Be It Till You See It

Brad & LL take a closer look at Susanne Puerschel's wisdom that she so eloquently provided in the last episode, discussing the value of prioritizing yourself, why you must take a moment before jumping into the next thing and asking questions when facing hard problems. 

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• When to put yourself first
• Choosing your own beliefs
• Jumping from one thing to the next
• Asking the question "Is there another way?"

References/Links:

• Pointe to Rise Podcast
• Follow Susanne on IG
• Follow the Pointe to Rise Podcast on IG
• Pointe to Rise website

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox.

Resources

• Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube!
• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Full Episode Transcription:

Lesley Logan 

Welcome to the 'Be It Till You See It' podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I'm Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I've trained 1000s of people around the world. And the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity. And it's the antidote to fear. Each week my guests will bring bold, executable, intrinsic and targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It's a practice not a perfect, let's get started.

Lesley Logan 

Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where my co host in life, Brad and I are going to dig into the incredibly thoughtful conversation I had with Susanne Puerschel in our last episode. If you haven't yet listened to that interview, feel free to pause this now, go back and listen to that one and then come back and join us, or do whatever you want to do. You want to listen to this one first and then go back?

Brad Crowell 

You do you!

Brad Crowell 

You do you! And then let me know which order you listen to these episodes in. Do you go recap and then the interview, or interview then recap? Inquiring minds want to know. (Brad: Inquiring minds.) I always wanted to say that. Anyways, here's the deal, y'all. Okay, I'm super freaking stoked. As of right now, as of, as of this moment, the reformer flashcard deck is out. And... (Brad: Yeah, it is.) Babe. If you don't... okay, if you're like what is a reformer deck of flashcards... First of all, if you don't know what a reformer is, it's totally fine. But this is our second deck in a series of decks of flashcards and the mat deck was the first one we released. (Brad: Yes.) It took us, y'all It took us a year to get that one into people - like more than a year - to get that into people's hands. And there was a lot of reasons for that. And then the reformer deck, we had a turnaround time of like three weeks, I couldn't believe we did it. (Brad: It was pretty bananas.) And we did - it was bananas. But I'm really...

Brad Crowell 

Also too, what was quite lovely, is this time we actually had a team. On the mat deck it was just Lesley and me, and this time it was... we were able to distribute the workload so we were finally able to make it - that's why we'll make go really fast.

Lesley Logan 

I do want to give credit to the person who made sure the Oxford commas made it into the mat deck. Thank you, girl. We hope you're listening. But we have - so now we have the reformer deck of flashcards...

Brad Crowell 

That will be Pilates bound. (Lesley: Yes.) PilatesBound and her Oxford commas.

Lesley Logan 

Yes, she made us do that. So anyways, we've had the mat deck out it is awesome. And you can get that but the reformer deck for those of you who love the reformer, want to know more about the reformer. It is now available so get yours by going to OnlinePilatesClasses.com - you will see it... don't worry, you can't miss these flashcards. We are very much making sure you can find them.

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, they're on the, they're on the site, the website for sure. But if they don't know what these even are, what are they?

Lesley Logan 

Well, I'm gonna, I'm gonna... I just happen to have a deck of them at once. And if you're watching this on YouTube, I just showed them if you're listening, I just showed them the people on the YouTube

Brad Crowell 

On the You... the Tube of Yous? So, so what this actually looks like is, you have a deck of a deck of cards here...

Lesley Logan 

Kind of think of like, for my, for my girls out there who know Tarot, this is like a box... (Brad: right.) It's a fancy box like an apple, but...

Brad Crowell 

Nothing in any way shape or form to do with Tarot, except for there are cards. And that's the only similarity. So the flashcards you get to actually look at the front of them, guess what the exercise is on the back. And as a whole description and all the things, there's a really fancy QR code on the front, like, you know, all these restaurants, we get to go to now and pull up those digital menus. Same exact thing. And and then the point of it was, is to be able to a) learn how to do Pilates from these cards, b) take it with you and be able to actually do you know, pull five cards and do five exercises, if you're somewhere, whatever it is. And so the mat deck has been really excited or exciting. We've had a lot of people taking these amazing book photos or videos and posting them to Instagram. And now the reformer deck is out.

Lesley Logan 

Yeah, I actually just got pictures from someone who went on a vacation and she said I was tech free. But I took my Mat deck of cards. (Brad: So cool.) And she did them on her trip. And so anyways, you can get the mat deck and the reformer deck now on OnlinePilatesClasses.com where we do life better. Okay, that was I'm just so excited about that.

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, but first, before we jump into this interview, Lesley, we had an audience question to respond to, yeah?

Lesley Logan 

We did. And I don't know who wanted to know this... because I think the answer is probably obvious... Who does the cooking?

Brad Crowell 

Who does the cooking? Well, on rare occasions when the workload is maxed to the absolute, I will ask Lesley to do the cooking.

Lesley Logan 

Yes. And when he says when he says... when he says, when he says the workload is to a max, it also means that Postmates is also out of the question. We've, we've, know we've we've missed the window to get a Postmates to deliver to us. And so, I am very good at cooking in one pan. I have a I have a couple of good dishes, I will say. And he's always really impressed.

Brad Crowell 

I'm always super shocked when she's like, "And I did all this in one pan," because I used to work in food. So I, for 13 years I worked in restaurants. I was always front-of-house. But I was always around the cooks and the chefs and all the other people that were like doing the prep, meal prep and plannings and all this stuff, right? When you cook for 200 people, you prepare everything hours before the dinner shift starts. You have your pile of peppers you already cut, you got your onions already cut, you got this, this, this, everything is ready. They're in their beautiful, nice little fancy little dishes and boxes and like you're ready to go right. And then when the rush comes, you can just grab your ingredients because you got them all available, right? So when I cook, I literally do that I literally cut everything, prep everything. I've got all these nice little bowls. And then when I go to throw it in the pan, I can grab the bowl. Toss my ingredients in, it looks like I'm doing a cooking show, because I like it.

Lesley Logan 

Okay, and you know what? Here's, I'm sure there's people nodding their heads going, "Yeah, LL, of course that's how you do it." Let me just explain something... there are two of us. Prior to moving to Las Vegas, we did not have a dish washer. And...

Brad Crowell 

That's true.

Lesley Logan 

We had a sink that was barely big enough for the dishes from the day to go into. And, you know, whoever does the cooking doesn't do the cleaning. I don't know whose household me that rule up. But it felt like it became the rule in our house. And it was just like, like, there's two of us. And there's 17 bowls, and I don't know what to do with all these bowls. So anyways, I would I would have to cook our old apartment, I would, I knew how he made the vegetables and I would just chop them all up. And I would do... this as I did. So brussel sprouts take a little longer than carrots and broccoli then mushrooms, right. So I would chop the brussel sprouts up first toss them into the pan then I would chop the carrots, toss them into the pan and the pans cooking. And so I'm just tossing everything in and by the time that mushrooms got in everything's pretty much ready.

Brad Crowell 

It's a good strategy.

Lesley Logan 

It's a great strategy and guess what one pan no bowls and I got really resentful to be honest because his dishes workload was third what mine was. Anyways, now that we're in Vegas, I will be honest, we have actually gotten off the bandwagon of the cooking.

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, I cook I cook relatively infrequently now just things have have definitely been busier. Which I which I do find ironic. You know, since we work like 10 feet from where we sleep like 10 feet from where we cook. So...

Lesley Logan 

Instead of one foot so y'all that's bigger.

Brad Crowell 

Yes, but anyway, the yes now it's been we're only cooking a few nights a week at best. Just because life is busy and crazy.

Lesley Logan 

But he makes a mean carrot soup y'all so good.

Brad Crowell 

Yeah! Takes couple hours to do.

Lesley Logan 

Yeah, that's a bit much... his air fried wings... Oh, so good. And then we always have sweet potato fries, because they're my favorite. Anyways, thank you for that question.

Brad Crowell 

Great question.

Lesley Logan 

And I hope we basically it's mostly Brad, but sometimes it's me and most of the time it is the sushi guy down the street. So if you would like to know more about us, just DM me a question you'd like us to answer you can DM me @Be_It_Pod on Instagram.

Brad Crowell 

I think there are underscores in there somewhere

Lesley Logan 

there are but if you just type in Be it pod

Brad Crowell 

what we do come up

Lesley Logan 

Don't worry. Don't worry. It's not complicated. Okay, so here's the deal. You I am so into you making yourself a priority. It's really important to me that you know that when you do Pilates like it applies every day. It is the way that you can make yourself a priority. I know it sounds crazy. It's like how does that possible? That seems like it's my workout it is but it is also a mind body connection and so to convince you a little bit that Pilates can be the way that you prioritize yourself. The way I prioritize myself I want you to go get a free class for me at online plus classes comm slash be it. That's online Pilates classes.com slash b e i t

Brad Crowell 

Okay, now let's talk about Susanne Puerschel.

Lesley Logan 

I mean, I just feel like we should just replay the whole interview.

Brad Crowell 

I mean, it was it was an incredibly powerful interview. She is a force to be reckoned with. And so soft spoken, but like really profound. Really, if you have not listened to that episode, you have to go do that. A little bit about Suzanne, she grew up in the ballet in Germany in a really young age, I think she was like living with our coaches and stuff. And, and by the time she was 18, she was a professional ballet dancer, which is, you know, I mean, obviously, she is incredible. She moved the states after that. She started her own dance company, after working at another company in - I'm sure it was in New York. And then she started a family, she then got out, she, they stopped their dance company, and she started working in corporate, she climbed the corporate ladder. And together, she and her husband started a seven figure business. And then they shut down that seven figure business. And that was obviously really challenging. And then along the way, she has continuously been rediscovering herself and figuring out more about her to the point where she is now, today, doing what she was meant to be doing the whole time. So interesting to know that she did all those amazing things. And now today, she's really doing what she wanted, which is she's building, she's building a program that inspires young ballet dancers, who have her experience. And she's coaching them. And it's really great. It's so needed in the industry, so needed in the space. And I have no doubt that what she's doing is going to change that entire industry.

Lesley Logan 

I follow her Instagram, her Pointe To Rise, Instagram and

Brad Crowell 

Say it again?

Lesley Logan 

Pointe To Rise, it's point with an E... Pointe To Rise. It's, every time I see a post, first of all, every one of her posts somehow exudes the same space and grace and like, I feel like a bull in a china shop, to her like, ease. But her her posts are very thought provoking. But also, she's taking a look at her industry, like you said, and really changing it because there's no reason why these dancers have to punish their bodies the way that they had in the past, to have the success they want to have. And I feel...

Brad Crowell 

Not just their bodies, but they're also their minds. Like they beat themselves up.

Lesley Logan 

100% and I think and to all my dancers listening, I know you're out there. I love you. I want you to check her out. But I think even if you're not a dancer, that would be me. We, it's depending on how you were raised and where you grew up some of those things, even if you weren't in the dancing world, you were told to and it's your so your everyone will benefit from checking that out. But you're right. I honestly when we did this recap. I'm like, should we just like replay because there's so many good things to say!

Brad Crowell 

Like I listened back to it. And I had I literally pulled out like ten like 30 to 40 second... Like, one-liners. That was like, wow, this is worth talking about. Wow, that's worth talking about me. It was just really awesome. So did you have to go back and listen,

Lesley Logan 

I feel like I should just do the process. I interview everyone. And then Brad listens to everything. And he like takes a note and da-da-da and it should be like, you know, the length of the interview plus or minus a few more minutes, right? Because it's like, whatever. It's a recap and he's like taking notes. He, two hours later he comes out and I was like, "Oh, how are they? How are the recaps going? Like are you ready to do a couple?" and he's like, "I'm still on Susanne's. Everything. It's all so good." So I have, I like Brad I agree it's all so good. And I had a really hard time picking out one thing but I feel like I had to pick out this one which is: I love that she said you have to make yourself a priority. And I also I... the reason is is because I think a lot of people feel guilty when they make themselves a priority. Especially people with children. I feel like they all of my friends with kids like they're their priority is their children and I'm not saying that that's a bad thing but i do i do think that like there is it's I can't imagine that you you don't get a little resentful of how much you pour into someone else. Because when they're not going to reciprocate that when they're young, maybe when you're older and you like need them to reciprocate they take care of you so I just really I really loved how much she talked about making yourself a priority. That I mean she she couldn't have like made the Be It Till You See It podcast more explanatory like this. When she's talking about like, "You have to be what you want to be," and I'm like, "Yes, you do!" And I'm like, "You should just come on every week."

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, she talked a lot about the beauty, you know, that that that we individually have. Yeah. And just the way that she said it was like, like, wow, you know, really revelatory, and I really appreciated how she sees other people, because I thought, you know, here's someone who is an incredible, incredibly observant person, obviously, and, you know, the fact that she, it took her that long to observe herself. Yeah. is, you know, I feel like it's normal. I feel like, unfortunately, it's just the way that we are as people. We have hearts of servitude. And so we end up putting ourselves last. And, and I'm not saying that you shouldn't be serving people. That's not my point. My point is, we never make time for ourselves. And so when we never make time for ourselves, at the end of the day, it you know, we're just exhausted or builds resentment, or, you know, you feel like people don't appreciate you or whatever. And, and I think that the way that Suzanne was talking about it, finally, now, she said, I'm in my 40s, it took me to be in my 40s to go do the thing that I really wanted to go do.

Lesley Logan 

And I. So I say this a lot. When I coach people in their business, I say you're the only person who can do what you do that you do it. You're it right. And even if you're not a business person and business owner, you don't have to be, you are the only you. And the reality is is like what you're here on this planet to do who you are as a person. It's so freakin awesome. And she said that she says, when you realize how much of a beautiful and worthy soul you are, you will put out what is important to you before pleasing someone else. And that's the thing, right? If you don't realize that if you don't show up as your, yourself 100% then the people that you're here... the people around you in your life, they're not, they're, they're not going to get all of you. And then it's a trickle down effect, right? Everyone's getting half the energy of something they're getting, and, and so it's just that if you make yourself a priority, you have more energy, you have more time the people around you are transformed and affected the people that you, you that you're raising, or the people that you're partners with - all of that - it affects everyone. And so I just wish we all would just go on below selfish. And be first and then. So anyways, couldn't love that more. I do you love that? She said,

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, I think so. You know, I was thinking about this a lot. Because like I said, there were so many things, I actually think that what blew my mind was how vulnerable she was across the board. So you know, I'm not kidding, I almost cried listening to her interview, because she is just so like, what's the right way to describe it? She's very soft, right? But when she speaks, you listen to what she has to say. Like she's, she's clearly not the person who has to raise her voice to get across her what she needs to say. But through the interview, you know, she shared some incredibly dark moments that she has experienced. And I just I hurt for her thinking like, wow, you know, because she's obviously a sensitive being. And, you know, the, she said that she had to hit rock bottom three times before finally being willing to put herself first and go do the thing that she wanted to do.

Lesley Logan 

So, if you're not watching this, Brad is getting a little teary eyed on that. I have the i i think what I love that she said about that is many people wouldn't share that they hit rock bottom three times. Sure.

Brad Crowell 

No, I mean, who wants to look bad?

Lesley Logan 

Like, oh my god, she like, you had to do it again? Like, you know what I mean? And like, I think there's a lot of people who are like, why can't I learn this lesson? Why does this keep happening?

Brad Crowell 

Look, one of those things was losing a seven figure business. Yeah, that is that is devastating.

Lesley Logan 

Yeah. And I think like, the question isn't, why is this happening to me? It's like, what is this teaching me and she discovered that on her journey, and, and you're right, when she, when she, she makes me think - I had this yoga teacher in LA that... he would start the classes by sitting there and not talking. And then everyone would get quiet. Yeah. And then he would start talking. And I remember going, "Gosh, what what an epic presence, that is because I would go into my class, I'm like, "Let's go. Let's go." Yeah. And like you're like yelling, like, "Why isn't anyone listening to me?"

Brad Crowell 

Waving your hands, throwing things...

Lesley Logan 

And like, the, the peace and confidence. And (Brad: Yeah,) I don't know this confidence, but just the like, this is this is she is where she's at, like she's so present. And I think that that it is powerful. So yeah, her vulnerability was awe inspiring.

Brad Crowell 

All right, well, why don't we talk about some of the Be It action items that that were in there? I mean, like, like I said, there were so many. But what bold, executable intrinsic, or targeted action items, can we take away from the conversation that you had with her? I'm gonna jump in first here, mine was taking a moment. So she talked about in the flow in her life, in her journey of life, right, she, she went into being a ballet dancer, and in a really young age, and was following, following, what people told her to do for her whole, you know, like, early years, and then she got out of it and didn't know what to do. And so she was really frustrated, but she knew she wanted to leave Germany and come to the United States. And she made this big leap, and she moves to United States. And then she gets right back into another troop in the United States. And so she's again, following, following, following, right? And then she's, and then she, she leaves that and she starts her own. And then she leaves that, and she joins this corporate ladder situation. She does that for 10, solid years, you know, and then finally, she starts to start asking the question, you know, are looking at it and going, like, "Am I just repeating everything that I've already been doing over and over again?" You know, like, like, all the same mistakes, all the same successes, like is this the same story? It's just four different ways that it's the same story. And I really feel like it was after leaving the corporate world, that she and her husband, when they started their entrepreneurial venture, that's, that's like the beginning of when you go, like, "What am I doing? What am I doing here?" Like actually taking a moment and be like, "Is there a better way?" Like, "How do I do this?" Like, you know, like, asking questions.

Lesley Logan 

Yeah, I agree. I'm glad you pointed that out as a great action step, because I think a lot of people wouldn't see a pause as an action step. They will, (BRAD: Yeah.) Right? And it really is. And I know myself, like I went from my retail job, right into managing studios, I didn't even take the beat. And so I didn't, even... if I'd taken the beat, I might have discovered that I don't like managing people...

Brad Crowell 

Right.

Lesley Logan 

I mean, then we wouldn't be here. So obviously, everything happens the way it's supposed to. But since that lesson, when, when different things have happened, I have really tried to do a lot of reflection, like, what did I like about that? What didn't I like about that before I start something new. And you and I do this a lot. And so I really, I think if you're going through anything, when you transition, take a pause. Just a moment. (BRAD: Yeah.) and reflect on that.

Brad Crowell 

I think the most obvious one is, like, dating. (LESLEY: Oh, yeah.) You know, where you, you have a relationship and the, it doesn't work - go the way you hope. And then you know what, what happens generally? You jump into another relationship, and it doesn't go the way you hope. And then you jump into another relationship, right. So it's consistent. If you took a step back, if you took a moment, took a step back and you look at those relationships, you know, aside from the fact that you're the common denominator - sorry, hard truth... The other thing is, I bet you there are similarities in a) the type of person you're dating, b) the fights that you had, c) the reasons that it ended, I would imagine that there are consistencies there. And if you actually take a step back, and you look at that, maybe you'll see "Oh, what if we did things differently?"

Lesley Logan 

We're not speaking from experience or anything...

Brad Crowell 

No, no, no, of course not.

Lesley Logan 

I just want to say side note, if you want to know about the conversation, Brad and I had when we decided when he broke up with me the first time before we dated?

Brad Crowell 

Somebody better ask the question. Yeah, just to ask us in a DM.

Lesley Logan 

Just ask you to DM if you want to know how, what, what I said to Brad after he dumped me the first time, before we started dating. (BRAD: Ok, ok, yeah.) All right. Sorry.

Brad Crowell 

What about you?

Lesley Logan 

Well, okay, of course, I can't have one. I have to have to. I mean, I think we've discovered that these recaps are another interview. So I loved... my biggest takeaway from her actions is ask yourself if there's another way and choosing your own beliefs. And here's why I love this. So, um, there's a lot of things that people say, "This is how it has to be." And just by asking yourself as there's another way, when we, when I wanted to move to Vegas, everyone's like, oh, it takes 30 days, at least it does this, it does this. I was like, I'm moving on June 1, we're moving June 1, what are the other ways

Brad Crowell 

She literally announced June 1. And I was like, that's in nine days.

Lesley Logan 

And I said, we're doing it. And it was a little tricky, because we had not actually found the house yet. But I was like, "No, we're moving June 1, there has to be another way." And so contrary to everyone telling me, it's you probably looked at in July, I was like, let's just see if there's another possibility and dreamhouse, everything landed on us because I was open to another way, another possibility of doing things the way people expected. So of course, I love that. And so whatever you're doing in your life, if you're coming up against roadblocks, just like ask yourself, if there's like a left turn you can make to get to the same place, right?

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, I think also too, in her in her context, what she was talking about really was, really was about the the way that you were raised. (LESLEY: Yeah.) And the belief system that was instilled in you by your community, your family, your parents, your, you know, whatever, you know, and, and I think that we, we, we approach situations with assumptions. And, you know, that's normal. You know, there's nothing wrong with that. But by being completely locked in to those, that set of beliefs, it can really change the way you experience life. And I think that really was a, what she what she said was, when, when she realized that she was stuck on, in her own mind, that was when... And then she decided to shed that, those beliefs, that was when things really started to change in her own life.

Lesley Logan 

Yeah, I mean, cuz I, you're right, I think, when people like, we feel that, "I'm just so busy," or, "I can't do that, because I have this," or, "I can't do this, I have this," or... I was raised with a different kind of money mindset than Brad. And so we all came into different things. And when she talked about how she could choose who she wants to be, and she can choose that she can choose all the things... in that... freedom is like, I also think ease, and it's a little uncertain, because now that's not the loop you know. Like, that's not the story you know, because you've just told yourself a new one.

Brad Crowell 

Sure.

Lesley Logan 

But if you can actually go, "Is there another way to this thing?" And then believing that that is possible, without the evidence or without going to the people around you who are going to repeat the old story are going to repeat the way that you should be doing it... Oh, you're gonna find so much possibility in that! And, and it does, it means boundaries. Probably a lot of people have a hard time with that. Or maybe not sharing some things with some family members who want you to do things the way that it's always been done. (BRAD: Sure.) But that doesn't mean it's forever, just so you know. Like, so I think it's really... I hope that, if you're listening to this and that takeaway really spoke to you, give it a try and let us know how it goes. Let Susanne know how it went because what I have seen her do and choosing another way and choosing her a new belief system for herself? I mean, it's, it's... (BRAD: It's really exciting.) It's awe inspiring. (BRAD: Yeah.) Awe, inspiring.

Brad Crowell 

So well, before we, we're gonna wrap this up here, but before we go, I just wanted to give you a little bit more on what Susanne is doing right now. Her podcast and her company are Point To Rise, that's P.O.I.N.T.E. You can find her on Instagram at that handle. They're specifically dedicated to other dancers whose entire identity is wrapped up in ballet. She coaches these dancers through the extreme anxiety, health, health, sorry, healthy competition, body imagery, identity crises, all of that stuff that happens when you are, like, as a child ballet dancer, and, like, your childhood gets taken away from you, and you're, you're thrust on the stage in front of tons of people. She's literally been through it and she is so passionate helping others skip the the rock bottoms that she experienced after the fact. So to find out more you can go to PointeToRise.com P.O.I.N.T.E. To Rise R.I.S.E.com. And...

Lesley Logan 

Also for you athletes out there I think it's very similar. I think it's..

Brad Crowell 

Yeah, it's not just ballet.

Lesley Logan 

I mean, I guess she's going to like she's going to use words about dancers but like if you've dedicated your life to learning something...

Brad Crowell 

Gymnastics, I'm sure is the same story.

Lesley Logan 

You know, at some point you age out of that, or you injure out of that. All the stuff that she talks about as so many so many helpful tips for you. So please check it out. (BRAD: Yeah.)

Lesley Logan 

All right. I'm Lesley Logan.

Brad Crowell 

And I'm Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan 

Thank you so much for joining us today. We are so grateful you're here. How are you going to use these tips in your life? We're very curious and I'm just actually quite quite nosy... So here's what I want you to do. You're going to screenshot your favorite episode tips you're going to post it on your Instagram you can post it in stories on your feed. Tag us @Be_It_Pod (of course there are some underscores in there) Instagram will tell you... and tag Susanne Purschel @PointToRise and let us know what your favorite takeaways were, which ones you're going to use. We love it. We'll share it on ours. And until then, we'll catch you on the next episode and Be It Till You See It.

