gritty is the new pretty” became more than a phrase. It became my trajectory. After losing my best friend Liz in an avalanche, I had to choose who I would become next. That choice changed my life and built everything that came after.
What followed?
A nonprofit built from nothing.
$150K raised with hometown grit.
A company born from clarity.
Multi-million-dollar change driven from the inside out.
Amplifying women's voices across borders
I learned that Grit isn’t just endurance. Grit is frequency. It’s the signal you hold when life shifts. If you’ve ever stood at a turning point and felt the ground shift beneath you, this one is for you.
Join the movement:
• Follow on IG: @gritcitywomen + @grittyisthenewpretty + @lizrocksfoundation
• Learn more: LizRocks.com | gritcitywomen.com
If this hit home, tap ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and share with a friend who’s ready for their next big move
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Gritty is the New Pretty'
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to Gritty is the New Pretty, where resilience meets real talk. I'm your host, Crystal, entrepreneur, leadership coach, change maker, and outdoor enthusiast.
Stories of Resilience and Success
00:00:15
Speaker
Join me as I sit down with powerhouse women leaders, entrepreneurs, and small business owners who share their raw, unfiltered stories of success, struggle, and the grit it takes to make an impact.
00:00:27
Speaker
From navigating change to redefining success, we'll explore what it takes to rise, lead, and thrive. Expect raw conversations to fuel your journey, whether you're breaking down barriers in life or in business.
00:00:42
Speaker
We're redefining success, not by perfection, but by the strength it takes to rise again and again. Because in this space, gritty is the new pretty.
Sponsor Introduction
00:00:53
Speaker
Hit subscribe and let's get gritty with it.
Milestone Reflections
00:00:58
Speaker
This episode is sponsored by Hey Beck's Creative House, founded by brand strategist Becky LaFranche, known for building crave-worthy brands that blend story, soul, and strategy.
00:01:10
Speaker
Explore the work at heybecks.com.
00:01:17
Speaker
Welcome to Gritty is the New Pretty. This is going to be my first solo episode, something a little different than our usual layout where we have a wonderful guest. And I wanted to take this time because we've reached some great milestones and I wanted to thank all my listeners, all my loyal listeners, new listeners, and just the community that's come forward to support Gritty is the new pretty.
00:01:45
Speaker
We've had 30 episodes and over a few years We have reached over 5,000 downloads and have reached over 29 countries with our biggest listenership here in the Pacific Northwest, Seattle, Tacoma, and then a growing listenership in Ireland and Europe that I'm really excited about. So I just wanted to take that moment to celebrate with everybody and give my sincerest gratitude for the support.
00:02:14
Speaker
I never thought in a million years that my voice would be heard around the world and that I'd be able to have a platform for other women in the community doing great work to also have their voices and their stories heard around the world as well. So I want to thank you all for that.
Origin of the Podcast: Liz's Story
00:02:33
Speaker
And I also wanted to use this episode to share the evolution of Gritty is the New Pretty and my story and how I sort of got to be the host of this podcast.
00:02:45
Speaker
And it really started out of tragedy-like. um I lost my best friend in an avalanche in 2014. It's been years, but it's still pretty hard to talk about.
00:03:00
Speaker
Liz was an amazing person. She was a mountain guide professional snowboarder. And um she impacted a lot of people. And when she died, ah group of us friends in Tacoma, we just decided that we had to do something in our honor.
00:03:20
Speaker
um And rock climbing wall came to mind. And so we really turned that grief and that loss into this mission to continue her legacy and provide an opportunity for others to experience the outdoors and to push themselves and to what we like to say is live like Liz.
00:03:47
Speaker
She was an incredible person, so bubbly. I never met anybody who had anything negative to say about her. She truly did impact and inspire many people all over the world.
00:04:00
Speaker
And so we created the Liz Rocks Foundation. And in just two years, this group of friends that we all used to hang out with and we grew up here in Tacoma and, you know, used to get into a lot of ruckus here. um We raised $150,000 for a climbing wall.
