Letitia was dubbed by client friend Alice Cooper as “The Auctiontainer” which is now a common phrase and the method of auctiontainment is now taught. She is a published author and public speaker. Her new book “No Reserve” is about living a limitless life as an auctiontainer.
LAS120: Letitia Frye “No Reserve” book
Living Life With No Reserve
Letitia was dubbed by client friend Alice Cooper as “The Auctiontainer” which is now a common phrase and the method of auctiontainment is now taught. She is a published author and public speaker. Her new book “No Reserve” is about living a limitless life as an auctiontainer. Reserve is when you go all in on buying something without setting a reserve price. The idea is “are you going all in with your life?” Letitia says, “Through a series of adversities and tragedies over nine years of my life my friends started to ask me, “How do you keep getting up?” I realized there was a set way that I did it, so I wrote it down. Everyone has a book in them. Getting it from thought to paper to publishing isn’t an easy task. It evolved in the time that it should have. I got forty different airport stores in the midst of a pandemic which was interesting for me. What was humbling for me was when I was able to record my own voice for the audiobook which has been fantastic. The timing for right now feels like a handbook for covid. I wanted to make a book that anyone could read. Accessible, not intimidating and have it be a roadmap for people going through struggles. We create “ifs” in our mind that we’ll tell ourselves which is really something created out of fear to hold us back. This book is about overcoming that fear and living a limitless life and go for what you want. “This is not a dress rehearsal.” What we learn is that if there’s ever been a giant reset button for the world, it’s right now. This is a giant opportunity to be living the life that you want. These life lessons are things that they don’t teach at Harvard. It is a book with nitty gritty personal experience that will help you move forward and come out better than you are.”
Rising to Auctiontainer Status
“I discovered being an auctioneer a month before leaving my ex. It was October 1st of 2004 when I first got hit by the auction bug. I remember because it was my son’s first birthday. I was a professional model and was invited to go be an emcee for a friend’s charity event when the auctioneer they had arranged for didn’t show up. She had four items – a flat screen tv, a puppy, a stay in Hermosa Beach, California and a dune buggy. I got carried away and had the best time ever and we made a fortune! I got off of the stage and was thinking about how fun it was and people started asking me for a business card! There weren’t a lot of women doing it at the time, and then one year Jeff Stokes who usually does Celebrity Fight Night asked to sit down with me for coffee. He asked me where I went to auctioneer school and was appalled when I told him I never went. He was teaching one that started soon and I couldn’t get out of the meeting fast enough to sign up that day. He was my teacher and I went there for two weeks. We had fourteen hour days and I got called from an auction house when I got back and got a job almost immediately. Two weeks after that I walked out of my marriage.
What I had when I left my marriage was perspective. I knew that I could overcome my issue of money and leaving my marriage. It helped me to take the attention off of myself and let go of the narrative of ‘I’m not good enough.’”
Tragic Wake Up Calls
“My mother introduced me to running when I was seven. It was always a part of our way of life. I have always loved to run and will do it as long as I’m able to. I get to the more quiet center of myself. It’s a proven method as a source of strength. I know that a run can snap me back where I need to be to deal with issues that I face head on. There’s always that moment as a runner when you come in contact with a car that makes you gasp over how close it comes to you. I was running on Thanksgiving and was waiting at the side of a crosswalk. There was a man in a black Audi right in front of me and there were two cars coming the opposite way pretty fast. I thought I would go because the man in the black car car was waiting. I stepped off the curb, he looked at his watch (later I learned that he realized that he was late to meet his girlfriend’s family for the first time) and decided to gun it to beat the two cars coming from the other way. I went through the air, smashed his windshield with my head and fell onto the ground and split my head open.
At the time it was something that I didn’t think could happen to someone like me. During the time in the ER I had an eye opening experience while they operated on me because they couldn’t give us anesthesia and when I passed out I went to the most peaceful place ever filled with love. After that happened I realized that I wasn’t afraid of death anymore. It’s one of those things that you’d never think you’d be grateful for the experience but there’s so much I’ve gained from those adversities.
In the midst of praying and meditating thanking God for the strength to handle what I’ve been through. If I can thank God after these things, I need to have the gratitude now as I’m going through these things. Covid forced me to level up in my career and push into action certain things I might not have done otherwise.”
Hustle When You’re Hungry
“2020 was the year I could achieve great things personally, professionally and professionally. I realized that for many of us if you have been forced to stretch things, in time you’ll find that what you did was become a better version of yourself. In time these tough things will turn out to be a gift in which you find what is beautiful and grateful in your life.