Brad Crowell 

Bye.

Lesley Logan 

That's all I got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast. One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate the show and leave a review and follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to your podcast. Also, make sure to introduce yourself over at the Be_It_Pod on Instagram. I would love to know more about you share this episode with whoever you think needs to hear it. Help us and others Be It Till You See It. Have an awesome day. Be It Till You See It as a production of As the Crows Fly Media.

Brad Crowell 

It's written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell,

Lesley Logan 

Kevin and Belle at desenio handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell 

Our theme music is by Ollie at Apex Production Music and our branding by designer and artist GianFranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan 

Special thanks to our designer Jai romane doll for creating all of our visuals, which you can't see because this is a podcast, and our digital producer Jay pedroso for editing all the video each week, so you

Brad Crowell 

can and the Meredith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time

Ballet took Susanne Puerschel at a very young age from a normal childhood into the spotlight, before it all came crashing down. After moving from Germany to New York she started a family, her own ballet company, climbed the corporate ladder and started a 7-figure business. Together, she and Lesley cover hitting rock bottom, putting yourself first and breaking the generational cycle, and how you can create anything that you want in this life.

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Starting the conversation in the middle
• Living life with certainty
• Following, instead of exploring for yourself
• Self sabotage
• Hitting rock bottom
• Giving yourself permission
• Is “this” going to serve you
• You don’t always have to say, “Yes.”
• We do exactly as we’ve always done, unless…
• Breaking the cycle, changing the legacy
• Unparenting ourselves, our kids
• You can create anything that you want to
• Manifestation
• Prioritization of self
• Things are happening for us

Susanne's References/Links:

• Amy Cuddy’s TED Talk: Your body language may shape who you are | Amy Cuddy
• Susanne Puerschel’s podcast, Pointe to Rise
• Follow Susanne on IG
• Follow Pointe to Rise on IG
• Pointe to Rise Website

About Susanne Puerschel:

Susanne Puerschel is a leading expert in the field of Elite Performance Dance Coaching, mindfulness, and self-love. She has grown multiple businesses as a successful entrepreneur. Throughout her career, Susanne has regularly appeared on the stages across Europe and the USA. After struggling with her lack of value for years, she attended a mastermind with 500+ women that forever changed her life’s direction. This monumental shift has allowed Susanne to fully help untold amounts of women reach their clarity through her passion for human potential and created 'Pointe To Rise,' a community that empowers dancers and is changing the trajectory of the performing arts. She is also the host of the Pointe To Rise Podcast and is currently working on creating an organization that will fundamentally change the way the arts are operating.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox.

Resources

• Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube!
• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcript:

Susanne Puerschel 0:01  

I had one episode not record. Yes.

Lesley Logan 0:05  

Oh, that would be tragic. It's okay. I like when conversations start in the middle. Welcome to the middle of a conversation, Suzanne and I were just talking about how like, our biggest fear is like not recording the episode. Like that's the biggest fear. And she just mentioned that one didn't. I actually, to keep going with this conversation that we're in the middle of, I just posted the other day on my, my Instagram, my personal Instagram is like if you ever have to do something twice, it's because the second one was the one that was supposed to be born. That doesn't mean you don't cry over the first one, right? You still have to grieve it. But whatever it was on that second one was the magic that was meant to be out in the world. So it doesn't make it better. It still means more time when you have to do it, but just know that it was the right thing.

Susanne Puerschel 0:58  

Thank you for that. Thank you for the refrain because that sure did not feel like it. Or I did not feel like looking at it in the moment. It took a few swear words and a lot of persuasion. 

Lesley Logan 1:16  

Hello, everyone, welcome to the be a podcast I have my dear friend Suzanne here. And I'm gonna butcher her last name. So I'm gonna let her say it.

Susanne Puerschel 1:25  

You give it a shot. There's no butchering that name. 

Lesley Logan 1:28  

Susanne Puerschel.

Susanne Puerschel 1:30  

You got it!

Lesley Logan 1:34  

And did you all hear how, like I said, it was such certainty because that's also how you "be it" in this world. Like you go in as certain as possible. And if it's wrong, you just go, "Okay. Thank you for that." I met this beautiful woman, we just all ended up happening to be in the same room together. And you know, you're gonna fall in love with her as much as I did. But she, she holds so much space, like you hold like, the space around you is so calming. And like I for one, I'm new to the podcasting world and so very nervous before every episode, every interview, and then I saw your name and I was like, Oh, it's gonna be the most calm, chill, like she does just... you just bring that and... you're a wonderful mom, I got to meet your kids. I mean, it's just been such a wonderful time to get to know you more. And I'm really happy for us to talk to you today. And actually have you share your story because I really do think there's so many women in this world - especially listeners here - I know a lot of my Pilates lovers have followed me here and, and most of them have come from the dance world. And so I think that your story will resonate with them so much. But even if you're not a dancer, Hello, it's me. Um, there is there's so much in your story that I think we all can resonate with, like we all have been in those places where we're trying so hard for something. And so I really am excited to bring you on. Suzanne, thank you for being here. Will you tell everyone a little bit about your background?

Susanne Puerschel 2:59  

Oh, can I just say I think that was the most warm, warmest welcome I've ever heard. And my heart is bubbling. So thank you and everything you said right back at you. I'm so grateful for having you in my life and your beautiful energy. So I always know that. I have a spot in Vegas I can escape to. 

Lesley Logan 3:18  

Yes, you do. Yes, you do. We now have room. We now can say yes. Come stay with us.

Susanne Puerschel 3:26  

Okay, my story. Oh, goodness, how much time have we done? Yeah, so I'm gonna make it's 11:11 By the way, now, this is a fine numbers right now. So let's get into it. I could not think of anything else to do when I was a little girl than to be a classical ballet dancer. I wanted to be a ballerina that stands in the spotlight and twirls in front of millions of people and brings them joy and takes them out of their life and just, you know, share shares for heart with theirs. So that was my intention. And I was just "being it" until my parents finally put me into ballet school. And I went through all the nooks and crannies and left home when I was 10 and went through eight years of strong Russian training in East Germany and had my first job in my dream company at 18. And then I was so lost, because I didn't know what else there it is... besides, you know, standing in the middle and at this age like 18 to 20 if you didn't have really like a childhood or a youth like you always just followed you never explored for yourself. That whole exploration thing, like others have in their teenage years started when I had my first job and I ditch so many opportunities that I had in terms of really rising to the top and then manipulated them flat. And after seven years, I just said, Okay, this is not for me, I'm just gonna leave the big company and I'm gonna move to the US. I always knew I did not... Germany was not the country for me to be in. And conveniently, my boyfriend at that time moved back to the US and I'm with you, I want to go to a small company, where I will be seen, where I don't have to play the political games. And little did I know, being a professional dancer in Europe was like, the be-all end-all because we were looked after so beautifully, where it was different. Over on the other side of the Atlantic, so after two years, I completely stopped dancing. Like I hit rock bottom, to the point where I couldn't move anymore. I couldn't keep anything down. I was just crazily crying. And that was my journey into... from the beginning to the end of like, the professional world. And I escaped into running our own company. And I escaped to into Oh, gosh, ten years of Corporate America climbing the ladder, you know, going for the gold, going for the title, going for the money. And there's nothing wrong with money. Like No, no, no, I love it. Like, it's, it was. 

Lesley Logan 5:45  

It was just not you.

Susanne Puerschel 6:35  

Yeah, no, no, not at all. And I learned that, like, I had just recreated it, my entire childhood or my past experience in my career. And yet another break down. Rock Bottom, and I yeah, I just stepped out from one day to another and said, no more. I can't do it anymore. I'm risking my family and risking my marriage. This is it. Founded our own Airbnb slash cleaning company that grew to what seven figures in two years. Amazing. You know what, and I just actually really, I spoke it out and I realized how ashamed I actually was. I had yet again recreated the hustle, the, the unworthiness, the craving other people's attention, being good enough, with that kind of the day to day, like, eat me up. Like, I couldn't do it anymore. I was so tired of it. After you and I heard it in in La 2019. At the end of the year, I fell into this hole, like almost like something had to had to die in order for the new to rise. And that that does really hurt. But for the first time in my life, I knew this was a good one. Again, I'm just going to stay with it. And I'm going to just be here sad with my ice cream. And, and get through this because and I'm just keep doing what I what I learned - how to take care of myself and I will get through this, and so I did then covid hit and I'm like okay, this is my permission, I can now let go of this what's not serving me anymore. So close the business. It doesn't matter not an income. I really don't care. But for me, I'm so free and happy. And that's really when Pointe To Rise and my, my step back into my roots into my passion that my love was reborn.

Lesley Logan 8:53  

Yeah. Yeah. Oh my gosh, I want to I want to unpack so much because there's just as you were speaking, I was like, Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh, my I we have talked about that. We'll definitely have talked about Pointe To Rise so y'all can hear more about what she's doing. But I want to go back to first of all, like as a 10 year old going off to a school like being away from your family and and doing the thing right I think, I think there's a lot of people who may have been jealous of the fact that they didn't do that right. They're like Oh, I missed out on all this time. Where I wasn't I wasn't you know, I didn't I like if I think of like gymnast and other dancers who whose parents made them go to school and made them have a childhood. And you know, I think it's really easy to see the grass is greener on the other side and we can look back and have regrets over time. But what we don't we don't see is that like what you what you missed out on my actually have been the things that would have kept you from hitting repeating the same patterns three times before you figured out what you're here to do whereas other people who are like oh and i missed on this time i could do it like no actually all those experiences all of them help you actually figure out what it is that you're here to be on this planet what you're here to do and and and i think that is thank you for sharing that because i really do think a lot of people have regret and they say they they think they can't do the thing they want to do because of the time they lost but it doesn't have anything to do with it it's all the energy we put into it so and then and then i had just laugh because it's so funny what we can do here in the U.S. it's really easy we just take anyone and we get them on a corporate ladder climbing like we're super good at that and and also so how easy it was for you to do that when you really didn't have an idea of what it is that you were wanting to do yet like that i am so thank you for sharing that you went into this hole so to speak because you you do have to break down to build up in a way you had to get rid, shed all those experiences otherwise it would have been so easy for you with Pointe To Rise just repeat the same patterns like you're really good at that, you know?

Susanne Puerschel 11:16  

And I didn't want that and I'm actually still in the process of every day like going deeper and deeper and deeper okay when I create this what is my everyday going to look like and is this going to serve me or is this something that in three years I'm going to hate again? I don't want to get to that point because what I'm creating right now is so deeply rooted in me as as a deep deep love for not myself but for the arts, that I don't want to hate him like I don't want to grow out of doing it I want to grow with it you know? Yeah.

Lesley Logan 11:59  

Yeah, oh yeah, yeah. Same. I definitely can resonate with that it's so my first, my first job in college I started as a cashier, right? And I didn't actually know what I wanted to do... I'd gone to college with a specific dream in mind, and I was doing it, I was doing it... y'all I was "being it" because I was like as a high school like i'm going to do this athletic trainer thing for the football team and I was doing it for the high schools and I was trying to I was figuring out how I could do it you know when I wasn't in school for it and then I lost feeling that my fingers. And I couldn't... noone could figure out what was wrong, no one could figure out why I couldn't touch anything... I'm like, "Well I can't be an athletic trainer if I can't tear tape, can't feel the muscles, like I can't do it!" And so I switched majors and started working at the jewelry store and you know I was raised that like promotions are like a good thing right like, "Oh you're getting promoted. You're in a raise." Right? Like people people somehow understand that and so I would get promoted and I would get a raise and I got promoted again I get a raise and I kept getting promoted.... I was running the store and I was like, "What am I doing? Why am I running the store? I don't even like to manage people." So then when I became a Pilates instructor, guess who got promoted to manager right away? That would be me... and then I get promoted again and I got promoted again, and I was like I keep, I keep doing these patterns and I think I was, I was just like, I am not... i've never been a dancer but i could picture your repeat behavior because I think - even the listeners listening right now - just think back. We, we go through we have these grooves in our brain and we just repeat the pattern until we learn the lesson and I was like, "You need to learn the lesson that, like, just because somebody is giving you an opportunity doesn't mean you have to say yes."

Susanne Puerschel 13:54  

Yes! Amen to that. And I just want to add there because it is so when we think one thing isn't serving us anymore and we dive right into the next one wanting to find something better I always forgot that one tiny but yet so big of a difference making detail and that is we always take ourselves with us. Like, if we don't change who we are and how we believe and what we think and how we feel and our perspective we most likely will find exactly the same circumstances... just in another outfit or another spin or another suit.

Lesley Logan 14:39  

Oh my God, that is the best sentence, the best advice. I really hope everyone heard that because it doesn't matter if you're dating or it's a business thing or it's your workout or insert whatever you're wanting to work on here, you always take yourself with you. And I remember when people were worried I was, you know, over time listeners will learn the whole story, but I was I was without address for several months. I try not to say "homeless" because I never actually had a sleep in my car, but I definitely didn't have the same place all the time for a while. It took about, it took a bit before I found someone's guest room for a bit, but the point of that was, people are like, "Why aren't you finding an apartment?" I'm like, "Why am i looking?" It's just that before I make a decision... I've always like found an apartment right away. I've always figured out the thing the next thing right away. I'm just an action taker - do the thing. And, before I do that, because this is... what I'd decided is this is the last apartment that I'm gonna live in until I can buy something or I move somewhere amazing. This is the last apartment I live in. I just need to make sure that I have figured out who I want to be, what I want to be, like my "be it", before I pick that address. Because that address is going to be the home the birthplace of "being it" for the next thing. And so I really did take my time... scared a lot of people, but you know, I had to learn like, why do I keep dating the same person? That's like, that... I'm... this common denominator is me... what's happening? You know? Why do I keep overworking myself? Why do I keep getting stressed out? Oh! And so I really spent three months, like, figuring out who I was and what I wanted, so that like the first step, which would be the address I was going to live in, would be the "be it" of the birthplace. And so, thank you for sharing that and reminding people, because it's so true - we will just take ourselves into the next situation, do it the exact way we've always done, because our brain wants and our body wants to do the easiest thing, which is the thing it already knows.

Susanne Puerschel 16:40  

Exactly that's just how we are and how we're wired, right? Like it's, it's, that's our default that's yeah it's in our brains. However, if you're not aware of it you can spend your entire life without even realizing that. I mean, look at me it took me what, three rounds, round about to figure it out?

Lesley Logan 17:02  

But I still think you're winning because a lot of people probably don't even learn...

Susanne Puerschel 17:07  

No, you know I didn't, like I did not mean that as in even if that happens later in life you're still 10,000 steps ahead, because you actually have gained the awareness. And just getting to that point is I believe everything.

Lesley Logan 17:24  

Yeah.

Susanne Puerschel 17:24  

I would not like to go back to who I was two years ago, three years ago.

Lesley Logan 17:32  

Yeah and I... thank you. I just think that it's... I think that it's - that those are the tough conversations we have to have with ourselves and they're the ones that we don't want to have, because those are going to be the tears that don't stop and you're like, "Why am I still crying?" And, and we think because we're not we're not really taught... I don't know, I don't know... Maybe other people were, but you know, it was like, I... there wasn't really opportunities when my parents were like, "Yeah, keep crying. It is sad." You know you see babies are crying like, "It's okay, you're okay," and it's like, "No, they're not okay." It's okay to tell them, "I know, you're sad. This is sad." And, I really think it's like the more we can just be okay with not being okay and sitting in that... I think it scares people, because you know you don't know how long you'll be in that. But I promise you you'll get there a lot less often you do it one time, because your body will go, "Thank you for listening to me, I'm really upset right now. I don't feel comfortable in this." 

Susanne Puerschel 18:37  

Yeah, oh gosh. And thank you for bringing that up with kids. I have to say that I definitely was mother guilty of, "Just stop crying," but it was all about me, it was not about the child. It was how it made me feel. It made me feel inadequate. It made me feel like I'm a bad mother because I can't make my child happy right now. And coming to that realization really, really hurt... really, a lot.

Lesley Logan 19:08  

Yeah...

Susanne Puerschel 19:09  

Yeah.

Lesley Logan 19:10  

That that I mean like, I'm not, I'm not an actual not a parent of any children... but I feel for parents so much, because you can only do like, you can only do the best you can with what you know. You were only with your parents until you were 10, so, I mean, your, your, your... the rest of the time you were with adults. They were teaching you be a proper ballet dancer, one that like every single dancer looks up to. You were... there wasn't... you weren't given the tool bag, right? And like, the tools in the tool bag. And my parents, you know, my, my mom was raised by teenagers and my dad was raised by... yeah, totally, which is its own thing, right? And then, so whenever I think about my childhood I'm like, I mean imagine... she was 21 when she had me, so just imagine a 21 year old with a grandmother... My grandmother was 36! Do you know? How... what was the... They did the best they could, you know? What were the...

Susanne Puerschel 20:13  

Way to break the cycle though! Look at you, you changed the legacy. 

Lesley Logan 20:18  

Oh, thank you. Thank you. I know it's a big joke when people are like, "Oh my God, are you guys... Are you and Brad going to have kids?" and I'm like, "So in my household I'm too old to be a grandmom now!"

Susanne Puerschel 20:28  

Your train has long passed.

Lesley Logan 20:32  

It's gone. But, uh, you know, and then and my dad was raised. You know, interestingly enough, he was born in the 50s. And his parents were in their 30s when they had them, which was very odd. So they had very interesting childhoods. And so they did the best that they could and, and every parent out there with at the time in the 80s, was telling kids like, "Suck it up," like, "You're not bleeding," like, "You're fine, don't cry." And so, you know, I think that if we can all just like, recognize that, like, the people who raised us did the best they can and it's our job to like, kind of unparent ourselves, and then give yourself permission, like you've learned, you figured it out at some point. And you can still, you can still work with your boys in a way to like, help them figure it out sooner, you know? 

Susanne Puerschel 21:15  

Yeah. So that's what we're going through right now. It's like, unparenting our kids basically. And I say that with pride, actually, because I'm breaking legacy as well. You know, I was raised, my father was born in 1909. And I'm not old, and shrink-ily, like, I'm in my 40s. They had me really, really, really late. My mother was born just before the Second World War started in 1932. So imagine the baggage that I had been given. And I didn't even realize. But I have to say that I always knew that I didn't want to feel that way. I didn't want to act that way. My dad left really early, like he passed away when I was six. But I did not want it to be that woman. My mother was under any circumstances. Like, I knew that, but I didn't know how to be there. If that makes sense.

Lesley Logan 22:19  

Yeah. That's, that's interesting. And I think like people listening to like, you know, what, like, what is... What are some things we can talk about with this whole idea? Like, how do you be the thing that you've never seen? Right, like, or you didn't experience? And I think, you know, that could also be a good excuse. Like, "I can't do it, can't go be it, Lesley. Can't go be it, Suzanne, because I've never seen it. So don't know what to do." But somehow you managed to figure out a possibility, a pathway, you found that, you never, like, stopped looking for that. And so what is what what would you say to the person who's like, why I didn't, I didn't get that upbringing, so - that I wanted to have... and how do I be that for others when I didn't have it myself?

Susanne Puerschel 23:09  

That is such a layered, great question. That's that...

Lesley Logan 23:14  

I know, maybe if we can solve that maybe we could, yeah, we can get another million dollars. We can write the parenting book on that for adults, how to parent yourself.

Susanne Puerschel 23:23  

Um, you know, what I realized is that I thought, things have to be a certain way. Things have to be the way I have been taught they have to be. And when I realized that, that is completely bogus, that I can create anything that I want to. And that was literally undone that belief of me having to follow everything. And when I say follow I, I was never like a follower, follower, in that sense. Like, I always wanted to be a leader. I just didn't know leadership is going that, that I can choose my own beliefs that I can choose my own thoughts, I can choose who who and what they want to be, I can choose all of these things, all the way down to, you know, how I want to feel today, at or at any given point. And when that switch flipped for me, that was my my moment where I, I started to recreate everything in my life. And I don't know, I love that question. Because...

Lesley Logan 24:34  

It totally does. It answers it in a different way than I would and I love that because I think that that there that's why there's so many amazing people on this planet because you're going to learn from someone, right? Like, I love that you... I love the honesty in there and also that like you, that perfection is what you were following. But then you discovered that you could do it your own way and I think that giving yourself permission... If you don't, if you didn't see the example when you're growing up or in your life of what it is that you want to be, then knowing that it's okay to not follow a plan and to find your own path to doing that - that is permission. It's, it's not going to be easy, but it's actually like amazing permission to go, "Oh, there, there... it doesn't have to be the path to find the leader that I'm going to be." Like, "I can actually make my own way." And I think that's really beautiful and I hope that, I hope that someone listening lets us know if that helped them today or not, because I, you know, I, I think it's also easy to pretend to not to know.

Susanne Puerschel 25:44  

It's the beautiful big piece of rock you can hide behind and use it as an excuse, which I have, for many, many years, quite honestly. And that's, that literally is just a choice away. Like, you either choose to stay where you're at and you hide behind that rock and say, "Well, I didn't know any better." This is what I'm seeing in the arts right now. Like they just say, "Oh, yeah, well this is all we got. We just, we don't know." Well, go find out. Go ask questions. And I, I have to say that I never grew up in like in a bubble where it was okay to ask questions, like when you ask questions you were labeled stupid. I still struggle with asking questions because I have this innate fear, like almost anxiety, to be labeled stupid, because I was so... like that is so, I have yet to figure it out how to let go.

Lesley Logan 26:43  

Yeah...

Susanne Puerschel 26:43  

Well, we don't... 

Lesley Logan 26:44  

I don't think you're alone there. I think that so many people can resonate with that. Like, I, I mean, you weren't, you know, you were there when I was like, "I just, I hate asking the question," and it wasn't because like I hate asking questions... I google everything. It's because I didn't, I didn't, I was afraid of wasting people's time asking a dumb question that I probably could figure out, or I could google. And, and so yeah, I think that so that... thank you for, for sharing that, because I really do think that so many people get stuck on the asking of the question because of whatever they think asking questions represents.

Susanne Puerschel 27:19  

Yes, exactly. And where was I? Oh, yeah, I just really, really understood how important it is to ask questions. Like, in any kind of scenario, you know? Even as, when I was smaller and we were exactly given, "Okay, this is who you have to be. This is what you have to do on a daily basis in order to be successful." But looking at it right now and asking the question, "What if there is another way? What if we would do it this way? What would it look like? Could this actually be joy?" And that opens up so many more possibilities that nobody ever looked at and with with new questions come new answers right and this is where I would say you have the choice to hide between behind a rock and just to shut down and take the easy path and say, "Okay, this is what I know and I'm not even going to go google it," or, "I'm gonna put myself out there knowing that I am not stupid. I am here to grow and this is what growing looks like."

Lesley Logan 28:30  

Again amazing permission that it's... asking questions is part of the growth. It's like, it's almost like if you're a plant than the water is like the question, right? And like, when we ask a question your right we get better answers, and you also get different answers, right? Like, if you are not liking how you wake up every day and you go through the day and you're like, "Oh." Like, you have to ask yourself the question, you have to ask, "What if I do this? What if I go a different route? What if I, what if I change the work schedule? What if I..." you know, and, and try it on. It's all, it's all trial and error anyways, right? Like a big experiment. Yeah that is, that is the key, and I think that's the hardest thing. And so, you know, I think a lot of people... they want to know for certain, "Okay, this is, this is gonna be it for me," and I mean, I think you said earlier, like you want Pointe To Rise to be the thing that grows with you, and that has been something that I've also, like I really like, I really feel and understand because it's so easy even when I was a Pilates tea... well, I am a Pilates teacher, but even when I was becoming a Pilates teacher it's like, "Okay, now I'm a teacher trainer, now I'm a studio manager, now I have on-demand stuff..." Like, period, period, like, put a period on it. But like, it, every time I did that it felt harder to do the next level, because I'm like, "Well, I'm changing," but all this stuff, all these things that I have, all my clients are used to this, right? And so it's, I, I was like... when we moved, when COVID happened, I'm like, "No, from now on everything grows with us." Because if it cannot grow with us, it's just, I don't want to be held to like, this is how it is, like, it's exactly this way all of the time. And it's been this passion of mine to really help people go, "It's okay, your schedule can just change next month. It can change next week!" Like, you can change how you operate your business. You can change how you operate your life, because you are ever changing, like, we're always growing. And so I feel like the sooner someone can learn that.... the better, right?