00:04:22
Speaker
We surprised ourselves and we surprised everybody who was partnering with us, but um we really knocked it out of the park and it was so much fun. And the climbing wall is now getting ready to launch after 11 years of work and waiting and um just pivoting and all the things that come with such a long-term project like this. It's going to launch in the Pearl Street Family YMCA and it's incredible.
Liz Rocks Foundation and Climbing Wall
00:04:53
Speaker
It's basically a home memorial for Liz. The wall is amazing and it'll have photos of Liz and also essentially what it is is a space for youth to connect with outdoors at the Y. So it'll guide them through
00:05:10
Speaker
kind of climbing, basic outdoor ah fundamentals and safety things. And Liz is going to be that guide for them. So she's really kind of living on and guiding for kids.
Grit City Women and Pandemic Pivot
00:05:23
Speaker
And during the this whole 12 years with Liz Rocks, I was building website, I built the website, I you know was talking to donors, we held two auction events with over 250 people, doing all the marketing and planning, something I've never done before, um totally out of my normal career scope. And I noticed that I felt kind of lost.
00:05:52
Speaker
Um, and I don't even know if lost, I think I was driven by the mission and by my passion for honoring Liz, but I had never done anything like this. And I really felt alone. a lot of the times I felt like, um, I just needed some validation. Like, is this seem right? Some feedback. And, um, I had some other friends doing really great things in the community.
00:06:19
Speaker
women and that sort of inspired me to start Grit City Women. And that was a group for female entrepreneurs, small business owners and leaders to connect and share what they're doing, give feedback, support one another.
00:06:37
Speaker
and i really just felt that there was a gap there in our community for something like that. And I i wanted that for myself and to also help Liz Rocks continue to move forward and grow. and we launched Grit City Women 2019.
00:06:54
Speaker
two thousand and nineteen And it was going so well. We had monthly events. It was amazing. And the pandemic hit.
00:07:06
Speaker
So we stopped our in-person events and, um, That was a hard, that was hard adjustment. It would just, I had a lot of close friends and members that were struggling and their businesses were struggling and it just didn't feel right to continue in that same way. And also we were just very much an in-person group. We did pivot virtually, but like I said, it was, it was hard.
00:07:33
Speaker
So I decided a way that I could keep uplifting women in our community and sharing their stories and their voices was to start a podcast. Originally, i had it titled Grit and Grind.
00:07:47
Speaker
And I published a few episodes. And that did pretty well. You know, during the pandemic, I think people were looking for things to listen to. And now podcasting is definitely everywhere, which is amazing.
00:08:01
Speaker
um And At one point, I decided that I really needed to kind of rebrand and that the podcast was going to be a way that really fit my life. um with being getting married and having two kids now, um it's something that's, that I can carry forward and that I'm passionate about and really investing a lot of energy towards um bringing you all really different stories from women doing different things that can hopefully teach you something and inspire you um just to, to do something you've never done before.
00:08:35
Speaker
So that's how really gritty is the new pretty came to life. And,
00:08:44
Speaker
I have to, you know, I have to attribute that to the loss of my friend. um I wouldn't be here. I wouldn't have thought of Grit City Women. I never would have thought that I could do the things that I've done if it weren't for her.
Personal Growth Inspired by Liz
00:09:01
Speaker
And she inspired me in a lot of ways. And I remember when about two weeks before she passed away, we had had lunch and She was always trying to get me to go climbing with her. And she's like, let's climb Mount Baker, let's climb Mount Baker. And at that point, i had barely even hiked before. And I had also suffered ah really bad back injury in college, at a car accident. And I had two herniated discs.
00:09:32
Speaker
So, you know, at one point, I couldn't even walk a block without being in excruciating pain for days. And I've since overcome that, but you know, her encouraging me to climb a mountain was just insane.
00:09:47
Speaker
And I was like, no, I can't do it. There's no way, there's no way. And she did not give up. She's like, you know, we'll try it. We'll see how far we can go. like let's just go spend time on the mountain. And I just was like, okay, you know, you're crazy. This is never going to happen.
00:10:05
Speaker
And A few weeks later, i was down in San Diego um for work and I found out that she had died on Facebook.
