Meet Christie Bishop | CEO, Founder & Podcast Host, What Nobody Tells Us”

We had the good fortune of connecting with Christie Bishop and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Christie, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I’m the CEO of ‘What Nobody Tells Us’ Strategies, which I founded after nearly 15 years of living a double life: A global advertising executive by day and brain cancer caregiver by night for my husband, who in 2009 was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and given six months to live. I was only 29 years old and my life quite literally changed overnight. I went from a newly-minted Strategy Director to full-time cancer caregiver. Campaign planner to patient advocate. Newlywed to possible widow. I had no idea what to do and no one could relate to me, no matter how old they were.

While my husband was fighting his cancer, I was fighting to climb the career ladder and didn’t want any status as a “caregiver” to elicit pity or worse yet, being passed over for opportunities or promotions because someone else believed I “had too much going on at home.”

So I played both roles and, for over a decade, only my closest colleague confidants knew the truth.

After nearly 13 years of mostly hiding my reality, I left advertising and in 2022 started ‘What Nobody Tells Us’ Strategies. Now, I am openly sharing my story and using my experience to give other people the guide to getting through life’s toughest moments, offering them the support and tools I didn’t have at age 29.

My “What Nobody Tells Us” podcast just hit its one-year anniversary, with each episode focused on giving people real talk on topics society has deemed “uncomfortable” and, at the same time, normalizing conversation around it. As an example, I’ve covered Alzheimer’s, secondary infertility, patient advocacy, caregiving, pediatric cancer, losing a parent, IVF, pre-eclampsia, leukemia, foster care, and so much more.

As the podcast grew, I started getting inquiries from friends and former colleagues about caregiving coaching, which was a natural fit. Since then, WNTU has grown and now partners with large and small organizations to provide support for their employee caregivers, including managerial training, workshops, HR programming, coaching, and more. We dive deep into what it’s really like to be a caregiver and working parent. Nothing is off limits and I’m able to really hone in on the consequential yet unspoken realities of a caregiver’s existence, because I’m living it.

What’s next? I’m working with Stanford and other higher-ed institutions to teach courses on navigating the world of caregiving, and am developing my own WNTU’s online courses to help caregivers balance the impact on marriage/partnership, parenthood, career, friendships, and more.

After all these years and all our struggles, my purpose couldn’t be more clear: I’ve turned my life’s biggest challenge into my life’s work.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I live by what I call “the puzzle piece theory.” When you get to a certain age and have a little bit of runway behind you in life, you can turn around and see how every single piece fell into place, exactly as it was supposed to. Even the pieces tht devastated you. Almost ruined you. Perplexed you in every way.

My puzzle pieces all weave together like a braid, and they’ve all influenced one another. in the most beautiful way to make me into who I am today.

Puzzle Piece #1: I’m an ELDEST DAUGHTER who’s independent, highly functioning, decisive, and over-achieving.

Puzzle Piece #2: I built my career in ADVERTISING and strategic planning over the past 23 years, where I became an expert at problem solving, relationship building, uncovering the hidden truths no one talks about, and how to get through to all types of people.

Puzzle Piece #3: I’m a PEOPLE-FIRST LEADER. I rose through the ranks in my career and took on leaderships roles — including General Manager, Executive Vice President & Group Head, North America Executive Strategy Director. Over the years, I’ve been entrusted with the care of hundreds of people’s livelihoods, career ambitions and personal challenges. I have and always will be the leader who cares about the entirety of a person, and all the context in which they came from and in which they exist today (thank you, Kamala Harris).

Puzzle Piece #4: I’m a BRAIN CANCER CAREGIVER. I have seen life and death. I’ve seen things you can never imagine. Been in situations I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. At home, it’s my job to make sure my husband stays healthy, has insurance, gets the care he needs, eats the right foods, moves his body to get stronger, and to take advantage of the “upswings,” as I call them. There is no such thing as TMI, uneasiness or being grossed out. It just is, and it’s a privilege to be able to care for him, as I know one day I’ll need care of my own.

Puzzle Piece #5: I’m a MOM. Our nearly 8yo daughter has taught me what it means when your heart grows a gazillion sizes. Being her mom has forced me to take a look in the mirror and ask, REALLY ASK, how do I want to show up for her in good times and bad. I’ve actively chosen to reparent myself during the toughest moments as her mom, rejecting our worst instincts and choosing to be regulated instead of reactive, calm instead of chaotic, supportive instead of selfish, and fully-involved instead of detached.

When I look back at these puzzle pieces, I’m so proud of all the superpowers I gained from each of my life’s puzzle pieces, especially as I was inspired to create my own company, “What Nobody Tells Us” Strategies to help other people going through some of life’s most difficult situations.

Through “What Nobody Tells Us” Strategies, I work with business and corporations in supporting their employee caregivers, whether parents, caregivers to elderly parents/relatives, or caregivers for a sick loved one. The ambition, critical problem solving skills, creativity, leadership, empathy, decisiveness and intuition I honed while living through each of those puzzle pieces has led me to here I am today, and I can’t wait to see where it takes me next.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’d take them up to the Malibu pier and let them soak up one of the amazing oceanfront views in the world, dig their feet in the sand, and reset their nervous system. Do it with a glass of rose and you’re set.

Dinner on the rooftop at Funke Beverly Hills, Chef Evan Funke’s namesake and some of the most incredible Italian places in the city. Every bite is spectacular, with an authenticity that can only come after decades of immersing oneself in the kitchens of Italian “Nonnas.” Don’t sleep on the panzanella. You’ll dream about it.

Tacos at Taco Tu Madre in West LA. Super creative options beyond the basic Oaxacan fare (which is another favorite). Easy to grab. the vegan tofu banh mi taco is the best in town.

Head south to Balboa Island in Orange County. Idyllic beachfront town, like the Nantucket of SoCal. Choose between dueling “Dad’s” and “Sugar & Spice” for your frozen banana fix then walk around the island. Gawk at the insane houses. Then head to Royal Hen on Main Street for an early drink and the best fish & chips in OC.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Bryan Bishop is a brain cancer survivor and NYT best-selling author of the book, Shrinkage, which details the first year of his brain cancer journey. He’s currently working on a documentary on young adult cancer to raise awareness for the disease.

Website: https://www.christiebishop.com

Instagram: @pardonmycrumbs

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christiecbishop/

Other: Threads: @pardonmycrumbs