Susanne Puerschel 30:35  

Yes, giving yourself permission that whatever you decide can change tomorrow in a heartbeat. And that's okay. It doesn't make you less of a person or less of something. Like, it's okay.

Lesley Logan 30:49  

Right? Because also you can, you can hear it right? You can be watching a commercial or listening to a podcast, you're like, "Oh my God, that's the thing, that's exactly what I want to do." And then with action comes clarity. Might be like...

Susanne Puerschel 31:05  

Oh, and being okay, that you know, okay, now I have clarity that this is not what I meant to do. Or this is not the next step. Being okay with that, I have to admit is super hard for me, because I grew up in this, well, everything you do has to be perfect. There's no trying out. It's like you have one shot deals, right? It just needs to be okay. And my family to this point looks at me, it's like, "What are you doing? Hey you, why do you keep trying?" But because that's the path I need to take this until I figure out what it really is. And this is the first time... I had to be in my 40s to come to the point where, "Okay, let's do this," Well, if not now, then when? Yeah, and yeah, I feel the sooner you can learn that the easier it will be for you down the road to just do.

Lesley Logan 32:04  

And, yeah, I want to, I want to chat a little bit about like, there's, there's a fun story that I feel like it might be a fun story. So I want to I want to hear more about it. But, but when I read this about you, I was like, "Oh my God, I've so done that." So you used to pretend to live in a neighborhood. And I want to chat about this because this is like... if you're not into vision boarding or you're not into, like, goal setting, I feel like this could be something that someone does to kind of manifest, picture, be it till you see it. So can you tell us a little bit about that?

Susanne Puerschel 32:44  

I'm so glad you asked that question because it actually made me think, "Oh my gosh, that's my entire life." Actually, just, I wasn't aware of it. And I for the first time actually realized, "Oh, my gosh, I am so powerful." You know, we all are. But I always thought, "Everybody else, not me." So when we moved in to Victoria in 2006, with like nothing and one child and another child on the way, I was like, "One day I'm going to live in this particular neighborhood. That should be nice, you know, upper class neighborhood." Like, "I'm just going to live there." And, I would find myself working in the neighborhood. I would find myself driving here, going shopping here. I would find myself just driving around and pretending how it would feel if I would be walking here. I would take strolls on the weekends here. I would take my kids here for 15/14 years, I would do it continuously but not on purpose. Like I wasn't conscious of what I was doing. And after 2018 Bliss Project, which was my first event that I went to in my entire life, anything that I've ever done self development wise started with Lori... 

Lesley Logan 34:10  

I think that was my first one. 

Susanne Puerschel 34:12  

Yeah, was it?

Lesley Logan 34:14  

I'll have to confirm... it was that one or yeah, 'cause 2020 didn't happen. So, yeah, 2018 was my first one. I won a ticket there.

Susanne Puerschel 34:23  

Oh my gosh, good for you. Wow! I got back and I was like, "Okay, well... Things are going to change now, right?" Well, they did. I knew that I had to move. I just knew it. Like I couldn't stand the energy that's coming from the four parts that were surrounding us. And when the universe was just like, "Hey, here's your eviction notice." Out of the blue. Like, "Oh my God, it's summer in Victoria. How am I going to find a place? This is insane... we have a dog, kids... impossible." Until I changed my perspective. And I said, "Well, what if? What if this is my chance to move where I want to go?" So I was driving around and postponed the eviction, the moving out. Because I knew I had to be sure that we had something figured out. And one day, I had to deliver something for a client. And I landed right here in front of this house. And I was asking him, "Hey, guys, are you renovating it? Are they selling it?" And it was like, "No, no, no, no, that the agent is inside there. They're renting it out." And I go inside and it is an old client of mine that I coached and served for many years when I was in corporate America. I was like, "What are you doing here?" She's like, "Getting it ready to rent" I was like, "Okay, look no further. This is my place!" Without seeing it... and then she's like, "Okay, cool, come by the office aqnd we'll get everything rolling on Monday." Yeah, four weeks later we signed a contract and moved out. So that's how I really, and I did this, nobody else. I really treated this... get us out of the neighborhood that I wasn't really happy in/with anymore. And we're now living two blocks from the ocean surrounded by nature and in a really, beautiful neighborhood. Now, I still walk around every morning and every evening being just so grateful that I can't believe I did this.

Lesley Logan 36:46  

I love this. I hope everyone listening hears this, it's like, sometimes we're not even conscious of when we're "being it." And I really do think that, there, as you're telling several stories, I was like, "Oh, look at me. I was being it then too, and I was being it then too," and I hope if you're listening you are like, "Oh, I've done that. Oh, I've done..." If you've done that, like, look at how many times you've already been being it until you seen it and didn't even know it, and like, and then imagine the power you have when it is a more conscious thing, right? And I, yeah, I love that so much... the world, I find the world a fascinating place because things are happening for us all the time but oftentimes we're fighting them. We're fighting them so, so, so much. And, and if you can reframe... Of course, we talked about that at the beginning of this episode, when you had to like re-record a podcast like, of course, tears, curse words... have the emotions, feel the feelings, and then ask yourself, "Well, what... What could this be helping me do? What, what, what, how could this be happening for me?" Because, you know, I mean, it's, it's when you reframe it like that you start, it's better questions, and you get better answers. And I love, I love that you're in this home in this neighborhood. And myself, Brad and I walk around our neighborhood every night together. And we're always like, "I feel... I love this neighborhood." And I never want to not be grateful on a walk.

Susanne Puerschel 38:08  

Right? Same here. Same here. I'm just... and quite honestly, like looking back that, that question sparked so much. From getting into the ballet school, like I wasn't... they didn't want to take me. I manifested that. Getting the job at the at the Opera House at 18. I manifested that. I mean, I worked for it too but I manifested it. Getting out of Germany, I started manifesting it when I was 13.

Lesley Logan 38:39  

Yeah, and I, so I, and I think people, you know, there's a lot of people go, "Well, you can't just manifest, because, like, you got to do something." But you can't just do something without knowing where you're going. Because then you just end up repeating the same things over and over. So I love that you're like, "This is what I wanted to do. This is how I'm, like, this is my manifest... this is what I want to have," and then you're... and then you did the work for it. And I think that is absolutely being it until you see it. Like, so I came up with this title from Amy Cuddy's TED Talk. And she talks about how they actually did a study where they had people stand in the power stance, right? Hands on hips, feet wider than hips stand up like Superwoman, Wonder Woman. I don't know Marvel, so sorry, everyone, don't hate me... But, but yeah, they stand in that power stance and they stood there for minutes, right? And then they had, then those people went into an interview. And then they had people sit, then they had them on another time, like sit slouchy, like small, like make themselves small. They had him sit like that and then go into an interview and they, they train people to not react in the interviews at all, ask the questions. And the people who in the power, were in the power stance... They came out feeling like they got the job. Like feeling like, that was amazing. And the people who were small, all felt like, they like, but like, we're terrible. It was the worst thing ever, like awful, right? And so, and so it like the whole... if you... And Susanne, you talked about how like, you have to be it till you see it right? Like, you do the thing until all of a sudden you're like, "Oh, I am, the thing is, I am the thing now." Right? And that (Yeah.) And it's, it doesn't stop. It's a cycle because it's, there's another thing and it doesn't mean that you're not satisfied, it's just that we are ever changing. And it's the thing that you're going to go do you haven't done yet. So you have to go be it till you see it. So you did that with your house and all the things you manifested, the dancing, and the Opera House job... which is amazing, you know?

Susanne Puerschel 40:35  

Yeah. And I, you know, consciously never really believed in it until I was introduced to self development and understanding. Well, wait a second. I actually am doing all of these things already. So that was that was a big aha moment for me. 

Lesley Logan 40:55  

Yeah, well, I'm that's like, where confidence comes right? When you are, and you become aware of the things that you're doing and how they're actually tools helping you. It's hard to see the label from the outside, from the inside, the inside. Easy to see the label from the outside. But we're on the inside. I want... a couple things. First, where can everyone who's falling in in love with you, follow you?

Susanne Puerschel 41:18  

Oh, you can find me mostly on Instagram, either under @SusannePuerschel or @Pointe_To_Rise. That's the community and I'm barely on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, podcast, Pointe to Rise podcast. 

Lesley Logan 41:36  

Y'all go listen to the Pointe To Rise podcast. We'll put your handles also in the notes, so it's easy for people to find. And, absolutely, I can't wait to hear what people's takeaways are. Before I let you go, I have to, I have to know... I think people's biggest problems with "being it," being bold or executable or following that intrinsic motivation... You know, all of that comes with prioritization. Like how do you prioritize "being it" when like, the world around you is trying to get you to do things for them?

Susanne Puerschel 42:14  

Oh my gosh, this is such a good question. I actually have goosebumps on my head like inside of my skin. And I want to really precisely answer this question I never knew how to make myself and what I wanted for me a priority, because I never knew that I was worth it. And when, when you realize how much of a beautiful and worthy soul you are you will put what is important to you before pleasing somebody else, or giving from an empty cup, or please everybody before your needs, and you will realize that, that will make everything so much easier. Everything like, your life, your relationships, "being it"... what you want to be. Yeah, 

Lesley Logan 43:19  

Yeah, that's... that gave me chills. That is so amazing. You're, you're absolutely a beautiful person inside and out. And, thank you for being so vulnerable and sharing your story. I'm beyond inspired. I, I'm just so grateful for this conversation. I hope we get to have more. And everyone what would mean so much to me is if you could screenshot this, tag Susanne and I, and share us the take... share the takeaways. Like, what was your favorite part? What, like, really gave you goosebumps and chills and so that we can share that with others and also know what what resonated with you. Thank you Susanne, I, I can't wait to talk to you more again and everyone listening, thank you for your time. I'll see you soon.

Susanne Puerschel 44:07  

Thank you Les. Love you. 

Lesley Logan 44:10  

Love you.

Brad & LL break down that fantastic convo from last episode with Erica Hood, digging into manifestation vs taking action, reviewing Erica's three step prep formula to taking that messy action, how to invest in yourself and when it's time to STOP learning more and just get started.

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Manifesting is good, but take the action
• 3 step prep formula for taking messy action
• Investing in yourself by stepping out of your comfort zone
• Surround yourself with good people
• Taking action vs learning more

References/Links:

• Samantha Skelly https://www.samanthaskelly.com/

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox.

Resources

• Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube!
• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcription:

Brad Crowell 0:00  

Again, go ahead. You got to make it a real clap.

Lesley Logan 0:08

I don't. You clap. You hit your hand.

Brad Crowell 0:10

I do. I clap. It's like a cup. Yeah. Okay, well if they can't learn with the audio with 75 claps. I don't know.

Lesley Logan 0:20  

I don't think I learn how to clap like that. Anyways, okay. Here we go.

Lesley Logan 0:27  

Are you ready?

Brad Crowell 0:29

I am ready.

Lesley Logan 0:33  

Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where my co hosts in life, Brad and I are going to dig into the super fun combo I had with my really good friend Erica Hood in our last episode. If you haven't yet listened to that interview, feel free to pause this now go back and listen to that one, and then come back and join us or be like me, listen to this. See how much you love it and then go back knowing like all the good stuff. That's how I like to do this. (Brad: You know?) Yeah. Just read the end first. Okay. But first, Brad, we had an audience question to respond to.

Brad Crowell 1:04  

I believe we did.

Lesley Logan 1:07  

Oh, yeah. So um, what do we do for fun? That's what they want to know. They want to know what we do for fun.

Brad Crowell 1:13  

Fun? We don't have fun.

Lesley Logan 1:14  

Well, I think we're super fun. But it's a really interesting question coming out of COVID. I feel like, I feel like we made a lot of things fun during COVID, where you had to get really creative, like, we made watching every night time TV show the day after a good time, because we don't have a TV. But now that COVID is, you know, kind of going...

Brad Crowell 1:41  

Slowly, slowly, you know, riding off into the sunset.

Lesley Logan 1:45  

Yeah. Or at least letting us go out in the world. I feel like we have a lot of fun things we've got planned.

Brad Crowell 1:51  

Yeah, I think, I think well, the reality is that, you know, while COVID is starting to be handled here in the US, but not internationally. And I think what we used to do for fun was travel. (Lesley: Yeah) And so since our travel has been extremely curtailed for the past year.

Lesley Logan 2:10  

Understatement of the year.

Brad Crowell 2:15  

You know, what have we been doing for fun has been actually, we moved and so now, we have a space house to turn into our home.

Lesley Logan 2:29  

Yeah.

Brad Crowell 2:30  

That has been a lot of the fun that we've been having while we've been staying inside.

Lesley Logan 2:36  

Yeah, because we've actually been nesting and decorating. You're on a cactus mission.

Brad Crowell 2:43  

Oh, I am on a cactus mission. And by the way, if you are, if you are watching this on YouTube, you can see our podcast room, our office is finally taking shape. We've got fun things hanging behind us such as guitars and things.

Lesley Logan 2:57  

Well, pretty soon one of my things will be hung up. I'm very excited for, stay tuned YouTubers, what is behind me will change and I'm very stoked about that. But yeah, I think right now what we do for fun is very different than we used to do for fun and very much of a period fun thing because as soon as we can get out in our van. Yeah, we have a van y'all. Right now. It is not hashtag van life. It's definitely hashtag cargo van life, but it's gonna be van life. And that's gonna be worth taking out and going to all the national parks and having a lot of fun.

Brad Crowell 3:32  

Yeah, yeah. So we've taken a few trips with the van. In fact, just last week, I did it 1100 mile drive. No, this week.

Lesley Logan 3:45  

Well, when they listen to it, it's another week. (Brad: Yeah) But it's fine.

Brad Crowell 3:46  

1100 miles drove up over the mountains like through Yosemite, to Northern California and then came back down the five and came under the mountains through the Mojave. Or sorry, through Death Valley to get back to I guess it was the Mojave actually to get back to Vegas. Anyway, so driving, I know that's weird to say that's fun, but I love being on the road. I love moving around. And so

Lesley Logan 4:16  

We love packing a suitcase. (Brad: Yeah) Unpacking not so fun for us, but packing it and taking it with us places. We have so much fun doing that and stay tuned as soon as we can, we'll take this show on the road (Brad: Oh, yeah!) like pop up. Oh! Pop up tours can come back babe.

Brad Crowell 4:33  

Pop up tours come back. .... can come back. I mean all the things

Lesley Logan 4:34

Who wants a pop up class?

Lesley Logan 4:37  

Pilates pop up class tell us on the gram where we should pop up first. (Brad: Oh, yeah!) Because we got that van and if it's a mattress so we're there. Alright, well, that's what we do for fun. Thank you for that question. If you have more questions for us, put them in our Instagram on at be_it_pod and let us know we'll answer it here for you. Real quick you may not know this, may not know what you want right now. But prioritizing your time for yourself is the utmost importance. That is a broad word. But it is true, it is the utmost importance. And I do that through my Pilates practice. It is how I make sure that I've prioritized me in everything that I do. And I want to offer you a free class with me over at OlinePilatesClasses.com/beit that's OnlinePilatesClasses.com slash b e i t.

Brad Crowell 5:28  

All right, now let's talk about Erica Hood.

Lesley Logan 5:31

I really love your voice.

Brad Crowell 5:33

Well, that's good.

Lesley Logan 5:34

Like a total radio voice. It's so good. Anyways, let's talk about Erica Hood.

Brad Crowell 5:39

Erica, if you aren't familiar with Erica, she is the creator and founder of HoodFit a woman's based fitness company, focusing on moving to the rhythm, connecting to our minds, body and soul. By moving system amazing music. With the beat, you'll find intense cardio Barre workouts from her and she is a fellow dog lover. And she owns her business. She also owns her business with her husband, whose name is Jordan and they live in Palm Springs now. We've had the chance to get to know them over the past couple of years before both of us, both couples left LA.

Lesley Logan 6:18  

Yeah, when she and I met that you are working with me a little bit like on the retreat side of things and like I would have asked you to do things on my website. But us, she and I have gotten to know each other. Now we both work with our husbands and we all four moved during COVID. We're like bye LA because her apartment like neighbors were not okay with like literally a first week of COVID zoom dance cardio.

Brad Crowell 6:47  

Yeah. Could you imagine being a neighbor of someone who's like, Okay, now let's move.

Lesley Logan 6:53  

Yeah. And you know what? Because I know what she teaches because of our apartment. It's the same thing. Like, there's a fan in the middle and you're living in this tiny place in LA, which you never thought was tiny until you're in COVID. And then you're like, Oh, so I'm supposed to teach him here. And if I okay, so if I do jumping jacks, I have to move back a foot so that I don't hit the fan. But if I want to do push ups, I got to move forward. It's too much, y'all. (Brad: Yeah) So they moved to Palm Springs. We moved to Las Vegas, and we text each other all the time to see whose temperature is hotter.

Brad Crowell 7:24  

Yeah, it's true. That's usually win.

Lesley Logan 7:27  

They do. I'm okay with that.

Brad Crowell 7:28

Palm Springs is usually the hotter.

Lesley Logan 7:29

I'm okay with that.

Brad Crowell 7:30  

It's pretty, pretty bananas.

Lesley Logan 7:33  

Um, okay, so let's talk about this interview. Because what I loved about this interview is the moment when she and I realized when we became friends at this one event, and so you have to listen that story, because it's really it's really fun. But um, she talked a lot, how about having to do messy actions and having to have good people around you. And this is cool. So y'all, she found confidence to start a business that she had never done before. She'd never like been her own boss after sharing her fears with her husband. And I really resonated with that. Because I tell you all the time, like, Oh my god, I'm really nervous about this. And then you're like a sage and you go, I don't know, like, why you're so scared. Like, this is the normal thing that you do all the time.

Brad Crowell 8:20  

But you did share that story also in the last episodes' pod, as well. But yeah, I think you give me a lot of credit. I think that together we definitely help each other.

Lesley Logan 8:32  

No, that's true. That's true. So anyways, I just I really like to because even if you're listening this and you're like, well, that's fine, LL. I don't have a husband to share my partner to share my fears with. Okay, so go back to having good people around you and literally look at the people who are in your lives. And if you feel like they're not the most supportive people that are super inspiring. Like, I have a challenge for you to like, write down who you wish was in your life, and then go find them. Like, it's really hard when you're an adult to make friends. Like we moved to Vegas. And it's a little, it's weird to make new friends. I totally um like, Okay, um, Hi I'm Lesley.

Brad Crowell 9:09  

We started with our neighbors.

Lesley Logan 9:11  

Yeah, we did. We did. And they're lovely, thank goodness. So I would say, you know, my coach recently told me that to do this as well like write down like, Who are the people? Like what are the values of the people that you wish who around you that you could share these fears with? (Brad: Yeah) If you can picture them, then you can be it till you see it with those relationships, too.

Brad Crowell 9:30  

That's right.

Lesley Logan 9:31

All right. Well, what do you love that she said?

Brad Crowell 9:35

She said something real quick. She said you have to step outside of your comfort zone to invest in yourself. (Lesley: Hmm.) And that made me remember when I was really driven, when I was younger, to learn, grow, succeed, sell, whatever. I was, I was willing to be dedicated. I was like, actually, I was hell bent on and I was, I was like studying books and reading and listening to tapes and watching, you know, movie clips, and like listening to speakers and stuff, really trying to move forward. But I realized, as I was thinking about this, that I was uncomfortable already, because I was, you know, in my teens, and I was living with my parents, and I wanted to get out and go do the things. And, you know, when you get to college, it's not exactly comfortable, either. Because you never have enough money and all the things so you're really, really willing to go chase something. And then, you know, as we establish ourselves, and we get kind of, into a groove, life groove with our family, and kids and friends and dogs and all the things, you, I think it's easy to become complacent. And in order to invest in ourselves, we have to step outside of that routine that we've created for ourselves, I mean, you know, and it could be that we're spending, you know, more time watching TV or, you know, we, I know, we eat dinner and watch TV, so like, the only time we ever give ourselves to do that we don't want don't really have movie nights and hardly you know, or anything like that, you know, but it's also easy to, to keep watching the show, instead of watching walking the dogs or whatever, you know. And so if you do that for too long, suddenly, six months, a year has gone by and you're like, wow, you know, like, okay, I don't feel like I move forward. I've just gotten in this rut.

Lesley Logan 11:43  

Yeah, I understand that a lot. I think like, I, one of the reasons like moving to Vegas was so great as it like, I needed to be uncomfortable. I felt like I was like I need if I'm supposed to be doing all these things that that are going to grow this company. I can't be in this. Like, I know the walk home takes me 15 minutes. This is where I get my Starbucks even during COVID it's open like I needed like on I don't have gym, I don't have friends, like I have to like really step up more. And so I don't know that I literally know, knew that, like, we need to move. So I get uncomfortable. But I'm kind of glad we did. Because it's been helpful and like, actually propelling things forward. 

Brad Crowell 12:26  

Yeah, when you change your environment, when you change that routine, it actually allows you, it forces you to reconsider life, it forces you to reconsider, you know, your path where you're currently going. And that's really when you begin to invest in yourself again, and it's when you're uncomfortable, because you've swapped up what was just easy to do. (Lesley: Yeah, I'm in love.) Yeah, well, I think I thought that was really awesome. And I know you the two of you didn't discuss that too much during the pod. So I really wanted to cover that here. But let's talk about the be it action items. What bold, executable intrinsic or targeted action items can we take away from your convo with her? And the one thing that jumped out to me, she said that manifesting is good. But take the action. And I never really put up, like set it so succinctly before but I have a really good friend of mine, who we would always tease for going back to school and continuing to educate and educate and educate and it's like it's amazing. It's like holy crap. You got like degrees and you had all this extra stuff, but it's like, what are you gonna go do with that? You know, and like a lot of the conceptualizing and the planning and the strategy and all the stuff, you know, but now it's been 15 years and it's like, okay, like, go do it now. Let's actually, let's go get that happening. So I think that was thinking about it, and I'm all about a plan ahead of time, but you gotta you got to take action at some point.

Lesley Logan 14:21  

Um, this is okay, so there's a girl, her name is Samantha Skelly. And I heard another podcast, I heard her say, or someone quoted her saying, information without integration equals constipation. And I, I'm gonna that's gonna be a mantra, y'all that has to be repeated, share it to your friends, because it really, it really is something like super important because I think a lot of people especially if you have an imposter syndrome, where you don't feel like you know enough, you'll manifest and then you'll realize, Oh, I need to know more. So then you go and learn more, but you're actually not taking action. You're making the learning Like seemed like it's an action step, but it's really like a hidden non action step because you got to just take the action actually doing the thing that you want. So, so anyways, (Brad: Say it one more time.) Oh, information without integration equals constipation. Thank you Samantha Skelly. They will get her on here someday because we said that (Brad: Maybe?) Be it till you see it.

Brad Crowell 15:24  

I love it. Well, I love that. I think that's hilarious and also profound. What about you?

Lesley Logan 15:31  

No, it's profound. I'll give you a profound on that. So my biggest takeaway, okay, here's she gave a formula like a prep formula for taking messy action, which I feel like we haven't had anyone to a prep formula. And I also love this because it is like a very intrinsic, be it tip. And so we've had a lot of bold tips, a lot of executable tips, but like, not a intrinsic tip. So here it is, she had the formula to take prep for taking messy action. One is starting in a deep rooted place. Y'all gotta get inside, and like, gotta get to know yourself, right? You have... So number two is you have to get right with yourself, like knowing who you are. And this might mean getting therapy, this might mean journaling. This might mean asking your friends, like, what are your, what are your favorite things about me, or what are some things that you love about me, like get to know yourself, and that can be very uncomfortable. But that goes back to the other takeaway of talked about. And then number three, knowing what your mission is, values are, your passion is, that's what drives you, this will allow you to take action. So you have to start in a deeper place, you have to get right with yourself and know what your mission is. And here's the thing, like mission can be your why, values like Google, like "core values," and like pick five that really resonate with you. Because when you don't feel comfortable, like when you are a little nervous, feeling imposter syndrome, feeling like, you're not ready to show up for yourself and take this action yet. If you know why you're doing it, that is going to help propel you forward when you're scared.