00:10:16
Speaker
um And that was awful and devastating. And I think there's a lot of great things about social media, but I think finding about someone you love passing away on there is really, really hard. um So when I found out, you know, really lit a fire under me, number one, to pursue Liz Rocks Foundation and build this climbing wall, but also in my own personal growth to climb mountains. Like I wanted to climb that mountain that we never got to climb. And so I ended up summiting Mount Baker.
00:10:57
Speaker
A few years, and don't know, probably three or four years after she passed. And um I summited with my dad and a couple other of our friends. And the guide that took us was her lead guide that was training her because she was working towards her guide guiding certification.
00:11:17
Speaker
um And it was really incredible experience and it was hard. It was incredibly hard. So after but Baker, I really wanted to continue that. I loved it. It was amazing. It was just beautiful. The sights that you see, I totally felt close to her.
00:11:36
Speaker
And I ended up summiting Mount Rainier with a group of friends. I was on an all women's rope team and there were only three of us, but we did it. And that was the physically the hardest a thing I've ever done in my life.
00:11:51
Speaker
And I kind of struggled at about 11,000 feet um with oxygen. i think it might have been my asthma. i was struggling, but I mean, I just one foot in front of the other and we
Encouragement and Perseverance
00:12:04
Speaker
made it. And i also, again, with some friends and my dad ended up summiting with me and um i would never have done that if it weren't for Liz and if it weren't for her encouraging me to believe in myself and just try it and try new things. And so that grit and that fortitude is really one of the key messages through Gritty is the New Pretty that I really want women to carry with them is, you know, you don't have to know how to do something perfectly the first time.
00:12:45
Speaker
you just have to try. And you can learn the world is at your fingertips. There's the internet, there's groups now developing with other women and, and just, you'd be surprised the support you can get if you just put yourself out there and,
00:13:03
Speaker
I really want to bring that energy and that spirit to all the women out there listening and to women that are trying to make changes in their community or the workplace or even in their own lives so they can thrive.
00:13:19
Speaker
That, you know, really one foot in front of the other, you know, the good old kick step, just dig in and kick and step one at a time um, um stay with it because that grit eventually will pay off. And for me, it's really paid off in a lot of things that I've done in my career.
00:13:40
Speaker
initiating changes that have saved billions of dollars and also, um you know, minimized the safety risks to some of my my fellow employees, which was huge for for us and um outside, obviously, in the community working with Liz Rocks and some of the other volunteer work that I've been able to accomplish has been really challenging. And a lot of those projects were long-term projects. So it's not like we're getting together on the weekend and we're going to do a thing and it's done. ah The vision is a long-term vision. And a lot of the things have taken years to do.
00:14:21
Speaker
i mean, probably at least everything more than five years to do and not everything worked out in my favor. um Some of them didn't go as planned, which that's,
00:14:33
Speaker
life right that is part of the risk and that is part of the gritty mentality we have to take when we fail i mean i don't consider it a fail for me personally i think it's a failure for some of the other people that were involved and i don't mean people specifically but more of the agencies that were involved in some of the projects i was working on um But, you know, it was just ah it was a hump that we had to get over.
00:15:00
Speaker
And then another example was in my workplace, right, there was a long term solution that I was fighting for.
00:15:10
Speaker
And at the end of the day, the solution that I envisioned wasn't what actually ended up happening. However, The goal was accomplished.
00:15:24
Speaker
So although it wasn't what I originally thought from my level, which at that time I was a basically entry level kind of employee technician. So I was working with a lot of senior executives and headquarters and I was flying.
00:15:41
Speaker
over the country to, to work on this and thinking, okay, there's, there's a solution. We're going to find the solution. We're going to find the solution, which nobody has done before in that position. So that was a huge privilege and also a huge catalyst to really my leadership journey where I was engaging with executive leaderships really early on in my career.
00:16:07
Speaker
And, um, Eventually, ah solution was reached. And it wasn't my initial like vision. But it was a win.
