Jaime Legagneur ’97 has been proactive in the pursuit of her educational and career goals since graduating from Pine Crest. Wanting to experience something new while staying warm, Jaime attended Tulane University in New Orleans for her undergraduate degree.
“It was such a great decision because my parents are from Haiti, and the cultural background and influences in New Orleans felt like taking a piece of home with me while still being able to experience something very new and different.”
“I fell in love with my AP Psych class while at Pine Crest. I was fascinated with the mind and wanted to continue those studies. My father encouraged me to consider going to medical school, taking a path toward psychiatry. I thought about it, and decided to become an EMT while I was in school instead; it was a less formal route, and I didn't end up pursuing psychology medically,” Jaime said.
While she loved studying psychology, she was exposed to an entirely different subject matter that changed Jaime’s whole career trajectory. “As a sophomore, I had the opportunity to sit in on a financial accounting class at the business school, and was shocked that I loved it! I thought ‘Hmm…I think I want to go into business.’ My dad is an entrepreneurial person and that felt like a good fit for me. At the time, Tulane had four majors in the business school. I wanted to study information systems management, but that degree program was in the engineering school which had a bunch of classes I wasn’t really interested in taking. So, I took a look at the curriculum of the business school and pitched a new major for Information Systems Management to the Dean of the Business School, and they accepted it! So I double majored in information systems management and finance with a minor in psychology.”
After graduating from Tulane, and seeing her brother complete his law degree, Jaime applied to law school. She attended the law school at the University of Virginia, but quickly found that it was not for her. At that point, Jaime went back to her “plan A:” information systems. “I had been fascinated with computers ever since I was a child and my dad brought home a ‘throw away’ computer from his office. I decided to start a career in data analytics, and I applied for an entry level position at a company. During the interview process, I noticed that there was a position available for a structured query language (SQL) reporting analyst and decided that was what I would like to do. I asked if it would be possible for me to accept the entry level role I applied for while being trained in tandem by the manager of that department to move into the SQL role,” she explained.
“When the manager in the reporting department heard that, he wanted to speak to me directly. He gave me two weeks to learn the coding language and said if I passed a test I could have the role. So I ran to the library and got a book on SQL and just poured myself into it. I learned SQL and got the job! That started my 15-year career as a data analyst.”
While a career in data analytics was enjoyable, Jaime shared that after 14 years in the field, she was beginning to feel unfulfilled. “I had gone as far as I could go,” she said. “I started to look for something new and different so I wouldn't feel so stuck. I had no idea what that new and different was, but I was hungry for a change—and then it landed in my lap!”
A long time fan of a local radio show, the KVJ Show, Jaime remembers when radio shows began re-posting their broadcasts as podcasts. “I loved listening to their morning show,” she said, “and when they would flip their show to the podcast, I would listen to it on repeat!” The show was purchased by another media company and began to change, upsetting superfans like Jaime. “I was afraid they were going to take it off the air,” she said. “I reached out to the radio hosts to see what I could do. I started a campaign on X (formerly known as Twitter) and then joined forces with another fan who was doing the same on Facebook. We took the ‘KVJ Nation’ name and built a campaign around it. We created a big enough fuss that we ended up on the news, and other radio shows even began talking about what we were doing. Our campaign worked, and the show is still on the air today,” said Jaime excitedly.
Running this campaign uncovered a hidden talent Jaime had for digital marketing. “I thought ‘maybe this is the answer!’ That is what fell in my lap— something to highlight my untapped potential in digital marketing,” she said. “I felt that if I created my own business doing digital marketing then I'd be doing what I love for a living. But that was immediately followed by ‘how do you build a business doing what you love?’ Then I realized, ‘I have a bunch of friends doing what they love, so I should ask them!’”
Shortly thereafter, Jaime created her first podcast, a show called “Curve the Cube” in 2014. Recording a podcast meant that Jaime could share the insight and thoughts of her friends to inspire others. “The show was kind of a hit,” she continued. “I interviewed people where they were. I got to interview congresswoman Lois Frankel; my friend and fellow Pine Crest alumni Amir Arison ’96, David Abeles ’97, and many others from the Pine Crest community!”
In 2017, Jaime attended Podfest, a podcasting conference where she decided to conduct short interviews with podcasters about why they love podcasting, and produce an episode from it. Throughout the process, Jaime said two things happened. First, her love for the medium was reaffirmed, and she better understood the power and impact of podcasts on communities and listeners. Secondly, she met many people who became a support system for her. Through this network, she landed her first job as a podcast producer for the Horse Radio Network, producing their live shows and learning more about the business side of podcasting. It became increasingly clear that her next step was to convert her digital marketing company to a podcast production company—so she did.
Today, Jaime is the Founder and President of Flint Stone Media. She serves as a producer for about 60 shows and developed the initial podcast curriculum for the Connecticut School of Broadcasting. While her shows have won several awards and she has personally received numerous honors, the most meaningful has been from Podcast Magazine which recently named Jaime to their 40 Over 40 list of top podcasters.
One of the prominent areas of Jaime’s work is supporting local voices and tourism in Florida. Her passion for amplifying community discourse and works comes from wanting to support the many friends she has in various news and entertainment industries.