Brad Crowell 17:07  

I think there's no question about that. I think also your values are really going to come from knowing yourself, right? That deep rooted place that she's talking about, it's almost as if one and two kind of should be merged together. The deep rooted place is when you know yourself, like when you have a foundation. And you know, you know what you're doing, why you're doing it, it's going to make give you that confidence. I think also too, she said earlier, surrounding herself with good people, also gives you that confidence to allow you to go take action. And but you know, again, manifesting is good, but take the action, right. So, you know, even if you're not 1,000% sure you're going the right way. You know, I think when you get started, it'll become clear really quickly. You know, in fact, I think, you know, you covered that a couple episodes ago with Rob Mack too, where he talked about the you don't need to see the whole staircase, you just need to see the first step. (Lesley: Yeah) Right? And once you know, but if you know what you know who you are, and why you want to go do, what you want to do, then it's going to real that is your solid foundation to go take messy action from. You might not understand the exact specifics of what you need to do yet, but you're gonna figure that out. And that's that messy action.

Lesley Logan 18:32  

Yeah, well, because it takes, it puts you on the line. Like you were like actually putting yourself on the line as opposed to like, this is a hopeful way, like you do a birthday wish and you save it for yourself. Like you know the whole thing like don't tell it won't come true. I'm like, I'm gonna tell people because that's how it comes true. (Brad: Yeah.) If people don't know what you want, they can't help you get it. How do you think I got you?

Brad Crowell 18:52  

I think you told me. Oh, wait a minute.

Lesley Logan 18:56  

Well, that's true. But I actually told people what I wanted. (Brad: Yeah, you do) People are how we met.

Brad Crowell 19:01  

People on how we met. (Lesley: Yeah) Yeah, that's very true.

Lesley Logan 19:04  

All right. Well, love. This is great. (Brad: Yeah.) Okay, everyone. Thank you so much for joining us today. We are so grateful you're here. How are you going to use these tips in your life? Let us know by sending us a DM on to the pod on IG that's at be_it_pod. Also just screenshot this and tag it your status and your stories with what you're going to do. (Brad: Yeah) That's going to inspire the people around you. And guess what if some of them dm you back and go, I'm doing that too, you just found the people that you want to be spending your time with. And we'll catch you on the next episode. Until then be it till you see it.

Brad Crowell 19:38

Cheers!

Please welcome HoodFit creator and founder, Erica Hood, to the pod! Erica is a dancer and trainer who now teaches virtually through her growing cardio, barre, dance platform, which she runs with her husband, Jordan. In this episode, Erica and Lesley talk about how to take messy action, what to do when you’re nervous or scared, and the value of surrounding yourself with supportive friends (and hopefully family too!)

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected].

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Talking to someone when you’re nervous or scared
• Having someone supportive in your life
• Taking messy action
• What if your family doesn’t support your entrepreneurialism?
• Who do you surround yourself with?
• Knowing who you are, you have to get right with yourself
• Knowing what your mission is, values are, your passion is that drives you
• This will allow you to take action (manifesting is good, but take the action)
• Starting in a deep, rooted place

Erica's References/Links:

• Follow Erica Hood Fit on IG
• Follow Hood Fit on IG
• Watch HoodFit on YouTube
• Get the HoodFit app in the Apple Store or in the Google Play store
• HoodFit Life Website
• Gretchen Rubin’s book, The Four Tendencies: The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How to Make Your Life Better (and Other People's Lives Better, Too)

About Erica Hood:

Erica Hood is a celebrity trainer and fitness model who has been working with Hollywood’s elite for the past ten years. With a background in professional dance, Erica focuses on energy, rhythm, and choreographed precision to deliver effective workouts that connect body and soul. This method – combined with her unrivaled positivity – has made Erica a favorite among celebrities such as Rosie Huntington Whiteley, Julianne Hough, Camilla Belle, Rashida Jones, Ashley Madekwe, and others.

HoodFit is a high energy dance-inspired fitness method that's a combination of streaming, on-demand and live classes for personal and group training sessions. HoodFit digital studio/app membership provides 24/7 access to Erica’s signature method. HoodFit is headquartered in Palm Springs and is a proud partner of The Dream Hotel in Hollywood.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser or Castbox.

Resources

• Watch the Be It Till You See It podcast on YouTube!
• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcription:

Erica Hood 00:00

You're never going to know anything right away when you do something. You have to like, take that first jump. And then as you go, you start to put the pieces together because there's just an abundance of things for you to have to figure out and pieces to put to...It's like building a puzzle. You don't just have a complete puzzle, you have to go piece by piece, right? But you have to start with one piece.

Lesley Logan 00:28

Hey you, how are ya? Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It Podcast. I am so excited. I think I say that every episode, and I'm gonna keep saying it. Because, first of all, this podcast is still very new for me. So it's freaking exciting that we get to do this and that you are joining us and I get to introduce you to some of my favorite people on this planet, including today's guest, Erica Hood, the founder of HoodFit. I cannot even wait for you to listen to this. So what I'm gonna say is, please check out all of her goodness in the show notes below. She has an incredible fitness company - it's dance cardio, it's so fun. I don't even like to dance, and I take her classes. And also check out on the Gram, you will love her and be inspired by her. She's one of the sweetest people, she just got a puppy. So I'm all about checking out her puppy pics. If you need a puppy fix, that's what you should do. Anyways, what I can't wait for you to hear in this podcast is really how she went from being someone who worked for other people to working for herself. And I think a lot of times we get scared about, how do we do that? And we probably wonder, how do you do that? And you're going to hear how she did it. And I think you're gonna hear a lot about a lot of something that feels familiar to you. So what I want you to do is make sure you're being present, listen to this. And then afterwards let me know how you liked it because Erica and I, we just really want you to hear this information, hear her story. You're gonna hear the interview right after this brief message.

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It Podcast, where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I'm Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I've trained thousands of people around the world. And the number one thing I see stopping people from

Lesley Logan 02:15

achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity. And it's the antidote to fear. Each week, my guest will bring bold, executable, intrinsic and targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It's a practice, not a perfect. Let's get started.

Lesley Logan 02:43

Hello, everyone. I can't wait for our next guest just to start talking. She is one of my favorite women on this planet. And I have to say this: you're someone who I was so intimidated to meet. And when you all hear her voice and start getting to know her there's like nothing intimidating about her. But Erica has this like elegance and grace and just an ability and she's beautiful. And we both were, we both are ambassadors for this one fitness business Carbon38. And, you would just take pictures and be so beautiful. And they're like, okay, and they had to tell me how to pose everything like, Now put your shoulder here, do this. And then Erica, you come up and like, just do all the right things. And I'm like, This girl is so beautiful. And then you start talking and you're also so freakin nice. And so what I can't wait to chat about is the many adventures we've had together. And one of the reasons why I brought you on here. But first will you introduce yourself, tell everyone who you are?

Erica Hood 03:42

Thank you for that lovely introduction. You're so sweet. Hi, everyone. My name is Erica Hood. I'm the creator and founder of HoodFit, which is a women's based fitness company. We focus on moving to the rhythm connecting to our mind, body and soul by moving to the music and to the beat. You can expect to get in my classes, kind of that dance, Pilates Barre vibe throughout the class, you're going to sweat, move to feel good. It's just all about programming my workouts to deliver to women to connect to themselves on a deeper level. So like yes, the workouts are gonna be intense, and it's gonna be sweaty, but it's gonna have you feeling so good from the inside out - that energized movement where you just kind of allow yourself to tap into that place where you have that moment of freedom. And I think that's where I come from in that place. When you say oh, you would just jump up and do things is like, I would just move and open up and not think about things. I would just express myself through movement. So I love sharing that gift with people and that's kind of what HoodFit is all about that I built.

Lesley Logan 04:54

Yeah, I love that and it's so true because when I have taken Dance during your dance classes with you those cardio dance classes, once I get over the fact that like, I can't dance and I just try to keep up, it is so much fun and you catch yourself smiling and sweating. And I think that it's a permission that a lot of women have a hard time giving. So I really love that you are on a mission to do that. We both recently moved to the desert where queens have desert life now. We’re making desert life look a little different. Um, and I remember it because you live in Palm Springs now. And I'm in Las Vegas, we moved about a month apart from LA. And it was a couple years ago that you and I were on a drive to Palm Springs together to go on a retreat, we had the top down on the Jeep, maybe this is three years...this is before I got rid of my car. And you had just launched your company. And you know, I want to talk about the story. Because I think it's really interesting. A lot of people think they have to know all the things that they...all the parts of what they want to do. But when we did that drive you didn't, I'm just gonna blow it. You didn't know anything about what HoodFit would be. You're just like, I'm like, I’m launching HoodFit! So can you share a little bit about like, what it felt like and what that was like, a couple years ago, when you didn't know all the parts?

Erica Hood 06:22

This, this really is one of my favorite things because now seeing how far we've come and like what we've built. Now I have moments where I reflect back, and I'll never forget the drive in the Jeep with you. Because I literally was like, I think I'm just gonna push live and we're gonna go live on the phone, right that like, I'm gonna launch my socials, everything's gonna be live like and out to the world. And I was asking you all these questions like, Well, wait, how do I do this? And you were telling me all these fundamental business things that you were implementing. And I was like, I don't even know how to do that. Well, what is that, and I'm and there was this moment that like rushed over me of like, I don't know what I'm doing. But you know, what I'm going to do and commit to is that I've worked my way up in all the years of experience that I've had in my fitness professional field, which was already, you know, eight plus years of working for other people and gaining that experience, you know, being the head trainer and other places, but it's different when you finally go off on your own. And when you're building something from the ground up. I think that you just have to take that leap of faith and just dive in again, without overthinking it. And you were the best person that could have been in the car with me at the moment. Because as much as I felt like there was that part of me going, she's talking all these things in these words and I don't know this fancy business lingo and like what she's saying. And then there was this part of me that says, I just have to do this. And then once I put it out there, I'm going to continue to like I'm not, you're never going to know anything right away. When you do something, you have to like, take that first jump. And then as you go, you start to put the pieces together because there's just an abundance of things for you to have to figure out and pieces to put to..it's like building a puzzle. You don't just like you don't just have a complete puzzle, you have to go piece by piece. Right? But you have to start with one piece.

Lesley Logan 08:26

Oh, absolutely. And you know, I think there's like a curse of too much knowledge and, and you had like gone live. And then we were talking about it. And I was like, Oh, thanks. So glad she posted before we started talking about all these things. Because if I think some people are like, no, I need to know all the information. I think of like, if you ever read the book by Gretchen Rubin, about four tendencies, like the questioners. They have to ask all the questions, and I feel for them because like, having all the information doesn’t actually make it easier for you to like, take that first step. And in fact, puzzles like you brought up puzzles, those 1000 piece puzzles, I don't even buy them. Like you couldn't ever even get me...I'm like, that's, that's, I don't know. And I have the picture and the steps and you can do the frame really quickly. And I'm like, No, this is too much. I definitely love a messy action kind of taking. And so since then, you've been really working hard and growing this and you have a following and so many people, you know, right before COVID we were at this amazing event, where you had like rep your womanhood and I just I love how you bring women together and how you really encourage them. But I want to go back like pre HoodFit, pre you being a trainer. Tell us a little bit about like when you were growing up, how you kind of like maybe what there was signs of like you were destined to do this.

Erica Hood 09:48

Oh, well, I can think back to you know, it was like middle school days. Where I started off as a dancer at the age of three. And my mom, she tried to put me in sports. And she, you know, she was like, because I always asked her I'm like, Did I just always dance like, Did I not ever want to do? And she's like, I would try to enroll you in soccer and you would say, well, am I gonna wear a pink uniform? And my mom would say, Well, I can't promise you anything, you know? And I’d say, well, then I don't want to play. So I mean, I kind of always have this thing for wanting to wear fun things and move my body to the music. And I would rush home to catch...Do you remember that show TRL?

Lesley Logan 10:34

I do remember it. But my parents wouldn’t buy cable so I could only watch it at my grandparents house.

Erica Hood 10:41

Oh, I tell you, I would rush home to watch TRL. I mean, this was when music videos were like the thing. And you would watch all of your favorite artists. I mean, Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, I would learn the dances, the back like I would like learn the dances on the thing and like be dancing around in the living room. And like my brothers...

Lesley Logan 11:00

This is before YouTube. Before you could even rewind and like do it again. You had to like learn it on the fly,

Erica Hood 11:06

Yes. You had to learn it on the fly. Or if you were lucky, you could get your VCR and record it. Like sometimes I would record an episode of TRL on the VCR. And I would play it back to learn the steps. And I was so...Like, I just love the performance aspect. I love seeing the artists, the music moved me and I was like I want to know those steps. And it was true. There wasn't a way to connect like we can on our phones to find something so quickly, and to pause and stop. And so I was learning the dances and I wanted to be that backup dancer so badly. I wanted to be that. I saw that. And I was so cool because it came so full circle for me, like many years later, after I had gone to college, and I got my dance degree and I focused on that. Then I moved to Los Angeles, and I pursued my dance career. As a dancer I got signed with an agent. And I actually got to perform in music videos. And it was just this like,

Lesley Logan 12:05

Oh, we have to go into which music videos. I mean, people are gonna wanna know.

Erica Hood 12:11

I mean, I did some random music videos. Like so, for an artist, she's not random, Luciana, she's kind of a techno, deep house kind of artist. And I did a ton of music videos for her like we were doing Pointe work where you're like in your pointe shoes on the wooden box on concrete for eight hours until my toes were bleeding. I mean, but I was like, as much as it was painful I was like in this state of bliss. Just being..like so amazed that like that little girl. That little girl that would dance in her living room was now dancing in the music videos with artists. That's another...

Lesley Logan 12:56

Like watching and like on their toes trying to be because you know that.. the music videos haven't stopped. They're still going. People are now watching TikTok videos.

Erica Hood 13:09

I can't imagine what it would be like if we had TikTok when we were little.

Lesley Logan 13:13

You know, um, your whole story made me think of...Did you ever watch the movie Girls Just Want to Have Fun? Yes. Oh, I mean, when they're like changing their clothes on the bus, and then they're like, going and like watching. I love that. I love everything about that movie.

Erica Hood 13:31

It's so good.

Lesley Logan 13:33

Yeah. So Erica, um, I think there's a lot of fear in taking that leap. And like, what if this doesn't work? So what did you have to tell yourself back when you, back when you launched and you really didn't know all the steps? And then even even recently, because now you've launched your app, and it's not like, you know, if you build it, they will come...that is not how it works, y'all, it doesn't work like that.

Erica Hood 14:02

No, no, I wish.

Lesley Logan 14:05

I wish. I mean, I wish. Remember, like, probably in the 90s when everything was new? People would develop something and everyone would come and get it. But now there's just so many things and so many distractions that you have to really like, like it's a risk every time you do something and it's a real one. And so the fear is real. Yes, but what isn't? What did you tell yourself every time you've taken a leap when you don't know how it's gonna turn out?

Erica Hood 14:29

Well, you know what, the fear is so real and I have to say like, I am one that kind of struggles with that because as much as I am free spirited and will go in when something feels right to me and like it. You know? I felt like when I was younger, and I didn't overthink things as much, I was more daring and I did...like fear wasn't a thing. Like as you gain more responsibilities when you're older. I feel like everything becomes more real and you're like, oh, if this doesn't go right like..That fear creeps in and then you feel super responsible for messing something up. But for me, I had to have a little bit of encouragement from my partner. So, Mr. Jordan Hood, my husband, just like the best, most supportive husband, ride or die best friend that I've ever had. I remember before we launched HoodFit, and like before I went with you on the trip in the jeep, like officially, like put everything up. So I love that. I just love that I did that in the car, like top down, I'm like, here we go. We're watching.

Lesley Logan 15:37

We had our very expensive lattes, and we were driving to Palm Springs letting the sun just really beat on our faces.

Erica Hood 15:46

We really baked. I was able to do that, because I had this encouragement from him. And I, you know, I have to talk things through. A lot of times I like to keep them inside and all it does is just mull around in my head. And then I go into this spiral where it's like negativity and fear. So I started telling Jordan all these things and it became this like, well, what if it doesn't succeed? And what if people don't like it? And what if nobody actually signs up? Or like, does my workouts or does my classes, and he stopped me. And he goes, you're already doing it. And I was like, What do you mean? He's like, you already have a client base, you're already doing sessions, you're already teaching people and you've been doing this for like, literally half your life when you started teaching dance at the age of 15. And like, you're just making it official and calling it your business. And like doing that. And he goes, and even if you fail, you have me, you have our familys’ support. So like, nothing can really go wrong. It's not like you're gonna hit rock bottom, we're not gonna let you do that. Like, you have to take this and just try. And I'll be here right here with you through it all. And I'm like, okay, like I needed that pep talk. Because then I was able to let go of all those spiraling what ifs, and you know, fear in my head, I...

Lesley Logan 17:21

I love that you shared the story. I didn't know that you had this conversation with him. But I think it's really important. When we play things out in our head it..for most people, I am one of the most positive people anyone would ever meet. And if I told you the story that I tell myself, the things, you'd be like, you think that? And I think, yea I'm a human being. We're human beings. And especially, you said it. Like, the more responsibility you get, the more those fears can take hold, like, every time we take another leap and another level, the responsibility of what we could lose,if it doesn't go well. It's a bigger risk, right? And so your story reminded me of this time I was in this place. This is three years ago now. It's probably about when you were in my jeep. We were in Denver. And it was one of the first events that I've been to where I was brought in for the energy and the community and something I totally aligned with and I had 85 people in my class 85. Now, I had not..I've never taught 85 people at once, right? And in the front row are people who like, had been teaching as long if not longer than me. Right? And it wasn't like they're there to be like my front row like, no, like, they were there to support me, but like, my brain was like, Oh, my God, these people are so, they're like so known. They're so huge. And then next to them was a bunch of our friends from Carbon, who had never done Pilates before. So now I've got people who have no idea what they're doing. I've got people who know, way too much, and 85 people. And Brad was there. He was doing the filming. But he was there to help mic me up and I said, is this thing on? He goes no. And I said, I'm really nervous. And he's like, why? And he's like, how is this different than anything you're already doing? And I was like, Well, when you put it like that. It's, Yeah. But it's so funny, because if I hadn't said anything to him, I would have just been nervous. It would have in my head like, Oh my god, all this stuff. And it's like, hey, so important. I hope anyone listening...it's like, whatever you're afraid of whatever's going on in your head. You have to have someone, if it's not your partner, you need to find a friend. If you don't have a friend, well, tell me on Instagram and I'll help you find a friend like. Like that is something that I really love about like, even the communities I created. Like, I really want to make sure that there's a space where people know it's okay to say I'm afraid I can't do x. Like because then when you get it out, first of all, it takes a lot of its power away because nothing that we're creating...It's like, it's we're not afraid....We're not brain surgeons. Right? Like, the reality of it going wrong is like, you know, we're not saving the world or making a decision about other people's lives. Like it's really all coming from a good spot. So thank you for sharing the story. It's so, it took me back. And it's something I have to remind myself and I try to do it more often. I try to tell even my team like, Hey, I'm really worried that we're not doing x. And then they're like, Well, here's all the ways that we are. And sometimes you just, you are too close to something to actually see that what you're fearing isn't real. So yeah,

Erica Hood 20:39

I love that. I mean, I think, too, because I mean, I'm the same as you, I'm a super positive person. But that doesn't mean that I don't have the doubts, the fear, all of that, that goes into when you're stepping into your bigger and higher self. When you're evolving as a person there's always going to be those moments where you're having to change, and there's gonna be things that are emotionally going on inside you, it doesn't mean that you don't have your shit together, like you're still on top of your work. And you're still going to show up in the way that you know, to show up. But it doesn't mean that on the back end, that you're still having those feelings just like everyone else. So it's important for it to be talked about and shared more often.

Lesley Logan 21:22

I agree, I really agree. And I also think, like, the only way you can get to being the person that you like, maybe are thinking is enough, even though you already are enough, is to get out there and do it. Like you can't do it in your head. Like you can't become a better version of yourself just in your brain.

Erica Hood 21:40

No. You have to do the actions and you have to have good people around you.

Lesley Logan 21:46

Yeah, yeah. I mean, you know, I think we are lucky, we have husbands who are very, very supportive and very involved.

Erica Hood 21:54

Yeah, it’s so true.

Lesley Logan 21:58

Um, what would you say? Do you have any advice or tips for people who maybe, maybe they're single, maybe they're alone? Maybe their family isn't..Super, like, my family wasn't super entrepreneurial. So I had to surround myself with entrepreneurs, because they're like, What are you? Why can't you just take time off? You just work for yourself. And it's like, I don't think you know what that means. So, like, do you have any tips or advice for people who maybe don't have a partner who can actually, like, calm the fears?

Erica Hood 22:27

Yeah, I would say, you know, try to start thinking about the circles of people that you're surrounding yourself with. And there was something...I'll bring up Lori Harder, because she had, she's such the most, I can't say, I almost can't even speak about her, because I think I just like... we went to her...

Lesley Logan 22:50

Oh, talk about that. That was so huge for us. Yeah,

Erica Hood 22:53

I was. Oh, my God. Oh,

Lesley Logan 22:57

That was okay. So this is probably when we really actually became friends. Because there was that modeling thing we were both at together where we talked. And then it was probably a month later, maybe a month and a half later that we were both, we won tickets to go to Lori Harder’s bliss project. And oh, my god, that was, that was a whirlwind. And so you and I were there, we'd won the ticket, we got to do this event. And what, we'll have to go back and tell more about this. But I remember looking at you at the end of it going, Oh my god, we've already done this together. Like we've already been here before. And you and I had never hung out. So why I had this vision of us already being in that space in that room. And then you looked at me like and said I think you're gonna win another ticket. And I did! But anyways, that was a trip down memory lane. So explain to everyone how that helped you.

Erica Hood 23:52

Okay, so she does such a good job at putting things together and she's built businesses, she's come such a long way, from like, a place when you're talking about like, Oh, my family doesn't really understand it, or maybe support it, like she will openly talk about that with her upbringing, right? And like, my family supports me, but maybe they just don't quite understand, like this new space that I'm navigating and like, the business that I'm trying to build, you know, in a different way. So like kind of taking from stuff that I learned from her too, is she'll say, you have to think about the circles of people that you're surrounding yourself with, you get to choose that, like that's your choice. You know, if you're a shy person or not as an outgoing person, you may have to put yourself out there to open yourself up to meet people, you kind of have to step outside of your comfort zone to invest in yourself. If you want to really take it to that next level. And that can mean a lot of things when you invest in yourself. That can mean signing up for, you know, a weekend event like that, that we went to where you walk away with tools and encouragement, and you meet people there and you network, you know, it can be, you know, meeting people online, joining different communities like and groups on these social channels that, you know, there's there's so many out there, I mean, you can literally find someone that has a group that has an interest towards yours or something like...

Lesley Logan 25:25

And that’s the thing. Imagine back in the 90s. If you and I were trying to do this back then there would be like, there was nothing. But now, it's just a symbol of like, you can look online and find other people that are doing something that you're interested in doing. And yes, it does mean like, saying, Hi, it's me, can I be your friend? But that's how we became friends. It's like being in this environment. I'm like, Oh, my God, look at all these women who are basically trying to do what we're doing. And, that's been like, if we hadn't done that, who knows? So it's like, that's it. I love that piece of advice. It's like, you can do a little research, you can find people but it's so true. Who we surround ourselves with really does make a massive difference and things and so if you don't have those people like naturally, because of the way you, the family you have, like you have to seek it out. So you can have those people around you to go to.