00:16:18
Speaker
And it was if I had not done that work, if I had not pushed that work, if I had not sat in rooms where people laughed at my idea, and laughed at my goal, because that's literally happened. um They laughed at me.
00:16:33
Speaker
And I kind of responded, I, I think we deserve the best and I think we should give our people the best and we should be doing more. And they kind of got quiet. And ever since then, I started on this this journey and my um boss at the time when the end result came out,
00:16:55
Speaker
I had been promoted a couple levels up. So now I was directly working under one of the executive leaders that I had been working with when I was an entry level employee. And she said to me, you know, this would have never happened without the work that you've done.
Professional Achievements and Leadership
00:17:13
Speaker
And She definitely recognized me, you know, ideally the whole and organization would have recognized me for that work, but that's just not how it works. And I think we all kind of know that sometimes in these bigger organizations, especially male dominated industries, but, um,
00:17:33
Speaker
Knowing that she said that and that she knows that and a lot of people that saw kind of what I went through when others were doubting what I was doing and what I was trying to accomplish.
00:17:43
Speaker
It was really meaningful to know that. And so, you know, that grit and that determination, that's all confidence that I started to get through Liz Rocks and through climbing and through my work with Grit City Women. And it's about being a change maker and it's about learning and growing and challenging some of the old systems just because we've been doing it that way.
00:18:11
Speaker
forever or for a long time, which I hear a lot of people say, well, that's how we've always done it. My immediate response doesn't mean you've been doing it right. Because people get stuck in what's easy and what's convenient.
00:18:26
Speaker
And I always like to question, why are we doing this? Is this the right thing? Is this the right thing now? And now, if you're a repeat listener, then you've probably heard me talk about change management a lot.
Future of Liz Rocks Foundation
00:18:40
Speaker
and my journey with innovation, with innovating in my workplace, and also in the community, building brands and building visions and bringing them to life, I realized that there's so much potential in the change management industry.
00:18:57
Speaker
And it sounds like a technical term. It sounds very technical and boring and lame. However, i will say that it is people-focused. It's really looking at the impact of changes to the people that are affected by them, whether that's internal staff or external staff or community.
00:19:16
Speaker
So I use those skill sets and everything I do. And I had already developed those just through the work I was doing in the community and then becoming a certified change manager and now practicing it. And my professional work is been really great. And it's making me even, um,
00:19:35
Speaker
stronger at influencing change and new ideas and bringing visions to life. So that is something that I hold very close to my heart is guiding leadership through these processes and, you know, bringing my own lived experience to the table, not just what I've learned in the classroom. That's how I've always been.
00:19:57
Speaker
I'm, i'm I just want to take this time to share a little bit about my story and hopefully inspire some of you and just give you background on some of the little nuggets I've been dropping in each episode.
00:20:13
Speaker
And i you know, I've mentioned that the wall is launching in January, 2026. I mean, this is huge. I've seen it and it's beautiful and it's very meaningful to a lot of people and I just wanted to celebrate that and share that story with you. It's called the Liz Rocks Foundation. You can go check out LizRocksFoundation.com to learn more about us and about Liz.
00:20:40
Speaker
And um you can see some early pictures of the wall. We won't have um more detail up until after the wall launches on the community event. And we're also really happy to share that we have been featured as one of the hometown charities for the Subaru Share the Love event. So Tacoma Subaru is going to be donating $250 to every Subaru sold um to the Liz Rocks Foundation. So I've been seeing commercials about Liz Rocks. I've been hearing them on the radio.
00:21:16
Speaker
It's like that moment where a musician hears their song on the radio for the first time and they lose it. I'm like driving within the car with my kids and I hear this commercial and I totally forgot they were doing radio ads.
00:21:29
Speaker
But it was so cool to be in the car and just hear it and really feel like this project is coming to life after all of this time and that we're getting support. And we're going to be able to kick off this wall opening with a donation from Tacoma Subaru, which would be really, really great for us. And we use the donations that we get now that the wall is being built and funded.