“There were a lot of instances when a local newscaster had to read a script—the same script that local news reporters across the country had to read,” Jaime said. “When I started to ask about this, I learned that it was a contractual obligation to read these scripts on air and that made me angry. I feel that people shouldn’t have to say things they aren’t comfortable with, and they also shouldn’t have to risk their livelihoods. As my friends went into the news and wanted to give honest, unbiased reports, they were being asked to be biased. In my efforts to build a podcasting network, I realized that I could create a platform for people leaving the traditional news industry who still wanted to tell local news and stories from the perspectives they wanted without feeling tethered or restrained.”
Jaime says having a platform created an opportunity and the ability for storytellers to do what they love without limitations. “The other driver,” said Jaime, “is the idea of voices being silenced or manipulated—that didn’t sit well with me. In my adult life, working with other people, being in the corporate space, you feel like you have to temper your personality to adjust to company culture or to fit in. That stifles creativity, ideation, innovation and that never sat well with me. I wanted people to be free to express themselves.”
“The extra sweet spot that podcasts hit that TV doesn’t is that podcasts are passive. When I turn on the TV and I’m getting ready, I have to pop my head out to look at the screen; you have to look to fully experience the content,” said Jaime. “Podcasts allow you to listen passively while you do the dishes or go for a jog. Even the podcasts that are filmed and posted to YouTube allow you to listen only while still experiencing that content and filling in all the wonderful spaces with your mind.”
Reflecting on what differentiates podcasting from radio, Jaime said it hits a few points perfectly.
“It is on-demand,” she began. “You can listen when you want to and choose the type of content you want. You can turn the radio on anytime you want, so that aspect is also on-demand, but what's not in your control is what song is going to be playing. With podcasts, you select the episodes to explore. In this age of instant gratification, we’re busy and we want to hear what we want when we want. If you have a show about fishing, your listeners are not scanning and scanning and thinking ‘oh I guess I’ll listen to this.’ No! They go to their podcast platform, type in ‘fishing’ and are given dozens of options to choose from.”
Jaime’s latest professional project combines her passion for elevating voices and empowering moms.
“A couple of months ago I was in Scottsdale, Arizona for the Mom 2.0 Summit,” Jaime said. “I had never been to the conference before, but I was invited to be on their podcast panel. Typically, the conferences I attend are podcast-centric, so it was interesting to be around moms in other professions and have different conversations. I realized how much of my experience in building my business was shared by other women. Two things came to light; one is that the journey of motherhood has given me all kinds of superpowers that have helped me be successful. For example, the ability to burn the midnight oil and get things done, the patience needed to keep going after facing countless ‘no’s’, and the ability to manage different personalities has helped me as I grow my team.”
“The other realization I had,” Jaime continued, “is how many of us women have received wonderfully sound advice from male mentors who often don’t understand what it is like to build a business as a mother. I would like to have more conversations with other mothers who understand the effort needed and the reality of how challenging it can be to accomplish their goals. It may take the man who recommends an idea three months to see it through, but it may take me five or six. I no longer have to be down on myself about that. Let’s have real conversations where we can support each other. It was an aha moment where I felt I could bring women together and help other moms be successful. That is how I started the Power Moms Network— and that is something I am really excited about.”
Expanding on the Power Moms Network, Jaime shares that there are a myriad of topics to discuss.
“You can lose yourself in your motherhood,” Jaime said. “It made me sad that there isn't enough permission given for mothers to exercise self care. Moms don’t have to lose themselves in motherhood. As I said, there are many superpowers I developed and that my friends have developed as mothers that are being parlayed into successes. There are so many ways to experience motherhood, and that is what I wanted to do with the Power Moms in general— create a platform where mothers can come together and support each other. They can help each other explore their powers with an emphasis on self-care and support for each other. I wanted this to be a network for more mothers to lock arms and be able to find themselves again in their journey of motherhood.”
Jaime continues on with her vision for the Power Moms Network as she approaches the groups first advisory meeting.
“I have an entire community kit with all the ways people can get involved, a pre-launch phase of launching the flagship show as a testing ground of what that show is supposed to be and what our content offering will bring. I bridged my other show, Podcasting Your Brand, as a partner show. I want to include shows that inspire and teach you.”
“As I started talking about a vision for the Power Moms, I realized I was striking a nerve; rather than starting by building content, I am building out the community. I have a robust list of powerhouse women who want to be involved. I want us to come together as an advisory board to meet and understand our collective potential. We have two directives: First, I want to know everyone’s skillset and what they want to contribute so they don’t overwhelm themselves. Next will be working with these women to find a network sponsor; someone who supports us in totality. Beyond that, it will come down to moms spreading the word about this network to grow this community.”
Jaime sees the future of the podcasting industry being easier for new voices and storytellers to join.
“I think there will be a shift in listeners' needs and therefore a change in the services we offer as an agency. Where we will be needed more as a service provider is in helping make podcasts work—form relationships around your podcast so they can grow. And editing! Some people still prefer human editors over artificial intelligence. Because more people are entering the space, we as an industry can help facilitate better community relations, expanding where we can to give our communities greater platforms for reaching their members.”
Stream the Power Moms Network wherever you listen to podcasts or visit www.PowerMomsNetwork.com for podcast episodes and download the community kit to learn how you can get involved.