Erica Hood 26:21

Yeah, yeah. Okay,

Lesley Logan 26:24

So, before we go into some tips that I know people are going to love because they're so useful. Where can everyone follow you find you get to know more of you?

Erica Hood 26:34

So you can find me on Instagram, Erica, HoodFit. And then my company you'll see through there as well, at HoodFit. We have a YouTube channel that's accessible, we wanted to put workouts for people to do free at any time, you can find workouts there and on Instagram. And then we also have our app, which is just like an even deeper dive into connecting with our sweat-sisterhood community. And you can find that on our website, which is just at HoodFitLife.com.

Lesley Logan 27:03

Amazing. We will put all these in the show notes. So definitely, if you're out on a run, don't worry. I'm on it. Right. So I believe that Being It Till You See It is the way things actually get done. And the way we actually can have all that we want to have. And I think that you know Being It is like being bold, it's finding ways to be more executable, it's finding that intrinsic drive and you know, something is more targeted. So, do you have tips on how to be any of those things, or how to even just prioritize being it till you see it?

Erica Hood 27:40

I think you know, you have to get right with yourself. I think a lot of times we look externally for different things. And I love the whole be till you see it because to me, all I hear and see in that is action, taking actionable steps, like you're saying, be bold and be all these things. And that, to me is taking action. I think a lot of times, we can kind of like sit back, and maybe even like journaling and writing things down. Those are great things. It's so great to like manifest things, but to actually put into action to make those things a reality is what I feel like a lot of times people are sometimes missing. And you know, if I really kind of like gotta go back and deeper into that, I feel like it's it's knowing who you are, getting right with yourself, knowing what your what your mission is, what your values are, what your passion is, that drives you to then be able to open yourself up to take action to get to where you want to be. Like, I feel like it has to start in a deep rooted place.

Lesley Logan 28:48

Yea, I think I think that's so true. I think it gets um, you know, as you were saying that one thing that I don't know, that I knew on a conscious level, but subconsciously is like you to be it to use it. You have to be yourself and the place that you want to be, right? And so you have to like it. The only way to be yourself is to really take some time to get to know who you are. And like what that drive is. It's out there for you. And I think that it's easy to look externally at others to figure that out and really going inward and getting clear on that so that you can take that action. I love that so much. I love you so much. I'm so happy for you. Oh, I love that we are still like four hours away. And that we get to you to have another summer where we go okay, How hot is it where you live? I know. Erica Hood, you are amazing. You're my most favorite people on this planet. So thank you for taking time to share your journey and your wonderful wisdom with everyone listening, everyone. Until next time, please be it till you see it.

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate this show and leave a review.

And, follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.

Also, make sure to introduce yourself over on IG at be_it_pod on Instagram! I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with who ever you think needs to hear it.

Lesley Logan 30:13

Help us help others to BE IT TILL YOU SEE IT. Have an awesome day!

---

Lesley Logan

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.

Lesley and Brad dig through the last pod's interview with Girl Squad Inc's founder, Monica Linda, highlighting the amazing nuggets of wisdom she was imparting, such as the power of asking for help, being scrappy as a budding entrepreneur and just shutting up and doing the work.

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected].

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Getting stuck on getting started

• Imposter Syndrome

• Drawing a line in the sand

• Taking the leap

• How to be something other than what you currently are

• Shut up and do the work

• The power of asking for help

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcript:

INTRODUCTION:

Lesley Logan

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I’m Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I’ve trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it’s the antidote to fear. Each week, my guests will bring Bold, Executable, Intrinsic and Targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It’s a practice, not a perfect. Let’s get started.

EPISODE:

Lesley Logan 00:47

Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where myself and my co hosts in life Brad (Brad: Woo!) and I are ready to dig into the profound conversation I have with Monica Linda on our last episode. If you haven't listened to that interview, feel free to pause this, go back and listen to that one and then come back and join us, or learn what we talked about, and then go back with all the good stuff and then learn more gems because we cannot recap the entire podcast and that's what the other one’s for. So, here. Okay, babe. (Brad: Tell me.) I'm so excited right now because we are days away from launching our Reformer Deck of Flashcards, (Brad: yes.) Yeah, and I'm excited about this because they're happening a lot faster than our Mat Flashcard Deck did.

Brad Crowell 01:31

Are you kidding, like, like literally (Lesley: like lightning fast) a 10th of the time.

Lesley Logan 01:37

Yeah, and I wanted to share this with you (Brad: 25% of the time, but yeah), I wanted to share this with y'all because I think it's really important to know that sometimes you're gonna have setbacks on things and I wanted to share this with you. So my excitement about the Reformer Deck is that it's happening faster than the Mat Deck, because the Mat Deck took over a year, partially because of the pandemic, partially because it was the first time we are doing something, and then there's just like other things. But our Mat Flashcards, which we've sold hundreds of (Brad: Yeah), which is so exciting. Hundreds of people have this Pilates studio in their hand with my flashcards on the Mat exercises, and we had so many people who love Pilates already who have a Reformer who want to Reformer Deck, so we scrambled, like we worked night and day fast to get it done so I can't wait.

Brad Crowell 02:23

I love it because it's more than, it's literally double the amount of cards. But, you know, instead of 40 plus cards, it's 80 plus cards. (Lesley: Yeah.) And, you know, now that we have a system, which is something I get I geek out about (Lesley: He loves the system) we've been able to make that happen a whole lot faster. So anyway it's almost out, we can't wait. If you're even wondering what the heck we're talking about you can just go find them on OnlinePilatesClasses.com/flashcards, or you can also find them on Pilates.com (Lesley: Yeah), over at Balanced Body (Lesley: yeah) they’re carrying them which is so cool.

Lesley Logan 03:04

I know, I know, pinch me. The like number one developer of Pilates equipment has my flashcards on their site. So, get them there, get them on OPC, just get them. (Brad: Stay tuned), and if you want one of the Reformer Flashcards definitely get on the list, so that you can find out as soon as they're ready because they will go out fast. Okay, so we have an audience question, babe.

Brad Crowell 03:30

Yes we do. And I love this question. I'm so excited to answer it.

Lesley Logan 03:35

I know, I know, trust me, he's not. If you didn't hear that already. So someone hit me up on Instagram and asked if we work out together and I just love this question because the truth is, (Brad: Did you laugh?) like that kind of laugh like, you know, when people...it's like when people ask Brad, How often do you Pilates? I'm like...

Brad Crowell 03:59

I mean, look, the reality is we do work out together.

Lesley Logan 04:03

We do. We go on walks every night.

Brad Crowell 04:06

And we do yoga.

Lesley Logan 04:07

And we do yoga together. (Brad: So) up to three times a week.

Brad Crowell 04:10

I would say that 75% of the time that I am working out. We are working out together. (Lesley: Yes. And) So, so actually, yes, we work out together.

Lesley Logan 04:26

Yeah we do. I won't even do the percentage of how much time I work out alone.

Brad Crowell 04:30

Well, I definitely didn't reveal the entirety of this situation. I would say that you work out every single day. Aside from our walk, you're actually, (Lesley: yeah), you have a Pilates practice that you literally do every day.

Lesley Logan 04:45

Yeah, I love our walks because I love to get no minimum 10,000 steps in a day. Y'all your calves are your second heart, every step matters, it's a pump, and it's not automatically like your heart, you got to pump that blood back up, and I like to do it at night with you because you know we do work together a lot but we are not often, like, we're not hanging out together so it's a great way for us to spend time together that's not working, and (Brad: it's a movement) it's a movement, I get my steps in, like clear my mind before I go to bed. But, when he says I workout every day I do my Pilates every day, even if it's just a few minutes, and then I do the morning run with the dog because otherwise they're even crazier. And then I do yoga with you so I work out alone, more, not because it's not like you wouldn't join me but I'm actually grateful to be alone, because I get a lot of energy from being by myself.

Brad Crowell 05:37

Well, I do think that it's fair to say that I wouldn't join you for all of that. (Lesley: Yeah), just, you know we obviously, we have different life cycles, and I don't get up when you get up and go to sleep when you go to sleep. So, you know, obviously you get up at 5:30 and go run, I don't do that.

Lesley Logan 05:55

Yeah, and that's okay. It's so okay. Like, maybe you're with someone who doesn't work out with you and that frustrates you, you can say something to them but like you could also look at like what are the positive reasons for not working out with them and then what are the positive reasons for...I mean I love doing yoga with you, because it is something we could do together. And because we do it virtually now we pretty much like get to chitchat a little bit while we're doing class.

Brad Crowell 06:19

Yeah but also, you know when we were back, when life was normal pre COVID and lived in LA, I would go play Ultimate, you don't do that, so like you know there's like, there's definitely a sense of independence in that. But today, at this point, most of the time I'm doing yoga, you're also joining, but not 100% of the time. And then I don't necessarily, you know, I'm not gangbusters on practicing Pilates, in the way that you are. I don't have a personal Pilates practice, I will happily practice it when we do events and things like that and when we go on retreats, I do like it a lot.

Lesley Logan 06:58

Yeah. He does Pilates every day on a retreat. He does Pilates, all the time during our challenges, our 100withme challenge. And when I will teach him in the studio he will do his Pilates, so yeah, there's that. So thank you for this question.

Brad Crowell 07:11

Thanks everyone for that question.

Lesley Logan 07:14

Keep sending your questions and you can DM me at the be_it_pod on Instagram and ask your questions. Speaking of working out though. Here we are, y'all. If you want to work out with a person in your life. This is a great way to do it. (Brad: Oh yeah), yeah because if you and your partner are trying to figure out a way to work together, maybe it's your roommate or your bestie. You can go to OnlinePilates Classes.com/beit and get a free workout from me. It's 30 minutes. Not only is it free, and that's fun, but it's 30 minutes of moving your body connecting your mind to your body and practicing prioritizing your time. This is really important to me when you use...when you show up for a Pilates class with me, you are literally having to focus on only what you're doing in that moment, which means you clear your mind and you're telling everyone around you, including yourself and the universe that you matter, and your time matters so go to OnlinePilatesClasses.com/b e i t. All right, babe.

Brad Crowell 08:13

Love it.

Lesley Logan 08:14

Let's talk about Monica.

Brad Crowell 08:16

Yeah, let's talk about Monica Linda, so in the last part, obviously, you had this incredible conversation with Monica. I'm so excited to be able to say we're dear friends with Monica, and her wife, and it's just been such a pleasure to have her spirit in our world. Like, she is just the definition of enthusiasm and joy. And she's a powerhouse. I mean, you cannot help but be excited about life, when you're around Monica

Lesley Logan 08:51

You got to go to Monica's Instagram. And the other day, she posted a reel where she was just face to camera and dancing to Justin Bieber, telling people that they're amazing and it's like, I am amazing!

Brad Crowell 09:05

I mean, aside from being awesome in life. She is the founder and chief photographer at Girl Squad, which is a media company that focuses on photography, media, which includes video and and also branding. She does...she helps you make social media content and all this kind of stuff. Monica Linda has traveled all over the country to photograph more than 500 women and is now directing movies for clients which is so cool because we had a chance to experience that. (Lesley: Yeah we have a movie), we have, she takes women from feeling invisible to becoming experts who are thriving and immersing themselves in the businesses that they have sacrificed everything to build. I just think it's so incredible, her commitment to setting others up in the lives of their choosing for themselves.

Lesley Logan 09:51

100%. She is absolutely one of the reasons we're sitting here right now, even doing this because she saw what I wanted to say in me and I couldn't, I couldn't figure out how to say it and she's like, Oh well this is it...and I was like, Oh, she sees it, so that was easier. It's just so important to have people in your lives that can visualize what your dreams are and then help you see the path that's possible. And so I'm just so grateful for her.

Brad Crowell 10:17

Yeah, I mean, total side note is, you know, not about the pod but for her, like when we started spending money on photographs of you, for social media. It was like it was grease in the wheels (Lesley: Yeah) and it's a tragically rough example. It allowed social media and marketing to be so much easier because we had all this content (Lesley: Yeah). Suddenly we have hundreds and now 1000s of photos that you can go back to and go, I didn't talk about this today. And then, you know, we've organized all these photos since, but you can just go through, find a photo bam, and it keeps it fresh, fun. People look at our social media now and go, Wow, they're so amazing, and that's because we decided to invest in photographs. And then we did it with her because she's so good, she knows you now.

Lesley Logan 11:13

Yeah, (Brad: Awesome.) It was amazing. So anyways, we can keep going on about how amazing she is and photography with her.

Brad Crowel 11:20

Okay. But let's actually talk about the pod.

Lesley Logan 11:22

In the interview, one of the things that I freakin' love was how she was talking about getting stuck on getting started, and here's the deal. She shares her story about how she would say yes to an opportunity and then go rent the equipment to go do the photography job. Right? So she didn't go, Oh, don't have that camera lens, can't just say yes to that job, just will wait for the next one, or get frustrated, like I don't have things I need to get started. No, she literally figured out how she could piecemeal together a business so she could say yes all the time. There was a great story in there how she said yes and had 90 minutes to get her freakin act together, get a camera and get to the place and I love this because I think it is so easy for us to just go, Oh I don't have that training yet so can't do that or I don't have the time, I don't know how, I don't have the, I don't know, insert like the running shoes to go running. She didn't get stuck on getting started, she just figured out a way. And so like I say to people who ask, how do I get started with Pilates? I'm like, Do you have a beach towel and a floor? Great! Get on it. You don't have to have the fancy mat or the fancy leggings to get started. And I just absolutely love that.

Brad Crowell 12:32

Yeah, I thought that was really powerful and actually reminded me of your beginning with teaching where you were still kind of an apprentice to your mat training program, and then your instructor or your teacher trainer was like, well, here you should practice your hours by starting to teach.

Lesley Logan 12:53

Yeah, she did. She gave me my first client and I was...like, I thought, oh my God, what am I doing? And...

Brad Crowell 13:01

I mean, imposter syndrome, right?

Lesley Logan 13:03

Like so many. But here's the thing that I learned within five minutes of that was that within five minutes of teaching them I knew so much more and so I just didn't get stuck on that. And then I got really excited to teach and what ended up happening is I told everybody about it. But it's easy to get stuck on what to do next and she is just going to inspire you to do so much quicker. What did you love that she said?

Brad Crowell 14:42

Yeah, I really love that one of the things that she said that made me pause was...I think it kind of came out of the conversation that the two of you are having, is that she wanted to be something other than she was. And this was when she had a job, she was working for someone else and she drew a line in the sand and she said, by 2018, I'm going to leave this job. Right? And so she began to be the person that she wanted to be, even though she still had life and job and things and whatever and fear and all this stuff. She had to be an entrepreneur. She had to do this. And so she began to do it even though she didn't know what she was doing. Right? And then when 2018 came around, she said, I didn't even have a full client list, and I left my job, and it was terrifying. And she started talking about taking that leap. And so, when she, I think that there was a frustration, clearly, that got her to the point of, I must leave my job. Right? And so she made a decision to take a leap, and then she committed to taking that leap. In order for her to take the leap though she had to be (Lesley: Oh yeah) herself, like be her, her entrepreneurial self (Lesley: yeah she had) before she was truly an entrepreneur.

Lesley Logan 16:23

She shared in the interview, she doesn't have anyone in her family's an entrepreneur. She didn't have anyone to like, look to or look up to in her actual life. And one thing that I don't think we talked about in the interview just because we're friends, she would dress up as the part of the photographer she wanted to be when she would go rent the equipment. (Brad: Oh really?) To buy her first camera (Brad: I love that) she dressed up as this woman had so she could walk in with her head held high. And that's a thing about sometimes being that person is literally putting on those clothes, and I think with a lot of, if you're listening this post pandemic, hopefully, hopefully we're all getting dressed up and going outside again but, you know, one of the things that like a lot of people talk about is they're wearing the pajamas all day and it's like, well, of course you have imposter syndrome. Of course you're having a hard time being motivated. You're not in the clothes to do the work that you want to do. Like, there's something really about that. I made a point this year, I'm putting my makeup on every day. I'm putting on a new, fresh outfit today. Like I'm not gonna be like, Well that's not dirty because I didn't go anywhere. No, because all of that makes you ‘be it’ more, so I love that.

Brad Crowel 17:32

Yeah, I think that's one thing that a lot of people talk about, especially with working from home is: working out, working in your sweats, working in your pajamas, working in your yoga clothes, you know, all that kind of stuff. And it's true. You know there's something very different about my mentality when I am not just rolling out of bed right to my desk. I don't usually...I never was the guy who took showers in the morning, I take my shower before going to sleep. And recently I've started taking showers in the morning because I'm trying to create a morning... I guess it's a routine, but I want to set myself up so that when I sit down I'm like, mentally prepared, mentally ready to shift gears and really dig into it. And I think, you know, I know we kind of shifted the topics here on taking the leap, but being that person, it's been a...even at home...If you're not intentional about making that decision, then you're not going to be that person.

Lesley Logan 18:40

Right, 100%

Brad Crowell 18:42

Yeah.

Lesley Logan 18:43

What did you love about her action steps?

Brad Crowell 18:47

Yeah I think, let's shift gears here, she was really excited to encourage everyone to be bold. You know when we asked her specifically about what action steps, what tangible action steps could we take on our journey here to ‘be it’. And she specifically called out being bold, and she said something that her...I want to say it's a mentor of hers...Definitely an inspirational person who shifted her career, told her you know that you're going to be okay doing it. You're going to be okay being a photographer, you are going to make it. Now that you know that, shut up and do the work.

Lesley Logan 19:42

I love it so much.

Brad Crowell 19:42

Right? And it was like, Oh, thank you for the permission, you know, I guess, to know that I'm going to survive this, even though I've got all this fear. I just need to stay focused and be consistent. And her, but her boldness caused her to do something that I thought, well, that you were talking about, which is.

Lesley Logan 20:09

Oh, the asking of questions. (Brad: Absolutely), yeah, yeah, so, first I just have to say really quickly before I go into my favorite takeaway and asking questions is like, don't we all just wish someone would tell us that like you're gonna make it and you'd be fine. Like, because the imposter syndrome is so real, and we spend way too much time worrying that we can't do the thing that we're trying to be bold at doing. (Brad: Yeah) And if we could just go, You're gonna be okay. Imagine what you could do with just knowing that like, you're not going to walk off a cliff here, this is gonna be okay.

Brad Crowell 20:42

What do, you know what, actually. Yes, 100%, I just was reflecting back on when we first met Monica. (Lesley: yeah) Okay, the very first time I ever met her we were at a business conference. It was like a mastermind situation. There were all these photographers all around us. And then there was this lady sitting in the group of roughly 50 businesses in the room, and I just remember her in all white, head to toe white. (Lesley: Yeah) Right? Like, she just looked like. Right? And she..

Lesley Logan 21:14

I mean y'all J Lo wishes she looked this good, like Monica glows in all white with her hair, amazing.

Brad Crowell 21:23

And I'm flipping through, we all got this little booklet that had everybody's names in it and had a little like two sentence thing about their business and what they're doing so that we could have some kind of like a touch point to like kind of understand who they are and maybe start a conversation. And then her bio in her thing. It said that she wanted to be running a billion dollar company. (Lesley: Yeah) And I was like, what the...How can a photographer run a billion dollar company, right? I was like, I mean, I guess okay, I don't know her. I didn't know anything about her. Right, but I was shocked at what, how bold (Lesley: bold) that statement was, and then when I heard her talking, I was like, Oh man, her enthusiasm, you know, is like, she's like a train, bam, she's gonna get there.

Lesley Logan 22:16

Yeah, no, she, she really is and she doesn't let anything get in her way. And it's, it's amazing. So okay, back to how it led her to asking questions and what my biggest takeaway was just asking. So here's the deal. I feel like I grew up kind of, I don't know...not like let's not hate on my parents but they were always like children should be seen not heard. And it's like, you know, so I don't know I guess I just didn't ask questions, and I kind of felt like even though I know that there's like no wrong question like you're not putting one out like I kind of feel like I'm wasting people's time, when I ask a question that like maybe I could just look up the answer myself. And so in the same mastermind, Brad and I are in together, everyone gets to ask a question. And he's like we get to ask two questions, because there's two of us. And so, like, every time we would be at these things like, he's like okay what are we going to ask? And I'm like, I don't know and I would just like hope that he would ask them. And then, one I'll never forget was with Angie Lee where the front table (Brad: Wait, was with who?) Angie Lee, yeah, Angie Lee, and we were at the front table, and you'd ask your question and, you know, other people are asking their questions and you're...he's like, okay well what kind of question....and I'm like, I don't know, I guess I wonder how she does whatever. So he grabs a microphone, I just thought he was going to ask the question, and instead he puts it in front of my face, and I was like, like my whole face showed that I did not want to have this microphone, and obviously like if you know me, you're like, What are you talking about? But like I have this thing about asking. I feel like I'm wasting people's time, I feel like I'm taking advantage. And our whole relationship…we will come up with ideas and he’s like, oh I'm just gonna ask this person if they want to do this with us. I'm like, you can’t just ask people, they're very busy. Like people are busy, you know. So I just, but in that moment, I was like, I got to get over this because this is really dumb because what's holding me back from where I am today and where I want to be is not asking enough questions, or asking for help.

Brad Crowell 24:18

It was also a pretty high pressure situation, because it was like the panel was Chris Harder, Lori Harder, Angie Lee plus a roomful of entrepreneurs all watching that, looking at you,

Lesley Logan 24:31

That room was like, multiple hundreds of millions of dollars of businesses, and, like, experiences, and here's my like little question. But I did realize I'm holding me back because I don't ask people to help me. And she is, she just doesn't stop. If she's got a question, she asks it. If it’s on her mind, she asks. Ever since I've known her everything she does even if it's like something has nothing to do business, she'll ask people, the question that's coming up and it has not only...it is exactly why she is where she is right now. And also the job she has gotten is because she's asked the questions and she's put herself in the room, so that is my big takeaway. I'm so grateful for learning that lesson and I'm still learning it, so.

Brad Crowell 25:20

Yeah and I mean, I have to imagine that she...I know that she has not only photographed Lori Harder, that she photographed Chris and Lori Harder, then she photographed the events, (Lesley: yeah) multiple events for them.

Lesley Logan 25:37

Hundreds of people at them.

Brad Crowell 25:38

You know, so I'm sure she was asking, Hey, how can I help you next? What can I do to help you next? You know, that kind of thing because once she had a client, she can bet the easiest sell is to a client who already knows, believes, trusts, loves you, to say, Hey, what else can I do for you? (Lesley: Yeah) So, anyway, she's just an inspiration.

Lesley Logan 26:00

I hope that a big challenge to you is to ask someone for help, ask someone to join you in something, ask someone to be it with you, ask a question and then tag me on Instagram so that I can root you along, and also be inspired. And I will promise to ask more questions every single day, and ask for more people to help me out too. Okay,

Brad Crowell 26:20

Yeah.

Lesley Logan 26:21

Well, thank you for listening to us. It was so wonderful to have you. We're so grateful you're here, and we want to know how you're using these tips in your life, so let us know by sending a DM to the pod on Instagram. And that's, be_it_pod on IG, please screenshot this, tag it on Instagram, tag us and share your takeaways also send this to a friend who needs it, you know, because that's how the word gets out about this podcast and also how more people in the world be it till they see it, we'll see on the next episode.

Brad Crowell 26:46

Cheers!

---

Lesley Logan

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate this show and leave a review.

And, follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.

Also, make sure to introduce yourself over on IG at be_it_pod on Instagram! I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with who ever you think needs to hear it.

Help us help others to BE IT TILL YOU SEE IT. Have an awesome day!

---

Lesley Logan

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.

Powerhouse entrepreneur Monica Linda, founder and chief photographer of Girl Squad Inc, shares her inspiring story of transitioning from an hourly job to a photographer who travels all over the world, to then leading a team and now making movies as a director. She shares her fears, her wins, her actionable advice - you’re going to love her!