00:21:53
Speaker
Those donations are going to provide scholarships for underrepresented youth to reach new peaks. So we brought climbing to an urban community. So kids that are using the Y wall or other kids in the area that are really interested in getting outdoors, we fund those opportunities. So we funded snowshoeing trips, um like the rented the buses to go snowshoeing on Mount Rainier. And we've had two students take an outdoor leadership course. It was a nine day course on Mount Baker where they were ice climbing, doing crevasse rescue, rope rescue.
00:22:27
Speaker
um And they actually both summited Mount Baker, which is huge at 16, 15, 16, they summited. So those kids now have that confidence that I didn't get until I was like 31.
00:22:41
Speaker
So
Liz's Legacy and Influence
00:22:42
Speaker
those are ah yeah things that we continue to do in Liz's honor. And that's the work that Liz Rocks Foundation does. So all the funds that we get will continue to provide those scholarships.
00:22:55
Speaker
And we're just really excited that we have a home base, like a base camp. And we have a climbing wall, a Liz Rocks climbing wall, where we can do programming um events. Community groups and other outdoor groups and youth groups can use the wall for free through Liz Rocks.
00:23:12
Speaker
So we just book the time for them. So it's accessible to the public in that way if they're not Y members. And we just can't be more excited about what's happening right now and the momentum and This is how it ties into what I do with Grit City Women.
00:23:31
Speaker
um You know, Liz was a woman in the mountaineering industry, and she would tell me stories about guiding and some of her interactions with men that didn't think she could guide or didn't, you know, didn't believe in her skill set, mostly mostly clients, not people that she worked with. But um she faced a lot of barriers in that way, and she was really groundbreaking.
00:23:56
Speaker
in the outdoor industry. She was one of the first female split boarders, which if you don't know what that is, that's essentially she can ski up and then when she gets to the top of a mountain, she can take off the skins and clip the skis together and it becomes her snowboard and she rides the snowboard down.
00:24:16
Speaker
She's rode down um some very prominent peaks in Washington State on her snowboard and was the first person to even do it on a snowboard.
00:24:26
Speaker
So she's broken records in that sense. And she's also inducted into the Tacoma Pierce County Hall of Fame in 2019 as the first snowboarder.
00:24:38
Speaker
And she's also in the Stadium High School Hall of Fame, Sports Hall of Fame. Um, so, you know, she's really, her legacy is really living on and she was an incredible athlete. I have no doubt if she was alive today, that she would be a world renowned outdoor athlete.
00:25:01
Speaker
i I don't know if I want to say influencer, but she would be very well known for her technical abilities and also her lovability. If you go to the website or, you know, look up anything um about Liz, you will see some of the pictures and things that she did. And she was just such a bright, shiny spirit.
00:25:20
Speaker
So, you know, that impact was huge. And that was right when social media was kind of, I won't say coming out because I don't really know when it officially launched. But I remember her telling me about Instagram and saying, and I have these followers from all over, you know, the world and, you know, looking at my mountain pictures. And we were just kind of like, okay, that's weird. You know, we didn't obviously know what it was going to evolve into.
00:25:46
Speaker
So, like I said, I have no doubt that she would be. known worldwide and and a worldwide outdoor athlete at this point. And um now we can say that she is living on and continuing to to do that 12 years later, even after she's gone. So that's really the story of how Gritty became the new pretty for me.
Engaging with the Podcast
00:26:13
Speaker
And I'd love to hear what that means to you. Please feel free to follow us on Instagram,
00:26:22
Speaker
at grit city women or gritty is the new pretty. You can also go to grit city women.com. That's where the podcast lives. And, uh, you can email me if you have a story to share or any feedback. I'd love to, um, have you rate the podcast or leave a comment. If you like an episode or like what you hear, that all really helps me continue to do the work that I'm doing. And um,
00:26:51
Speaker
Look forward to getting gritty with you. Thank you so much.
00:26:58
Speaker
Born from the spirit of Grit City Women, Gritty is the New Pretty carries the torch, amplifying the voices, stories, and power of women who lead with resilience, purpose, and unapologetic grit.
00:27:11
Speaker
To support Gritty is the New Pretty, follow us on Instagram at Grit City Women or shop our online store at gritcitywomen.com.