Timing can be impeccable for your journey. It’s hard to invest in things when money is tight in the pandemic but it’s worth it to knuckle down and make things happen for yourself!
St. Jude’s Research Hospital is a big client and we were able to do ten virtual events. From April to now I was able to do forty nine virtual events throughout the pandemic. I also work with Boys & Girls Clubs all over the country as well as Make a Wish. When it came down to my clients some pulled out of the events but there were others who decided to go on with it and they turned out beautifully. There was an MS charity event that was a drive in with celebrities that was the red carpet and they would pull their masks out and take photos with signs. You could drive in and hear me through the radio and we were able to raise 1 million dollars. There was a ton of positive press around the event and the next day they booked me for next year’s event. It cost them a quarter of what they usually spent on events. Some of your most positive moments come when you are stretched!
A lot of these things will stay even when the pandemic is over. The creativity that I’ve had to have has caused it to be a huge level up in my career. This year has also caused a lot of collaborative efforts from people that would normally compete for business. I know the guys who run Coachella and they were trying to figure out how to pivot and take things virtual if they needed to in the future. A friend of mine that runs a studio offered to help even though they used to compete with them for business. Many people have had a change in their hearts and have wanted to save each other. All of the people in the music industry are working together not just to save each other but all of the people in their industries.
During this pandemic there is no right or wrong way. You can’t judge anyone else for what they do right now or how they choose to pivot. I lost my ex husband and bonus child to suicide and realized that people handle grief and death differently. We can see the ugly and the grace in people as they handle difficult things. Grace and empathy are huge when you are dealing with tragedy.”
Danny Thomas’ Legacy
“The parallels between us are so strange. I had to do a video recently and when I pieced these stories together I realized how similar our stories are. He had a wife and child in the hospital and back then it was extremely expensive and he didn’t have the money. He took seven dollars of the twelve he had at the time and donated it to the St. Jude pew and prayed to build a shrine if he was helped. Funnily enough I also had twelve dollars to my name as I was leaving my ex. I’ve seen times where people will give more when they don’t have much themselves. That is grace. The selfless act of “show me my way.” Danny goes on to be a successful actor who builds St. Jude’s and I was able to start my career at a time when I had nothing.
Giving when you have nothing and keeping your word are two of the greatest core values. During that time you know that God will provide during trials and tribulations. The number one way to get a sense of self back is to give. One of the first ways we can elevate ourselves out of the negative narrative of having nothing equals you being nothing is to give, which will help our sense of self come back.”
Leaning In vs. Leaning Out
“What I see in my line of work is that when you lean in, there is someone left out. I noticed in my life that we always have things in common with people even if we don’t look alike. Everyone at the core is similar. When you reach out to people they become your truest friends. I’m not going to gain a lot from leaning in towards everyone who is just like me. Where is the creativity in that? If we’re experiencing the same issues and we come from different backgrounds, that’s where you begin to create and learn.
The people I went through the pandemic with – they leveled me up. I had twenty eight dollars in my account one day and decided that I was going to join a group of burn survivors from the Arizona Burn Center and climb the Grand Canyon in two weeks. I gave myself two weeks to raise $50,000. I ended up raising $54,454 and climbed in and out successfully and met the greatest people. I looked at my guide when I finished the climb and said, “In that canyon I learned that I have been surviving, not living.” There’s a difference. Surviving for some people is not the end goal, living is the end goal. The feeling of helping those people made my spirits soar. After that trip business came pouring through the door and my perspective shifted.”
What do you wish you understood?
I think I would like to understand cruelty – I think if I could understand why then we could start to change it.
What books impacted your life?
Crime & Punishment as a child, as did Hamlet. I went to a private school with a great education and had an English teacher that changed my life. Suddenly I could identify with those struggles. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath changed my life as a teenager and helped me wake up. The Circle was impactful for understanding what we attract based on our thoughts. Gift from the Sea and every woman should give that book to another woman. She equates sea shells as the different ways we go through life as women. I realized sometimes the message in a smaller book can have more impact on us.
What gives you confidence?
My children. When I look at them and see their true courage to continue their quest in becoming what God intends for them, I regain my confidence as a mother. They’ve been the greatest influence in my life.
Where you can find Letitia:
Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, anywhere where books are sold
Instagram: @letitia_frye
Facebook/LinkedIn: Letitia Frye
Twitter: @theletitiafrye