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Creating ways to avoid getting stuck on getting started
• Acting like the person you want to BE
• Boldly taking the leap
• Why asking is key to Being It

References/Links:

• Monica Linda's Girl Squad Website
• Instagram
• The movie Monica made for Lesley with Eric: Self Care Isn't Selfish
• Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

About Monica Linda:

Monica is a ground-breaking creator & branding photographer based in Pasadena, CA. She believes that everyday, we should wake up and try to be better than the day before. She takes women from feeling invisible, to becoming experts who are thriving and immersing themselves in the businesses that they have sacrificed everything to build. Monica has worked with women all over the US who are crushing it in the field of solopreneurship and on their way to building empires. Since the launch of her business, Monica has photographed over 500 women, and her team is in high demand for the most popular events in Los Angeles, while making over 6 figures doing it!

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcript:

Hello! Hello, hello, hello BE IT pod. Thank you for being here. Thank you, thank you so much. This podcast is literally a dream come true and I pinch myself about the fact that I am even doing it. And when I sent out invites to the first guest. I have to be honest, like every time I saw them schedule like I wanted to cry because their scheduling their interview is like making this more of a reality and you listening to this...it's because it is a reality, and we're in we've done it and it's just the beginning. And this woman, Monica Linda, who I have for you today. She is more than a breath of fresh air. She literally wears her emotions on her sleeve and gives you permission 100% to be yourself because she believes that you have a story and it needs to be shared and that's what pictures do, and she wants to be the person that does that and we've known each other for over a couple of years. In fact, I've never told her this so hopefully, hopefully, she doesn’t know this but when I saw her first she was doing pictures at a big event like 500 person event, and it was for Lori Harder’s bliss project, and I was just like, Oh my God, I want to have a photographer like her because I saw the pictures at my events and when I have a 500 person event, I just like, I mean, goals right girl goals. So then, we were in a mastermind together, and, you know, she I just had this like eyes like all like Oh my god, I just want to be the girl who gets to work with her. She's so amazing. And, you know, she, I don't know why I thought I couldn't but I just had this mind, like this block that I couldn't. And she sat there in this room on like the third day and she said out loud what she wants to do with her life, why she wants to do it, who she wants to work with and I heard myself in that, and I'm sharing that with you because had she not done that I don't know if I would have started to work with her. If I, even if I like we had another meetup, so maybe I would have been, I would have definitely missed out on the first opportunity to work with her and, y'all. This is where you have to tell people what it is that you want to be, right? You have to put it out there even if it makes you so scared, it makes you so nervous, because maybe the people listening...what you want solves their problem, that's what it did for me. Or maybe they know the problem, a person who you could solve a problem for, right?

So, you have to share it right, it's, I mean I could talk forever on this but I also met my husband, because I told a friend. I'm out dating different kinds of people. If you know a guy who is not like x, y and z, because I've already dated that I want to try. I want to date him. And so, she introduced me to my husband so there you go, so you have to. If you can't, if I can challenge you do one thing today it is to tell someone what it is you want that you are trying to be and tell it seems to make it possible, because you just don't know what's gonna happen and that what happens with me and because of Monica, you know, my goal, my purpose on this planet is more bodies doing Pilates because I do believe Pilates helps us show up better in this world. I do believe that makes better people, and it makes you more connected to others. When we're all more connected there's freaking world peace, you know, like that's, that's, that's why I'm here. So she helped me show up and get pictures that will help me tell the story that I want to share that will help more people see that they can make time for themselves, that they can move their bodies and they can connect to their, their mind and body, and their goals through movement. And so I'm so freaking grateful for her. I can't wait for you to get into this. She's got an amazing bio in the show notes. Please check it out. Please check her out on Instagram. You are going to love seeing the power that she has and the stories that she tells.

And so without taking up too much more of your precious time, let's get into this interview after this brief message.

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I’m Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I’ve trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it’s the antidote to fear. Each week, my guests will bring Bold, Executable, Intrinsic and Targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It’s a practice, not a perfect. Let’s get started.

EPISODE:

Lesley Logan - 00:02

Okay! Hello, Monica Linda. Oh my gosh, beautiful woman. Thank you for being here. I am so excited to spend this time with you. I'm really more excited for everyone who's listening to, listen to the words from this woman. She, I promise you that so much of how I've gotten where I am would not have happened if I had not met her. If I had not seen her in this group. And you've heard me talk about masterminds and people in groups before, it's because I really, truly, truly believe you don't get wherever you're going to go on your own. And I saw her, she spoke up and I walked straight up to her. And I'm like, how do I work with you? And, so when I was dreaming up who I wanted on this podcast I had to bring you on because I actually truly believe that you helped me, be it till I see it, on the days I especially couldn't. There was a day I was talking to Joanna Vargas about - we can go into it later. But like you are you definitely helped me see where I was wanting to be and become that before I was there. So thank you for being here. Can you tell everyone a little bit about who you are and what you're rocking?

Monica Linda - 01:12

Yeah. So, my name is Monica Linda. And I'm beyond happy to be here. So proud of all the things that's going on with you. And I'm the founder/creator of Girl Squad Inc. And we are now calling ourselves a media agency. Because we do video and film and photo. And we really have a group of a team that really helps create an experience, where we get to focus on the real you. And the other thing that I have started to talk about is I feel like the branding world has become this really big daunting, and everyone is freaking out because they're like, I'm not fully branded, I'm not fully branded. So I just want everyone to know that at Girl Squad it's just me, you and a girl with a camera. Like, let's just calm down. That's really all that it is. And yeah, so that's what I do. And I'm happy to be here.

Lesley Logan - 02:11

Oh girl, I love that you said that. I think it's so true. I get so many people who won't start something because they're not branded yet. And that is the opposite to me of Being It before you're ready. Because like, before it's there...because you can't brand something that you don't that you don't know, right? Like, you and I, I mean, we both have started businesses and I, I didn't brand...one of my businesses was nine years old before it ever got branded, it had a logo that I made up myself. And it was super successful without it and so I really love, I love what you do. I see so many women taking photos with you. And you truly do show the real them to everyone. And so yes, it's branding. Absolutely. But it is so authentic to them. And each person you can see their story in their eyes, and you see their joy and and you bring that out in people, which is really, really cool. And I, I wonder, you know, what made you get started in helping women tell their stories like what was it that you were like, this is how I'm going to show up as a photographer, or in this world.

Monica Linda - 03:18

And for me, it's super personal. I grew up in a family where I just wasn't seen. And I was always silenced for my creativity. It was too much. I was too big, too dreamy. I thought of rainbows and unicorns all the time, and I was constantly silenced for it. And so, I didn't go into something creative for college. And I just started thinking really small about how magical the world was. And then I met my wife and moved to LA and that changed everything because I took myself out of that environment that was consistently telling me that life isn't magical, that things aren't possible and that you should play small because it's safe. And when I started doing that more, I noticed that when I worked with women, not only was I healing myself, right, because I was like, every time a woman like you share a story about your experience. It's so healing for me because I know what it's like on the other side to feel not heard or seen or for who you really are. And that it's really personal to me. I fall in love with all of my clients' stories. I love what they're doing. I want to cheer them on and yeah, for me, it's super personal.

Lesley Logan - 04:49

I love this so much. I think so many people. They pretend to not know what they're supposed to be doing because they didn't go to school for whatever it is, it's in their heart. Right? And that was definitely me. I went to school for something else. And I definitely felt seen at home enough to get in trouble. So I was seen, they saw that. (Monica Linda: Yeah, yeah) But I do remember, like, being told not to brag and not to boast and not to, like...when I would get an A on a test, I wouldn't show it to anyone. I would, like, hide it and fold it up. So, because you're not supposed to brag, it's not, you know, any of those things. And, and the truth is, I was basically taught not to celebrate anything, not celebrate my hard work, not to celebrate, you know, anything that was happening and so it became really difficult for me. Now I'm like, making sure everyone I meet celebrates their wins. But going back to that ‘not feeling seen’, it is that, that thing is what made me create more communities and you not feeling seen is why you are a camera woman helping draw out the stories of women and I, I think it's easy for us to, to ignore the childhood we had. But all of that was really being built so we become the women and the people that we are, right, to bring out, to fix that problem in the world. And I think that's really, that's something that's so cool. So good for you for basically making sure that doesn't happen to anyone else. I think that's really (Monica Linda: Yeah), a gift. And it's...I just really love it. And I have to say like, when y'all if you ever get a chance to work with this woman, what she does do and why I wanted to bring her on and talk to you about this is like, you go through questions with your clients. And it's not like, Okay, where do you want to take pictures? Or what do you do? Like, you ask questions that really draw out, why they're doing what they're doing their story, all these things, and, and you help them step into that higher self or that version of them that they're wanting to show off to the world, because that's the woman that they want to be. And maybe they're just not there yet. Or maybe they are but really like they're working towards something. And that is a special skill. When you started off as a photographer, is that something you like...how did that happen?

Monica Linda - 07:15

Yeah, well, I mean, me becoming an entrepreneur and a photographer were a complete accident. And it didn't happen on purpose. And so there's anyone out there like, you're like, Oh, I just started liking something, and I'm doing it more. That can be a career! That can be something that you can do all the time. I took a college course with a girlfriend, and my teacher at the end of class said, you're really great, take more. And so I did, I took more classes. And then people started asking me to come take pictures of different things. And one day, somebody gave me an envelope with the end, and with money in it, and I was like, whoa, wait, my world just collided. I could do this all the time?! But like I had not dawned on me because I was thinking so small, it had not dawned on me that I could actually do something that gave me that I was having so much fun. And I could live my life on my own terms, and still live a better life all at the same time. So I believe that women can do that. And it wasn't something...I feel like my entrepreneurship has been a small journey of, of expanding. And I feel like the more I step into myself, the more I'm expanding. And every time that happens, the more my business expands. And the protective questions I start asking are different. So, I think I've always been really open to staying curious. And to really, really want to try to understand who my clients are.

Lesley Logan - 08:52

This is so cool. That you said this, that the more you go into your journey, the more you lean into it, the more you expand. And I think that that is an amazing sign that people can feel in their bodies. Right? Like if you're like, I don't know what to do, just feel your body is doing right. And the more she stepped into it, the more expansive she felt. And that is so cool, because you grew up shrinking. Right? Like trying to shrink into something. And so if you're not sure what you should be doing. And you know, this doesn't have to be in business, it could be like, what am I doing next? What am I doing in a relationship? What am I doing with this friendship? What should I be doing as a workout? You know, (Monica Linda: Yeah), what makes you feel expansive? Like what makes you feel like taking up that space? And that should make you feel so good. And I, and that's something people can feel in their bodies. I think that could be because sometimes it gets stuck in our head like what am I supposed to do? And it's like, maybe your body will actually just tell you that.

Monica Linda - 09:45

Yes, yes, absolutely.

Lesley Logan 09:48

So I want to, I want to drop into something because um, I mean, I know a couple amazing stories about you. Y'all, I just...the years that I've now known her, it’s not been a lot, but the ones that I have, so you have an incredible story how you started doing events and all that stuff. But I actually want to go back to a different story that I heard and maybe haven't shared. So if you y'all, this is like breaking news. So really, the reason I want to share this one is because this one is so executable, which is like, just so fun, because I know for me, you get stuck on getting started, like, it takes so much money to start the thing I'm going to do, or it takes so much time, or it takes us...so I mean, photographers, you need a ton of stuff to do photos.

Monica Linda 10:35

Yeah, you do! A ton. And the expensive ones.

Lesley Logan - 10:38

Right! Like, this is not just iPhones, like you can't just, (Monical Linda: No), you can't just go get one camera either, right? Like, I feel like this is like, you have to have all these things.

Monica Linda - 10:51

Right. And, um, so what I had to do is, one, when I first started, I didn't have a lot of money. I worked as hard as everyone else was working, I had a 40 hour job that I hated. And I was working for somebody else for like less than $25 an hour. And I did that for years. So when I started this business, I literally took everything that I had extra. And we're talking like $20, $30, $50 and put it back into my business. And so literally at the beginning, like the cameras that we use, I mean, they start at like three or $4,000. I at the beginning could not afford a three or $4,000 camera. And some I mean, that's just like a basic, really good one, the other ones are more expensive. So, you have to get super resourceful when you really want something to happen. So I started searching, can I rent a camera? Like that was my curiosity. Can I rent this camera for a while until...? Because this job is gonna pay me, you know, $300 and the camera is $100 for two days. So I mean that, that gets me closer to what I was doing. So for the first two or three years, until I was able to get an entire case full of professional gear, I rented every piece. And my other photography friends were always so surprised because they would say things like, Oh, I love that lens. Because it was like a $2800 lens. And I'm like, Did you know you can rent it for $20? They were like, no way! And I love sharing that information. I was not embarrassed when I would show up with a new lens that's on the market, because that's a good thing when you're renting is everything is fresh and new. And it's top of the line. And so that's that was, that was like a perk to renting new equipment. And so yeah, I literally rented every piece. And I’ve never shared that story. I don't know why I've never shared it. But it wasn't until I think the second year, I finally had enough money to walk in and pay cash for a camera.

Lesley Logan - 13:04

I mean, this is so fun. It's not insider secrets, either. It's like, you went in with curiosity. You've heard that once before. And I think that is something a lot of us forget to do. We think we're supposed to know the answers. And so therefore don't look for the answers. And like you're like, how do I do this? And what can I do here? And also, I'm sure that there might have been part of you going, I wish I'd just own this (and have to rent it). But the truth is, you renting it allowed them to then sell it used to somebody else. Right? It's like everybody wins in that situation, and you were able to get started. And it didn't take you longer to become the person that you want it to be or the business you want to be because it actually just helped you get going, and I heard someone say years ago and I was like okay, I have to remember this…”It is not about money. It is about resourcefulness.” Like most people think they need more money to do their dream, but they just need to be the most resourceful. And that's who wins the game. Because, you know, in the beginning, you just...no one has...if you're looking at anyone who's doing something you want to be doing, they did not have money in the beginning. And if they did, then they didn't learn a lot of lessons early on, and they'll learn them later that we all had to learn to be scrappy and everything. And so when you went to go buy your first piece, what was that? Like? What did it feel like?

Monica Linda - 14:24

Um, I was, I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it when I could afford it. I think when I bought that camera was the year that I made the decision to go full time. So I'd given myself a year from when I bought that camera. But I was like in 2016, I'm quitting my job, no matter how much money I have in the bank. And I didn't even have an entire year full of appointments! I was in crazy. I was crazy. I had this new camera, one lens, and I quit my job and, and I mean, I've been full time ever since. So, it felt I was proud of myself, I was proud of myself, it kind of felt like buying a car, like your first car, that you end up paying yourself and your parents don't have to cosign for it or give you the deposit. Um, that's what it felt like.

Lesley Logan - 15:20

That's amazing. I can picture it. I know what you mean. I definitely, I think people do get scared leaping, you know, and I mean, I hope you're all hearing this, like everything she's doing, she's just like, okay, I want to be this person. So I'm going to go be that person, I want to be a full time camera person so I'm going to, I'm going to step into that, and I'm gonna find, I'm going to be resourceful on that. And so you didn't wait for your calendar to be filled to be the sign or the safety net, to allow you to be a full time camera woman and branding photographer, you were like, (Monica Linda: Right) I'm doing this and this is something that's really key. My husband and I talk about this a lot, because people have to make an investment when they work with us. It's an investment in their business. And they're like, I don't know, like, I've never made this kind of investment, I've never done this, or they make an investment in their fitness by being Pilates clients of ours. And it's, you know, it's hard, it's money, right, and you have no guarantees that you're going to see any of it back, or get the results you want. Like, we can't guarantee that. There's no guarantees in life. But he likes to refer to stress that you've created as like the stream stress that we do with our muscles on our bones, right. So when you work out, you're actually creating stress on the muscle. And it's not a ton, you're not like, this is not people who are like lifting a refrigerator. You lift a weight and it actually stresses the muscle. The muscle has to repair itself and it pulls on the bone. And when you do that, you actually make stronger bones. So by putting some stress on you...like, definitely with stress, you have to make...you got to do it, lady. You don't have anything else to go back to and you’ve got this much time to do it. By putting that kind of stress on your body, it actually strengthens you, right? It made you work a little harder to do that. And that's the healthy kind of stress. And I think we tend to give stress a bad name and we tend to avoid it. But by putting that or you can call it pressure, right? Put a little bit of pressure on yourself and it makes you go for it. Like, do the next thing and work a little bit harder and maybe stay up a little bit later. And so I wonder like, you know, if there's anything that you feel like, gosh, I wish I had told myself this then or I wish someone had told me this then. Is there anything like that? Because I don't believe in regrets. But I do think sometimes like a little bit of key advice a little sooner might have been nice.

Monica Linda - 17:51

Yeah, on, I want to go back to one second regarding stress. Right after I had received my...right after I bought my camera. I had...a friend of mine had worked for me, this is gonna sound crazy. A friend of mine had worked for a prince of Saudi Arabia, right. And he was like one of his personal assistants. And he was a really good friend of mine. He called me at like 10 am and said, Monica, can you be here by noon? And I was like, be where by noon? He was like, the Princes' son is having a birthday. We need a photographer. I want you to come. And for a second, Lesley, I totally freaked out. Because I knew I needed a certain lens. It was called the 2470 because I only had a 50 millimeter at that time. And I was like, I'm gonna rent the lens. And I'm gonna say yes. And I'm gonna figure it out in the next hour and a half. And I said yes. I immediately went to the rental store praying to God that they would have the lens I needed. They did, I showed up. It was an extremely stressful situation. I had never photographed people that were, that were so rich, first of all, that had a really high expectation, that were super fast. I mean, I literally felt like I was almost going to have a heart attack. But I didn't. I didn't have a heart attack. And that moment like I, I'm like, that isn't what I want to do. Like, I don't want to, you know, take photos of Prince from Saudi Arabia my whole life. But the experience of being under that much stress has taken me to like levels that I can do now because you like build that muscle. You're like, oh, if I can do this, then let me, let me do this. And so I think that, that is something I would tell myself later. Put yourself in more situations like that because you'll grow faster and go for the ask more. I feel like there's a lot of entrepreneurs and this something I'm working on too is where I know people can like help or give me advice or can like move my career in a certain way. And I don't go for the ask. That is something I wish I could tell myself earlier.

Lesley Logan - 20:20

Oh, okay. Two things. First of all the chills. This is...the funniest thing is that you will probably be one of two people at least that have worked with Princes of Saudi on this podcast. It such a funny world!

Monica Linda - 20:39

That no one's ever heard that story either.

Lesley Logan - 20:40

Oh, we're just dropping all the good stories here. But I love that you said that you would go for the ask and also put yourself in those stressful situations because you do grow faster. You really do. I think we avoid the pain and the problems. We're like, I just want this to go smooth. I just want to go smooth, but like if everything goes smooth, you have no idea what's working. And you can't repeat it. It's not repeatable. But when things don't go right the first time I used to get...so I used to get so sad when I would do something...I would go after a goal, go after a hobby and it didn't work out the first time. Like it's just supposed to work the first time because recovering perfectionist over here. And the truth is, you learn more from when it didn't go right the first time. So now I'm like, fail faster. Like, let's try that thing. Okay, it didn't work. That's fine. What did we learn? Alright, let's do it again next month, okay. And then you know, you just, it's so much better to go through that pain faster. So put yourself in those stressful situations that you have to learn. Okay, can I like, what can I do in these times? And then what did I learn from that? So always these reflections but I want to go back to that second thing that you said, which is really beautiful. So can you say it one more time because I want people to hear what that second tip was that you tell yourself.

Monica Linda - 21:56

Is that I need to go for the ask more often. A great example of this is I was at an event last March. It was a very small gathering. And at the end of the conversation, when I was talking to the entrepreneur. She just directly asked me, What can I do for you? What can I do for you? And that literally still gives me the chills? Because I mean, that is really how women elevate other women. She didn't ask anything else, but she really believed in what we were doing enough to where she's like how can I do that for you? And I feel like that is something we can do more is ask people to help us. Like, Hey, I really suck at sales right now. I just..I'm in this weird funk. And I think something really interesting happens. And it's something that I think I'm experiencing now is you start at the beginning, you have this dream, dream, dream and dream, and then you have a little success. And then you're starting to get a lot of feedback because you've been Being It the whole time, right? And you're like, I want to do, I want to build this thing. And then it's here. The thing is here, and there are other levels that you want to go to, but you have to ask people to help you out. And that is something you have to do.

Lesley Logan - 23:23

Oh girl, I remember you telling me about that conversation with that woman. Because she was...she's someone I want to have on the show someday. (Monica Linda: Yes) And I hope she can come on. But she said, I remember she's like...she's like a whisper, right. And she said, the only difference between us and you in this room is that you got to ask the questions. You got to ask. (Monica Linda: Right) And clearly that stuck with you and you told me about it. And I, oh my God, it's hitting so home because I think I mentioned this in another episode. But Brad asks people for everything, he does ask. He's like, let's just ask them if they can do it. Let's just ask what they can do it. And I'm like no, (Monica Linda: Yeah) they’re really busy. Like, they're just (Monica Linda: Yeah) so busy. I don't want to, I don't want to bother them right. Like they're so busy. And I remember, I don't know if you remember, we were in the same room together. And Angie Lee was answering people's questions and my husband's like Lesley, we get two questions. There's two of us, like, you know, we get two questions. Like, what are you gonna ask? And so I said, well, let's ask this and then let's ask this, right. And so he asked and then like, you know, it goes around to other people asking and then he grabs a microphone. I think he's gonna ask the second question, he puts it up on my face. Do you remember this?

Monica Linda - 24:38

I remember this. I remember this.

Lesley Logan - 24:40

I remember like, literally wanting to go invisible, but we were in the front table because he also wanted to be in the front table so we could, like, be with the people and so you know, I learned so much from him. I also like to think he learns a lot from me too, but, um, but she's like, What is it? And I was like...shes like...obviously, she's like what's happening here? And I said, I just have a, I have a hard time asking questions. And I, that's terrible. Because like, that's what being business is all about asking questions I said, but it's not that I don't ask questions. It's just that I don't want to waste anyone's time so I'll just research it myself instead of just asking the source. Hey, (Monica Linda: Yeah), you have really good sales copy. (Monica Linda: Yes) How did you do that? (Monica Linda: Yes) Or who helped you? (Monica Linda: Yes) Or like if I had asked Lori ahead of time. Hey, Lori, who is your photographer? I love your photos. I want to meet you sooner. I had to like, wait until we were in a room, right? And then I was like, (Monica Linda: Right) Oh, that's the girl, like, and so I learned from that moment, because I was like, this is so dumb. Like, what is the harm in asking a question? There's a difference between...I don't like the whole thing like ask for the discount, maybe I'll get it…I don't really like that whole thing. But I think I do believe you should be asking people questions. And you saying that like telling your younger self, your beginning self in this, like, ask more. Ask for more. That is something I wish I had learned a whole lot longer, because I guess I found all the answers that I was looking for. But I had to wait, either for the universe to put in front of my face, or for Google to actually understand what it was that I was asking. And, you know, sometimes Google gets it wrong, like that's not the right answer. And so that is so key because it is true. It goes back to that curiosity and something that I had to be before I could see it is like to do a podcast like this. I'm like, Okay, I'm gonna have to ask all the questions. Conversations just don't happen, that there's no questions like, Hey, keep this going. And so this is great. And I think wherever you are in your life, whatever you're trying to do, that ask is so key. And like getting people to be part of that journey. Like that is so fun.

Monica Linda - 26:49

Yeah. And people like, I have to remind myself people love helping, they really do. Like if I needed something, and I asked, and I have a breakthrough. Oh my god, they love celebrating with me too. And this is the one thing that in addition to the creative part of photography that I love, but I, I'm so happy that I'm also equal. I love the business side. I love that I get to, get over my idea of shame, right? I don't want to ask because I don't want people to think that I don't have my shit together. Right? That's why I don't want to ask. And that I don't know what I'm doing. But every time we do ask, I get to be super courageous and be really risky. And that is an adrenaline that is just so good. And I love to practice that all the time.

