If you missed it,  be sure to listen to episode 171 for how I went from skipping college to a four year ESS degree, to denying jobs and starting my own business, to low key failing and changing my life with a Instagram course under $300 during my not your father’s rootbeer kitchen counter breakdown.

Today we are headed into brighter waters. Well, it’s starting off that way, then things get a little dim for a bit before we see the light again. 2018 to present day was a rollercoaster to say the least. I mean, it included a global pandemic, so perhaps that’s expected.

We left off in 2016, having purchased Marie Forleo’s B school and feeling like I actually had some direction for the online side of my business.

I’d largely built up the in person portion. That wasn’t my issue but since starting Fitdesignbyannie in 2015, the goal was ALWAYS to be fully remote. I was motivated by no alarm clocks and working from my laptop on my own time. Freedom is one of my personal and brand core values. I really hate feeling restricted by outside forces. Like a job LOL.

So, in July 2017, I’d built a sustainable business online. I had grown a following + close to full 1:1 roster of online training clients. I’d also built out a few other offers which brought in cash but were proving to not be for my ideal client long term. That’s besides the point.

Focus on the sustainable income piece.

Flashback to 2013, I marry Nate before my last semester of college - he’s working at a local high end hippy grocery store. We’re straight up poor.

Four years later, we’d both increased income significantly. We didn’t NEED more money. Of course everyone can use or want more money, but that never ends. We were comfortable and that, for Nathanael had brought up some reflection on life.

That brings us to number four of the six experiences that changed the trajectory of my life

Nate asking what if we traveled [then doing it]

I was sitting on the couch, writing programs and he walks down the hall in his towel after a shower and says to me without any preface, “what if we just traveled the world?” Just like that.

He says he expected me to push back, or question him but I literally said “Yeah okay I just need to make a bit more money online.”

And that was that. The research began almost immediately. He gave his work 8 months notice, and we were off to Santiago Chile nine months later.

I don’t think I need to unpack how traveling the world for 367 days straight changed the trajectory of my life but I will give you the bullet points. And the moral:

* Personally, travel is amazing for perspective. Most people may never leave their home town let alone their country. For a multitude of reasons.  I’ve talked about travel, myths and expectations in other episodes, so check that out. But just to take the leap was massive. To say we’re going to take advantage of the career path Annie has chosen and do this NOW with what we have, was unmatched.* Business: My goodness did traveling give me SPACE. More space than I’d ever experienced in my adult life. I three ‘x’ed’ my revenue that year because of SPACE and the ability + demand to go all in. I built out three tiers of Built by Annie, added educational trainings, got rid of all past offers and built Body Weight for Weight Lifters and the Big Lift Audit. That choice led to clarity by fire.