Lesley Logan - 27:39

Yeah, you... Anytime you've ever asked me for anything. I've never thought she would have her shit together. I'm like, Oh, yeah, what a great thought. Thanks for that. I literally have thanked you like that. Yeah, it's stories we tell ourselves. It's so...but the stories we tell ourselves are so like, come on, you know what I mean? Like, it's just so funny. Like, what we tell ourselves about ourselves when we tell ourselves about others. Yeah, it's like, they're gonna think I don't know what I'm doing if I ask them to do this. It's like, no, they're just gonna think that like, you thought of something that needs to be answered. Yeah, it's so true. It's so true. I hear you. I hear you 100%. Do you mind if I tell one more...one more amazing story about you Being It Till You See It (Monica Linda: Yes, go. I love it.). Okay, so you all heard she said she's a media company now. Right? So yeah, she is a media company. And she, and you became a movie director, basically. And I got to be part of this. We made a movie. It's amazing. I'm so grateful for that because again, you helped me, you helped me share a story of mine that I've been wanting to articulate and I never could and so I'll make sure I put it in the show notes. You guys can see it, it's so, it's so so good. But you had never been a director and so I got to watch you for an entire day be that director. You were just being it, girl. Like you were bold you were like, you had this like here's my list of things you have to do, here's what her motivations, here's what my motivations are like all this intrinsic stuff and then like execution like you just took action over that day. I never once thought like that you were unsure of anything that was happening and of course you are. Of course like this...you have no idea because we've got when you make a movie, you don't know what it's gonna look like. Things are not shot in the order that they happen. You're doing all these things and so you had to just completely be it until you saw that movie that you saw the cuts and I just wonder like, can you share what that was like that first time?

Monica Linda - 29:49

Um, you know, that goes back to like, everyone who's probably listening if anything that Lesley and I are saying are resonating is because there's something being whispered to you. Like there is a dream. There is something inside of you that...you literally are driving down the highway a song comes on, you get into the flow. I mean it is giving you sign after sign after sign. Love the book Big Magic, right, for this reason, because (Lesley Logan: Big Magic!) that's a whole other podcast. But um, there are these whispers and for an entire year all last year I really wanted to make a movie. I really, really did. And it didn't make sense to me. I was like, Monica you're crazy. Like you're a photographer. Stay focused, simplify. Don't do, don't do that. Don't do that. And then like, who are you gonna? Who are you gonna? Who's gonna film your movie? Like, you've never done this before? Um, and I just couldn't, I just couldn't stop the whisper from happening. I really, really wanted to do it. And then I met my neighbor, who lives in my building. Can I share? Should I share this story?

Lesley Logan - 31:00

Yes, yeah, the whole thing. It's so good. You guys. This is so good.

Unknown Speaker 31:05

Yeah. So I heard the whisper for a whole year. And then during that year, I met this gentleman that lives in my building and his family. His name's Eric. And he's French. We became friends, his wife is Brazilian, we were friends for a while. And one day, his son comes up to me and says...well, I actually asked Eric like, what do you do? What do you do for work? And he's like, Oh, I make movies. And his son said, Oh, he doesn't just make movies. Like he just wrapped Black Panther. And I was like, oh, 1) that's a really good movie and 2) I immediately went small, really small. I was like, he is so much bigger than me. He is so much more creative than me. Like he's got years and years and years of experience. And never in a million years that I ever think that he would want to work with me. I told myself that for almost an entire year, every time I would get super, super nervous. And then, in the hallway one night, a friend of mine says, Hey, have you ever asked Eric to like, you've been talking about making movies. Have you ever asked Eric to help you? And I said, you know, that’s something I've really been wanting to do. I'm like, so scared. Like, why would you want to work with me? No joke, got back to the house, looked at my phone text message from Eric, can you meet me downstairs? I want to ask you something. I was unsure of what that question is. I went downstairs, sat across from him. And in his French accent, which I'm not going to try to redo. He says, So these women you work with, do you think they'll want movies made? And he was like, not just movies, but cinematic films, not just video. But really heart and soul movies. And Lesley, that is something that I had not told anybody. I had not told anybody that. Like, I didn't just want to make behind the scenes videos, I wanted to make films because I feel like it's entrepreneur. Like I am literally giving everything that I have to this business and to this dream that I have. And a lot of people that are listening are doing the same thing, too. We're giving everything that we have, we're sacrificing a lot. And so I mean, when Eric said, I told him, You have no idea how many women want to make film. I mean, this is like something we could really do. And literally two weeks, two or three weeks from that conversation. We were filming, like you just like I just, I just went for it. And also, when people like Eric show up in your lives as entrepreneurs, you have to show up too. I mean, you have to show up.

Lesley Logan - 33:45

So we have somehow without this is, we did not thread this together on purpose. But it did totally thread together. So again, she put herself in a stressful, more stressful situation, kind of like the Saudi Prince because now you're working with a photographer, a filmer from filming the Black Panther. I mean, it doesn't get bigger, right? And so you did you put yourself in this position to work with someone as big as him in an area that you were just wanting to step into. And that is...goes back to that one tip. You were like, I should do more of that. Then you also were told to do the ask. But the universe took care of that for you, which is super awesome. And this is where I love Big Magic. And if you haven't read it, it's so good. It's so good. But um, I had the idea last March that I wanted to make a movie that wasn't the behind the scenes that was totally like, this is why I do, what I do on online on OPC which is my Pilates website and I wanted to share that story but I you know my husband and I only have a few people on the team. It was going to take a lot then COVID happened, we had to cancel. It was just so many things. So I just back burnered it, but I kept thinking about it. I kept looking at...I kept having this idea. And so when you call me and you're like you, You want to do this because I have this idea I want to do this. So this is like absolute Big Magic. Ideas want to be born, they really, really do. And so when you have one, if you feel that expansion itself that we talked about in the beginning of this, right? And you don't know how to do that thing, that is okay. You don't actually know how to do the how, the how comes with asking, the how does not have to be something, you know, the how come from asking, but that feeling that idea that is bold. And so then you write it down, you tell a friend, people are so afraid to tell people their ideas. 98% of people do not act on any idea. So you can tell 100 people your bold idea, and literally maybe two of them will take action on it. That doesn't mean they'll finish it. So it's really okay. You know, so you should talk because you never know who can go, Oh, you've been wanting to make movies? Have you talked to the filmer and the building? Because he's been wanting to do that too. Like, (Monica Linda: Yeah), so that is the power of bringing it all together. And so I'm really glad we got to share that story. Because it really, it was, it is exactly all the things that you've already said to do more of sooner. And (Monica Linda: Yeah), but it's done. And now here we are in 2021. And you are a media company. (Monica Linda: Yeah.) You’re media. (Monica Linda: Yeah.) That's what you're creating, it's amazing (Monica Linda: That's what we are doing) You're the badass.

Monica Linda - 36:21

And we're gonna take it one, one moment at a time. And as this media company grows, I'll grow into it. And it's going to be, it's going to be whatever it should be. And I'm okay with that.

Lesley Logan - 36:37

Oh, that's beautiful. Before I let you go. Two things, where can people follow you? Find you? DM you how much they love you.

Monica Linda - 36:47

Well, you can find me on Instagram. It's where I'm at the most. So it's Girl Squad Inc. Inc, as in I-N-C. I am on Facebook. But it goes down in the DMs for me on instagram more. So that's probably the best place. And I do answer all my DMs. So if you have a question or you want to set up a consultation, or want to learn more about how we work, hit me up and we'll set something up.

Lesley Logan - 37:12

Perfect. So y'all, before I let her go, I do have an ask for you. I mean, we've given so many tips already. So if you want to double down on one I understand. But I want to make sure that people who heard the story are like, Oh my gosh, I grew up like Monica or I've had that idea too or how do I do this, I would love to give them a tip from you. Because they, I think that is the most helpful thing that someone can do. I wish someone had done that for me. So what is something that's bold, executable or intrinsic or targetable that you could share with the listeners today?

Monica Linda - 37:49

I feel like being bold, and it comes in a statement of, if you're going to take this road of being entrepreneur, you're going to have to be okay with doing this every day when no one's watching. Because there are going to be a lot of days when no one pays attention. When you're not getting a lead, where it feels like one failure after another, you're not making any movement. And it may be weeks. It could feel like years, but it's actually probably just a couple of weeks. But just be prepared. Like if this is something you're going to do. That's going to happen and you're going to be okay in the middle of it. You're going to be okay in the middle of it. Just keep pushing, keep asking, keep being bold. And you'll look back and then you'll be like, well wait a minute, I have clients, I have more than one client. And so yeah, that is probably and I got that advice from Jasmine Star. When I did one of her classes. She said, you know, she actually said that to me. And that has been so good. Because I feel like we're in this time, where we get a lot of validation from other people or sensations like our phones other than ourselves. And that is just a really good reminder that you have to be okay when no one's watching, like you're going to make it. And the other thing she told me was, um, now that you know it, like now that you know that shut up and do the work. Like, just stop complaining about it. Just do the work. And so yeah, that's how we can all be bolder.

Unknown Speaker 39:35

Oh, that is amazing. And it's true. It's pretty hard to be bold when you're also complaining about it. (Monica Linda: Yeah) And so, yeah, that anytime you find yourself complaining, there's two things I do. I'm like, how many times have I made this complaint? Am I using this as procrastination and not doing the thing I want to do? Or, how do I get rid of this complaint? And if you can do that, that's pretty freakin' bold too because it takes a lot to challenge that part of you that wants you to stay small. It really does. (Monica Linda: Yeah) You can't be bold and small at the same time. Monica, I just, I mean, I love you so much, you know that I know. I mean, y'all, I'm trying to get her to move into my neighborhood. That's all. I'm just like, keep putting it out there. That's my next idea. But please, please, please screenshot this. share this with a friend. Make sure that anyone who needs to hear this message hears it. And then, like Monica said, we both actually answer our DMs. And we would love to hear your takeaway. So tag us posted in your story so we can share what those are and we can share you and your and your takeaway with everyone. Thank you so much, everyone for listening. And Monica, for being here and sharing all your amazing stories for the first time. I mean, this is just news dropping. All right. Mwah! Love you.

Monica Linda - 40:46

Love you.

---

Lesley Logan

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate this show and leave a review.

And, follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.

Also, make sure to introduce yourself over on IG at be_it_pod on Instagram! I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with who ever you think needs to hear it.

Help us help others to BE IT TILL YOU SEE IT. Have an awesome day!

---

Lesley Logan

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.

Before Brad & LL go back through the previous episode's interview with Alex Street, a storytelling coach for entrepreneurs, they answered the question of why they moved to Las Vegas. Then they dug into the gold that Alex talked about confidence, how to move through fear, merging two different worlds in your life, and much more.

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Confidence
• Ripping off the Band-Aid
• Education vs Experience
• Support from others
• Getting a coach or mentor
• Doing "it" for you

References/Links:

• Alex Street's Website
• Amy Cuddy’s TED Talk

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Lesley Logan Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Follow Lesley on Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcript:

INTRODUCTION:

Brad Crowell

For those of you who are fitness instructors, you know, it's, think back to when you were going through your program, you know where they required teaching hours, you remember the first time that you had to teach a body, and you were like...

Like, a real body,

Yeah, yeah, like, you know, all the things that I think I know that I don't really know now that I'm trying to call on them, you know, and, you know, you know, at the end of the session, the person was still okay, you know, they might have actually had a good workout. Who knows, you know, and for you, you know, now you're going away from it going, alright, here's what I'm gonna do next time.

Lesley Logan

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I’m Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I’ve trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it’s the antidote to fear. Each week, my guests will bring Bold, Executable, Intrinsic and Targeted steps that you can use to put yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It’s a practice, not a perfect. Let’s get started.

EPISODE:

Lesley Logan 00:39

Welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap where my co host in life, Brad, and I are going to dig into the profound conversation I have with Alex. In our last episode, it was freakin' profound (Brad: Alex Street) Alex Street. (Brad: Yes) Absolutely. And if you haven't yet listened to that interview, feel free to pause this now, go back and listen to that one and then come back and join us, or be like me, listen to this whole thing, love him so much that you have to go back and listen to all the other gems that we didn't bring up in this episode. So, okay. Several of you have been Instagram dm-ing me on the @be_it_pod because you've been seeing all this awesome stuff with the 100withme challenge happening, and I wanted to just tell you the 100withme challenge is awesome. It happens a couple times a year, we will do it again this year. So, no FOMO, just make sure that you are on the list, it is one of my favorite things to do. It is a 30-day consistency challenge. So you, it's one of the most funnest challenges out there because you decide how often you're going to do Pilates, you make a schedule, and every single week we do a live class together, a hangout session together, we give away prizes, people share how many times they're gonna do their workout and it's basically you deciding what your new routine is going to be, and then practicing it.

Brad Crowell 01:59

Yeah, and look, depending on when you're listening to this, you probably could still jump in, although it might because at the end, but like Lesley said, it's definitely something that happens, two, three times a year, and you can get on the list and join us for the next round, but it is, it is pretty awesome. And, and I do Pilates during the challenge too.

Lesley Logan 02:21

Yes, he does! He picks how often he's gonna do it. He makes a schedule, he posts when he does it, and it's, it's just really fun and the whole idea is just to help you have accountability and showing up for yourself. So, yeah, so that's the answer to that question, and I'm really excited about it. I love the 100withme, I can't wait till the next one.

Brad Crowell 02:44

Awesome. Well, I think we had an audience question. This week (Lesley: We did.) my dear,

Lesley Logan 02:52

I love audience questions, you can send us your questions at the @be_it_pod on Instagram,

Brad Crowell 02:57

Yes, you can just send us a DM,

Lesley Logan 02:59

Yeah, just any DM. Ask any question you want.

Brad Crowell 03:02

Questions can be about anything

Lesley Logan 03:03

Anything. You can ask us about our dog's (Brad: life), life (Brad: business) business, (Brad: sleeping). Oh, I have so many things on routine sleeping, water intake, I've got (Brad: water), Brad and I are on a three liter minimum take a day right now. Welcome to desert life, which brings us to...

Brad Crowell 03:23

Why did we move to Vegas?

Lesley Logan 03:25

This is such a good question, I think, and I hope we don't disappoint the person who's asking this only because we had...I remember coming to Vegas and going, I will never live in Vegas, it's...why would anyone live here? Do you remember why we're here? I don't know what year it was, maybe a year after we've been married, maybe two, and we came to see your friends perform. Both of Brad's friends were headliners on the strip in two different shows like badass couple.

Brad Crowell 03:55

Yeah, they're married, both the leads in shows here in town. (Lesley: Yeah), in Vegas and separate shows both the lead,

Lesley Logan 04:02

Both the lead. (Brad: Pretty amazing) And they had this their dream house everything and they were like, and their shows, they both found out were being cancelled at the same time.

Brad Crowell 04:12

Yeah. Well within weeks of within a week, two weeks of each other, they found out both shows were closing.

Lesley Logan 04:16

Yeah, so we, we wanted to see them so we came out to Vegas to see them both perform before the show's close, and I remember being, it was a Labor Day weekend and I remember it's like so hot and it's so smoky and like who lives here, right?

Brad Crowell 04:32

I do remember thinking it was oppressively hot.

Lesley Logan 04:36

Oppressively hot.

Brad Crowell 04:37

Right? But I also remember thinking that they had a really beautiful home.

Lesley Logan 04:40

They had a gorgeous home and we...like, living in LA, their home was multiple millions of dollars and I liked it because it had a pool and it had the view and it had a bungalow...

Brad Crowell 04:53

A garden with a water fountain in the middle of it, I mean...

Lesley Logan 04:55

Yes, and they had like this, it's like a guest house, like a carriage house or your mother-in-law suite or whatever, it's like a separate room that we stayed in with our own bathroom. (Brad: Oh yeah). And so, just coming from LA that exists in the multiple millions. It does not exist in the 1 million or under. And so anyways, it was 2019 at Christmas we were doing our Pop Up Tour for OPC so we were literally driving across the country to get home for the holidays and stopping in eight cities to teach Pilates which was so much fun. And our first stop was Vegas because my brother lives here. And I remember we're sitting on the strip having breakfast and we asked my brother, Do people live here and not work on the strip? (Brad: Right) Which is such a dumb question because we lived in LA, and people live in LA who are not in the industry. (Brad: Of course) But, like, you know, you just can't fathom it and he's like, of course, totally. And so we started doing some research. And we're like, well, we'll probably move here and like 2022.

Brad Crowell 05:51

Yeah, well I think also before we decided that we then went to teach at that workshop and when we found the arts district we were like, this is so cool!

Lesley Logan 06:02

This was true and it was so cool. We had this great coffee, it was amazing, they still are here and they have great coffee and. And so we were like yeah you know what, probably let's start looking 2021 2022 (Brad: Yeah) Because (Brad: We are not really in a hurry), no, our 2020 schedule was so packed. Every single month we're in a different country. And so we, well, we all know what happened in 2020. And we, y'all, we lived in a 500 square foot apartment with ourselves, and two dogs, and when you can't go sit at a bar and work and you can't go to your favorite gym and you can't go to your favorite Pilates...

Brad Crowell 06:39

Or a coffee shop or even a friend's house or my (Lesley: friend's house is like), like, like everything changed, and our entire world revolved around our 500 square foot apartment, (Lesley: and we) and made no sense.

Lesley Logan 06:50

And I was sitting on my meditation chair using suitcases to make a desk, and I was like, we're moving now. So we were, you know the reality is that Vegas is a four hour drive from LA, we could get so much space for what we were paying in LA, and it was such an easy decision because we still go to LA.

Brad Crowell 07:14

Well yeah, I mean, 100%. We, I miss LA, I love LA, it's my favorite place, but Vegas is not far, and Vegas also has an International Airport.

Lesley Logan 07:25

Yes, it was very...we had a couple decisions. Like, we did contemplate like Hollywood, Florida and then our friends who we love, flew from Hollywood, Florida, to our house in Cambodia and their route sounded tragic.

Brad Crowell 07:38

Yeah it was it was a bit much, I was like, wow, ours is so much better.

Lesley Logan 07:42

I was like, can't do that and, and you can fly from Vegas to Asia, in a stop, so that was pretty much the killer of Florida, being an option for us but, um, so yeah Vegas, we've moved here for space, we moved here because we could keep so much of our LA life. (Brad: Yeah), like, some of the best LA restaurants are here.

Brad Crowell 08:04

Oh yeah, there's tons of food here. There's you know the only thing that we didn't have here really was a community.

Lesley Logan 08:11

Oh I was going to say humidity, but..

Brad Crowell 08:14

Yeah, yeah, there's lots of differences but I think when you're, you know like, like we, there were all these positives for moving here, but the true negative of moving here was community. (Lesley: Yeah), We didn't really have friends here.

Lesley Logan 08:30

Yea, no. And LA is this interesting mirage of a community because you have a community but it is as transient as Vegas is, and people move all the time. And what we also realized within a lockdown was like how easy that community could just kind of go away to and so we're still building

Brad Crowell 08:49

Oh sure, even in LA our community really

Lesley Logan 08:52

Had really dwindled

Brad Crowell 08:54

Yeah cuz we weren't the only ones moving away, (Lesley: no). Right? So, (Lesley: no). Yeah,

Lesley Logan 08:58

So I mean we're still working on the community here. I had a great coffee date the other day. I feel good about the community we're building, and our neighbors are awesome. So if they’re listening, we love you.

Brad Crowell 09:08

I would say, I would say it's unique in that we have neighbors that we actually know. That wasn't something that we had in LA. Here, I mean, we know, almost all of our, we know all of our neighbors, so it's very interesting.

Lesley Logan 09:22

They bring us bread, they clearly don't know that I'm gluten and dairy free but,

Brad Crowell 09:27

But they're friendly, what a weird concept.

Lesley Logan 09:29

But they're so friendly and also, side note, when we are traveling last Christmas and there was like a water situation happening on our roof, our neighbors, like (Brad: Oh yeah) call us up, and they're like, hey, there's a water thing happening on your roof, we know you're not there and we're like, that is so cool. Do you know what no one would have done (Brad: Yeah) in LA? No one would have called.

Brad Crowell 09:51

The man, we would have gotten a call from the manager when the downstairs neighbor had a leak coming through their ceiling, (Lesley: Yes.)

Lesley and Brad 09:56

Okay. Anyway

Lesley Logan 09:56

That's, thank you for that question. (Brad: Great question) You're awesome. That was so fun. We actually haven't talked about that with many people, no one really asks so thank you for that. Alright, send your questions into @be_it_pod on Instagram and we will talk about them in the next episode. (Brad: Yeah) Before we talk about Alex Street, I love him so much. I just want to remind you that it is important to prioritize yourself, and it is really hard to do that until you practice it, like prioritization of self is like anything - it's a muscle - especially if you're not used to doing it. And so I want to help you do it, and by that I mean, I want you to go to OnlinePilatesClasses.com/beit and sign up for a free class, it's 30 minutes, you can do 15 minutes if that's all you want to do, but the act of you logging in, pressing play and moving your body, it is not only connecting your mind to your body and helping you do life better, it is telling yourself that you come first. And so go to OnlinePilatesClasses.com/beit, that's OnlinePilatesClasses.com/b e i t to get that class and practice your prioritization.

Brad Crowell 11:06

Awesome. All right, time to talk about Alex Street. I really love this guy. He's so gentle. (Lesley: I know) His demeanor and everything about him is friendly and approachable.

Lesley Logan 11:24

I just, like, he's like a teddy bear, but he's not...he doesn't look like a teddy bear, but like, do you know what I mean? Like you just want to bring him with you. You just want to have him there, like

Brad Crowell 11:30

He's, he's just a lovely human being, and we had a chance to meet him in 2019, and I must say, I wrote this bio myself, I did not take anything from any bio that he had given us,

Lesley Logan 11:48

Check out the show notes if you want the real one. But this is gonna be so good because Brad is the best edifier of people

Brad Crowell 11:55

Alex Street was born to be on stage, (Lesley: Totally) his acting career took him into the ministry where he became a youth pastor, teaching teenagers, which put him on stage every single week for more than 10 years, every single week, he was on stage for 10 years. He has since become a speaking coach, working with everyone from those working in sales, to those who are pitching products to executives leading teams, and he's so darn good at it. I'm not kidding, every time we talked to him, (Lesley: Can't believe you said it darn, he's damn good) he's damn good. Well, we have had him. Okay, first off, we've seen him speak, a couple times at that conference, we've had him two times as a webinar guest.

Lesley Logan 12:41

Yes, he has two courses on Profitable Pilates.

Brad Crowell 12:44

And then now, yes, two courses on ProfitablePilates.com and then now a podcast. (Lesley: Yeah) Okay, here is what blows my mind,

Lesley Logan 12:51

Tell me.

Brad Crowell 12:55

Each time, each time he is speaking. He's so amazing at starting with an idea, and then revisiting the idea, and then revisiting the idea and then revisiting the idea, and then closing his conversation. And the whole time he's not like, it's like, like for those tech nerds out there it's not keyword stuffing like you would with Google, and like just putting the same word on the page 50 times. He's very eloquent with how he does it. When I was listening to his interview between the two of you, I was laughing because he's like talking about, you know, how bold, you know, intrinsic, executable and targeted, he was bringing it back into the conversation without you, prompting him.

Lesley Logan 13:39

Oh I know

Brad Crowell 13:42

And that's, but that's because of his skill, his talent of being on stage. He's just so good.

Lesley Logan 13:48

He's so good at it and we're gonna get we haven't gotten to our favorite parts yet but I just have to give him a little bit of a plug because he 100% deserves it. Many, many, many of my agency members, which is our coaching mastermind for fitness instructors, have hired him for one on one. They have joined his mastermind and they are going on the radio, and they are doing amazing posts on their social media, and he, he makes speaking... Well, he makes speaking magical which is his fucking thing so, somehow he made me say that without even knowing. Okay, so let me get into what I loved about the interview.

Brad Crowell 14:27

Yes.

Lesley Logan 14:27

You're not born with confidence, showing up creates confidence. I think I need to say one more time, you're not born with confidence, showing up creates confidence. So, this actually is a really interesting thing because I have so many people who asked me, How are you so confident? I wish I was as confident as you and I am scared to death most of the time, like, doing the interview with Alex, y'all, I had not been a podcaster before the interview. I was so scared, I was like, I literally was so grateful that Alex was the person because I knew okay he, he can carry a conversation if I totally freeze up, he can carry it, the act of doing it is what's made me confident. Right? (Brad: Sure) So what I think people see in other people that is confidence is probably just higher self esteem or a little bit of courage and bravery that you can have, it's the, you know I was, you can you can be confident on skis and not confident on a snowboard. Right? How do you get confidence on a snowboard? You show up and put your feet on a snowboard. I have not done that yet but this is how it works. So I really challenge all of you if you're seeking confidence in an area, it doesn't come from waiting. It doesn't come from thinking about it, it doesn't even come from plotting about it. At some point, you're gonna have to just fucking do it. And then when it's over and you realize you didn't die. You're gonna be so much more confident, the next time you do it. Brad, what is one thing that you love that he said?

Brad Crowell 16:01

I mean, I think it's, it's really incredible to just conceptualize the showing up part of it. (Lesley: Yeah), you know, because I, you know, I know that there's this idea of like education versus experience. (Lesley: Yeah), you know, and, and you can be, you can study and be completely, you know book smart and all the things, but until you actually go out and you do it, you know you're still going to have this fear. Alternatively, you can never study anything and just go do it, and like, you know, I mean you can still have fear there but like you can learn it on the job. Right? That's the kind of the way I think about it is like, I didn't go to college for it but I learned in my job right. (Lesley: Yeah), from a career perspective, (Lesley: yeah), that, that... going through and doing it actually being in it and doing it is going to create that confidence for you. And so it's so funny when we're contemplating, you know, talking to a stranger. How do you get over the fear of it? You got to just go talk to a stranger. (Lesley: Yeah) Right? And when you do that the first thing you're going to realize is, you don't know what to say, you know, and you, you sound silly and you, you know, you forget things and like nothing makes sense, but at the end of that conversation. They didn't punch you in the face. Like, your, your, you know, they slashed your tires, everything's fine, like, you know,

Lesley Logan 17:32

Who's dramatic today?

Brad Crowell 17:36

Basically, the world did not end, you're fine. Like, even though you might have made a fool out of yourself, even, you're still alive, you're still breathing, everything's gonna be alright. Probably if it's a stranger you never have to see that person again anyway. And it's no big deal but you walk away from that thinking, okay, I can do this again. Next time, I'm going to be prepared, but I can do this. (Lesley: Yeah), it wasn't the end of the world. (Lesley: Yeah) So I love that, you know that idea of showing up creates confidence. But one thing he talked about a bunch, which I thought was interesting, he kind of hit on it a few times during the interview. First, right out of the gate, he said he felt like he was living two different stories.

Lesley Logan 18:19

I know, this was so fascinating.

Brad Crowell 18:21

And I didn't really understand what he meant until later on in the pod where he started talking about his transition from being a youth pastor to being a speaking coach.

Lesley Logan 18:34

Such a great story, you'll definitely want to listen to this one

Brad Crowell 18:36

And it may, I mean it made sense to me at that point was it. Oh, I totally got it, he, he was clearly confident being a pastor, being on stage, you know, teaching, leading, you know, whatever, all the things, and then when it came to selling himself as a speaking coach, he was not confident, and he, he was like it put me in a position where I felt out of sorts. You know, where I felt like I shouldn't be introducing myself, as you know, a speaking coach, I should be introducing myself as a youth pastor. Right? And so then, later on in it, he actually said, you know, I probably, like, since, since the great story that I'm not going to repeat, you got to go back to the other pod listen to it but he had this experience of telling everyone he was youth pastor, even though that wasn't his plan. And afterwards, he realized he should be marrying the two. I am a speaking coach, because I was a youth pastor. And suddenly, it validates, like it's the authority, you know like, like, you know when it comes to social triggers and proof and all the things like, why would he be a speaking coach? Oh, well, because I've been a youth pastor for 10 years, I've been on stage. More than 500 times. I have spoken to 10, groups of 10,000 like mind blown validation, all day long. (Lesley: Yeah), you know, so this idea of being in two different worlds I thought was really interesting.

Lesley Logan 20:19

I really, I totally resonated with that because when I was learning to become a Pilates instructor and I was managing a retail shop, and I had a really hard time telling people that I was becoming a Pilates instructor, (Brad: sure), and A) because I didn't, I didn't know if I could make as a Pilates instructor I did I just was like taking the classes and B) like, I just felt like, well, I just started so maybe I shouldn't be, uh, maybe I can't call myself that, and it was like such a weird thing and then one day, a client that I was teaching came to my shop. And she brought her friends up and here's all the girls that work for me. There's a couple customers there and, like, this is my Pilates instructor and like ‘cat was out of the bag’, and then it was so funny.. It's like, You teach Pilates? And I'm like, I couldn't believe it because more people were so excited I don't know what I was thinking that people would think and I think that was fascinating but it's like you don't know what people are gonna say, so then you just think, assume the worst which is such a weird thing like,

Brad Crowell 21:25

Or we have this idea that we need to separate two worlds (Lesley: yeah) somehow. I'm never gonna tell anyone here about, you know that I, whatever, play, play sports or that I do this or that I am podcast host or whatever, you know, they get, you get stuck in this, this idea of lanes (Lesley: yeah), but, no, you're still you.

Lesley Logan 21:44

You're still you and people love you no matter what it is you do, and also people inherently want to support you. (Brad: yeah) Like this woman who I was teaching...she didn't think, Oh I'm blowing her cover. She thought, I love this girl and how she's taught me Pilates. And so and then everybody else is just like, I just, this is so..we love you and this is so cool that you're doing this. They didn't go, Oh she's gonna leave us and well my boss wasn't there, but the other people weren't like she's gonna leave us, you know, they were just like this is so cool. Good for you, like, I think we underestimate how much people want, you want us to be like in air quotes successful. I think it's happy. They want us to be happy. Alright, so,

Lesley Logan 22:26

Brad?

Brad Crowell 22:26

Tell me

Lesley Logan 22:28

In the action items.

Brad Crowell 22:29

Yeah, let's talk about the BE IT, let's talk about bold, executable, intrinsic or targeted action items that we took away from your conversation with Alex. I was actually, this is not something that I guessed he was going to say.

Lesley Logan 22:50

No, but I love that you chose this as your thing because. Are you going to tell your story?

Brad Crowell 22:57

I can.

Lesley Logan 22:57

Okay.

Brad Crowell 22:58

I wasn't planning on it but I certainly can.

Lesley Logan 23:01

Tell the Blink, tell the Blinkist version.

Brad Crowell 23:03

I'll tell the Blinkist version. They're not sponsoring this but I'll still tell them. Well, first off, Alex said, straight up, get a coach. And he said if you can't get a coach, put yourself in a room where you can connect with people who maybe they could become a coach, right, and he said it was bold, and that he had to spend money to do it. Right? And executable was just simply getting there. I can't remember what he said about intrinsic and targeted, but he literally spelled out why getting a coach, (Lesley Logan: I know) was all four things (Lesley: He was so awesome) was amazing. (Lesley: Yeah), but I was surprised that that was what he chose, until I realized that I think that was for him and his experience, that was the point of change (Lesley: Yeah) for him where his belief, his confidence, everything about it, really shifted. And I agree with him, I mean, when you put yourself in a position to be coached. I mean we all went to college, we all you know high school college, we all, we've all been a student before, you know, and then we get past, we get out of that and we think like, alright, I guess I have to go figure it out on my own, you know or you learn on the job, or whatever. You know, maybe it's been 10-20 years since you've been in school, but when you put yourself in a position to be coached, it's this interesting mindset shift, you know, where you can suddenly change your life. And that coach could be, you know, dedicating yourself to a podcast, that coach could be actually getting a coach, maybe that coach is someone in your family, maybe you're hiring someone, you know, it could be a mentor, whatever,

Lesley Logan 25:00

It could be your Pilates instructor.

Brad Crowell 25:02

It could be your Pilates instructor. But whatever it is you're trying to do, having a mentor, having someone, someone who has been, where you're trying to go is so valuable. Because you're allowing them to be an authority. And obviously, hopefully, you trust them.

Lesley Logan 25:23

Yes, you should definitely pick someone who understands, like you've resonate with, that you vibe with. Don't pick someone that you don't, you know, but I think, like, I think that you have, I love that he said get a coach because I think so many people are like, I'm gonna do it on my own. And it's like, something that I, okay this is really funny. Somebody bought me a birth chart reader for my birthday back when I was like, just coming out of being homeless. And I was like really, that's what you want to do with 170 bucks? Like, I'll take it. But I did this, so I sent this guy a picture of me, my birthday, my birthplace and the time I was born. And then we did an hour long call where he basically told me all the stuff about myself. And he said, you've gone as far as you can on your own. Whatever, what ideas do you have that you can partner up with? And like, this is at a time I had, I had some friends but it's LA acquaintances, and I lost a lot of my air quotes close friends when I left my ex and so like I was building my friendship up and I was like, I don't know I'm blogging on dating with a friend, and there's this other thing, he's like, you need to say yes to anything that's in collaboration, you are, you can't go any further. And so that's when I started looking at some collaborations and I started looking at coaching and I couldn't afford coaching but I would listen to any podcast that had any coaching advice whatsoever. And I would just pretend like I'm in partnership, we're a duo, this person is my friend, is my coach. And I love that you pick this because it's so easy for us to say, oh I don't want to...I can't spend that money and I'm not saying go out and get yourself a $10,000 coach or hire us or like that. A coach can even be like setting yourself up for a membership of some kind that holds you accountable, it can be it can be it can be a mentor that is just someone you, you say can you be my mentor, my friend has a mentor. She doesn't pay him, she has dinner with him once every four to six weeks, and she can text them if there's a problem. Some people like to be mentors and she was a lawyer and he was a lawyer and so you know there's these different things and some people like to do that so I love that because it's basically, you don't have to do this alone. (Brad: Yeah 100%) Yeah.

Brad Crowell 27:55

So I mean, I think, I think there's so many, so many positives to getting a coach so it was great to hear him say that.

Lesley Logan 28:01

Yeah, I agree.

Brad Crowell 28:03

Okay.

Lesley Logan 28:03

Okay.

Brad Crowell 28:04

What about you?

Lesley Logan 28:05

Well, so I love that he said sometimes you have to do it for yourself to get you through it, and I. Okay, so this is Being It. Right? Um, one of my questions I ask myself whenever I'm scared to do something, or whenever I'm not really sure if I should do something is I really just asked myself, what's the worst thing that can happen. And when I realized that I'm not going to die...

Brad Crowell 28:29

I think we covered that. (Lesley: Yeah), no one's gonna slashed your tires.

Lesley Logan 28:33

No one's gonna. I know. I know

Lesley Logan 28:36

This is a competition of who can be more dark. When I realize I'm not going to die, that it makes it like, it almost kind of makes it less scary because...like fear is this funny thing in our brain. Everything sounds like the end of the world but when you put it out there, you're like, well, the worst thing that can happen is I embarrass myself, it doesn't work, blah, blah. But if you can't die, then, really, you're just gonna, like, like maybe you fall, but you don't like nothing actually structurally damaging forever is going to happen to you. It kind of takes the edge off and it makes it easier and, you know, it goes back to if you listen to one of our first episodes where I talked about Amy Cuddy and like Being It Till You See It and why this thing is here, it's like, you got to go do the thing and just get through that first one. (Brad: Yeah), because then you're on the other side you can look back and go, Oh, that wasn't so bad. (Brad: Yeah), it can get better and here's what I learned.

Brad Crowell 29:38

Yeah. I think it's like, I mean really it's like, it's not that practice makes perfect, but practice will put you in a position where you are gaining confidence. Right?

Lesley Logan 29:48

No, practice makes habit and habit makes more confidence for sure.

Brad Crowell 29:52

Yeah, so, so like sometimes, you know, even if you're not ready to, I just go back to selling because that's what I, you know, do, but you know sometimes you're not, you might not be ready and you know you flub it halfway through, but you did it for you. It's a big step in your own growth to go get out there and go do it. (Lesley: Yeah), I mean come on, I think I think for those of you who are fitness instructors, think back to when you were going through your program, you know where they required teaching hours. (Lesley: Yeah) Do you remember the first time that you had to teach a body? And you were like,

Lesley Logan 30:34

Like a real body? Yeah

Brad Crowell 30:35

Yeah, like, you know, all the things that I think I know that I don't really know now that I'm trying to call on them, you know, and at the end of the session, the person was still okay, you know, they might have actually had a good workout. Who knows, and for you, now you're going away from it going, Alright, here's what I'm gonna do next time, right?

Lesley Logan 31:00

Oh, totally. And here's the other thing, it's like, if you're not a fitness instructor you're like okay how does this apply to me. Just think about if you're trying to start something that is a new routine. For example, just think back to the last time I tried a new routine that you have to go back to, like, if you've been running every day like, when did you start running. Yeah it was freaking hard to get up that first day and go for a run and you probably are panting more than you wanted, you might have even gotten lost, maybe I'm just speaking for me. Right. And you may have realized like, Okay, that didn't go the way I wanted, but I'm still here. And I kind of enjoyed it, so I'm gonna try get...

Brad Crowell 31:36

Remember where you got lost in St. Louis in like 30 degree weather with the dog?

Lesley Logan 31:40

Oh my god like I was running around in circles everyone. It was one of those developments and like every house looked the same, and I literally got lost and I had to go search through a text message. I did text you for the address like, Where are we staying? Whose house are we at? And then I had to google maps that thank God we were in the country and I wasn't in Cambodia with no Wi-Fi like out lost. (Brad: Yea) Anyways, the point is, the point is that you need to just do it for yourself to get you through it so that you can take the next step and whatever it is, rip the frickin band aid off the sting only hurts a little bit.

Brad Crowell 32:17

All right.

Lesley Logan 32:18

All right, that's, that's the name of this episode, rip off the band aid. Well, my dear. Thank you for listening. Thank you for joining us today. We are so grateful you're here, and please just a huge favor, screenshot this, share your takeaway, tag the be_it_pod, let us know what you loved about it. Send this to a friend who needs a little pick me up or a band aid rip off moment, and keep us posted on what you're doing and by sending a DM on Instagram, we will catch you on the next episode, until then, be it till you see it. Fight!

Brad Crowell 32:49

Cheers!

Lesley Logan

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate this show and leave a review.

And, follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.

Also, make sure to introduce yourself over on IG at be_it_pod on Instagram! I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with who ever you think needs to hear it.

Help us help others to BE IT TILL YOU SEE IT. Have an awesome day!

---

Lesley Logan

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.

Alex Street bares all about making his transition from an accomplished youth pastor to a speaking coach, wrestling with validation, bravery, self belief, merging two worlds... Then Alex tells Lesley his awesome B.E.I.T action item of going out and finding a coach who has been where you want to go, and how to create confidence even when you don’t have it yet.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Taking the leap
• Merging your work and your life
• Facing fears about sharing why you are an expert
• How to create confidence even when you don't have it yet

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

References/Links:

• Instagram
• Alex Street website

About Alex Street:

Alex is a Storytelling Coach, helping you share your story and connect with your audience. He has been a Youth Worker, Actor, and Public Speaker for two decades. His specialized blend of storytelling, captivating content, and a powerful performance has set him apart as a speaker and coach for audiences of all kinds. Alex is the host of the Fearless Speakers Academy and the Make Speaking Magical video course. He has a Masters in Theological Studies, lives near Toronto, Ontario as a husband of 15 years, and he's dad to three Gen Z kids.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Lesley Logan Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Follow Lesley on Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcript

Lesley Logan 0:01  

Okay, okay. Hello, everyone. Hello, my dear friend Alex Street, I'm so excited that you're here. I'm really excited to get to spend this morning together, you are one of my favorite humans on this planet. And when I was creating this podcast, I wanted to make sure that you were on it specifically because your story is so inspirational. But you don't just have one story that's inspirational. There's like many parts of you and facets to you that I want to share with everyone. And so I want to let you introduce yourself to the listeners and the viewers here. So Alex, take it away.

Alex Street 0:35  

So good, Lesley, I am thrilled to be a part of this. It is such a joy to be invited in here. And yeah, such a pleasure, we're gonna have some fun. So I'm in. I'm in Toronto, Canada, and I am a storytelling coach. I really help people uncover their story and share it with confidence. And what I'm finding is, this is something that I have been doing all along. And something that I'm more recently really embracing as, this is what I bring to the table. Like, this is the thing, this is what I'm here to do. And I mean, I'm really doing that I'm finding that as I uncover my own story. So this is all part of the journey for me, I'm only taking people where I've already been I'm taking people on the same transformation that I've been on from powerless to confident. And as I do that, it's an absolute wild ride and I'm loving it right now. So, story all the way all through and through in my family with me with my kids, now. It's all about story and how to get your story out to the world. That's what I'm here for.

Lesley Logan 1:49  

I love this. Okay, so there's a couple things that that stuck out with me there. Aside from that you are a father with kids, and I'm sure that there's a there's an element of pressure that comes with being a parent that you want to make sure that they live a life that has the lessons you've learned imparted onto them, right, like 

Alex Street 2:08  

Yeah, a little bit.

Lesley Logan 2:11  

That's why, that's why I have dogs. 

Alex Street 2:16  

Good.

Lesley Logan 2:17  

Um, I, I love that you you just said in this that you have discovered that story is your thing all along. And I wonder what led what was the what was the... I don't know, the discovery of the gem. Like when did this come upon you that you're like, oh, story is my thing.

Alex Street 2:35  

Yeah, it's it's just rooting down is doing the work. It's having the bravery. I think that's all that it was was over the last really 18 months, I would say I got brave enough to go deeper and deeper and deeper into who I am. And and to go to the roots of my journey. I think for probably 15 years, I was staying pretty surface, like up top doing good work and doing all kinds of things. But any questions that I had about what I'm supposed to do in this world was all about how I'm supposed to show up. You know what I mean? Like, how do I do the thing that I feel led to do, but I hadn't really done the work to discover, well, what is that thing - like what is deep down at the core, the very center of it all. What's driving me forward? So as I did that work, then I kind of you break through the surface, and you break through the surface of just how I'm showing up or what I'm doing. And you really get to that why and for me, storytelling, performing... that's been there, all along, right from the start. And so then that becomes a through line. And I just see so clearly how that is, that's, I mean, it's very much even in my blood, I would say.

Lesley Logan 3:51  

Okay, so you said brave, and I this is something resonates because I believe in being bold. And I think that the being brave part, the being bold part, is where people get stuck. And I also mean that you just like, because it's hard to have confidence or feel brave or feel bold and something you haven't done before. And you and I met at a mastermind, which, you know, six months before that I actually didn't know what a mastermind was.

Alex Street 4:15  

Samesies! I'm with ya!

Lesley Logan 4:21  

But I just I was in a place in my life probably similar to you. Where I was, I was very good at not being less like overconfident, like, like blabbing about myself but like I was really good at what I did. However, there was this thing inside me that just felt like there I was meant to do more and I wasn't stepping into that. And I think a lot of people it whether it's your job or a relationship, a friendship a goal, you have something that you want to do you know the thing that you're supposed to be stepping into and you might not have it completely - like with full clarity - but you know what, that is and it, there's, it tugs at you and it causes it like it keeps me up at night and I was like What is this thing? I joined a mastermind hoping to figure out like, what was my next thing? Because I hadn't seen it. Right. So it's really hard to want something you haven't seen before. And so when you when you were becoming brave to do the thing... What... What was the... what made you feel okay to be brave?

Alex Street 5:20  

Yeah. It's so good. I mean, it's just so like you're tapping into everybody's like, "yeah, I get that. I feel that, oh, she's saying exactly how I feel." Because that's it, like most of the clients that I work with now are coming to me in that sort of a space saying, like, I know that there's something or I'm just, there's something here, but I'm not saying it right. I don't I can't get the messaging, right. I don't know. It feels like I have two different stories, like I'm living two different stories. And all that it is, is, again, you're just up on this surface of like, like you did coming in saying, "?How do I get the answer? How do I do this thing better?" Or, "How do I do this thing more efficiently?" And so how did I get to the place of finding that bravery? Oh, man, many years of questioning, of doubting of, of leaving opportunities, of rejecting opportunities, of jumping into the unknown. Cue the Elsa music, really just expanding and saying, I wonder what else is there...

I mean, if we want to go right back, like I can take you into the story and the journey of like, you know, how I got to here. And we can go there if you want. Yeah. Because this is where, right? This is the relatable part of the story. Again, you can look at the last three years and be like, okay, who am I based on these years? And I would say, no, no, no, look at what you want to do now. And then say, Where did that begin? And so for you, if it's like, I want to affect people, I want to help people build their businesses and you go like, Alright, where did that begin for you - like that helpfulness, that entrepreneurial spirit, like, were you making lemonade stands were what was this all about? For you? And for me, I want to help people perform. I want to help people tell their story with confidence. And that then deals with speaking in performance, all kinds of stuff. And for me that begins, like second grade, when my mom who's an actress, put me on stage. She like she came into the school and directed a pantomime, which is like a kind of production that's just total silliness, right? And it was Cinderella. My brother was one of the ugly stepsisters, like it was just bonkers. Which I'm so glad that he was because we can still make fun of him. So he was that, and my mom created this scene with a teddy bears picnic, just so that I could be in the in the show and dress up like a teddy bear and play badminton. But something caught on to me there, like, that was it. I was like, "This is fun." Whatever this is, I'd second grade. I'm like I caught the bug. And my mom hadn't performed for a long time. But then she got back on the stage. And I then grew up like as a young teen and teenager, I was backstage like I went to the theater with her, I would see you know, she was in a production that would have a run of maybe 30 shows. And I was there for like 13/15 of them. And so I would watch the show sometimes. But then sometimes I would actually just sit backstage as quiet as a mouse and do my crosswords or something and watch the whole show happen behind the scenes. And I was just I didn't know it then, right? But it was further enhancing, developing, growing this, like this thing that was planted inside me. That was this love for the whole thing. How people show up, how they perform what story we're telling, how to tell the story well, and it just grew and grew and grew to the point where I'm like, I'm gonna be an actor. No, no, like, I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna get an Oscar. I had the speech written for my 21st it was before I was 21. That was my goal. I'm gonna win an Oscar.

Lesley Logan 8:56  

Oh, my God, I love this so much.

Alex Street 8:57  

Sadly the speech has been thrown out. But

Lesley Logan 9:01  

So so. Okay, I... this brings you so many thoughts. Because I think when you're listening to someone tell a story. And you see, you see the results of where you are, I am or anyone else in their life, like you see the fruits of the labor, but you don't see how far back the labor went. And I think a lot of people forget that their childhood was filled with so many experiences that set them up for today. And I was in theater for a while growing up and so I can picture I can picture this the the setting that you're taught, you're describing, and you're basically growing up seeing how performance, speaker, story changes people affects people. And so of course, this is something that you want to do and now and now you are teaching people how to tell their story which is beyond because I think some people listening like I don't even know how to describe my story. I put it together. I've been blessed to hear how you do that. And I and it's just so freakin amazing. So, if you're, if you're wanting to have help with that, this is your man. But I do wonder, you know, when you - there's a point between like, you want to be an actor, you want to have an Oscar, and now you're a story, coach. Yeah, the space between that... Where like... Can you take us a little bit into that? Because I think that is a journey where people might, you might have thought, well, I like wandered over here, and I wandered over here. But all of those are like pieces to the puzzle that made you who you are. So can you just share like a little brief part of that tour?

Alex Street 10:34  

Yeah, absolutely. Like this is, and this is the thing, this is where it gets into the how - how you do it is kind of actually, in the grand scheme of things, irrelevant. But that the beauty is like that I was trying to do the same thing the whole time, which was not only tell my story, but help other people tell their story. And so I, you know, I tried to be an actor move downtown Toronto, and then took a left turn and went into youth ministry, and became a youth pastor. You know, as you do if you want to be an actor? No, I don't think so, that's not the route. So you jumped, I jumped into this. And, and of course, like, there's parts of me that at the time, were saying, of course I did. Because I get to get up every week in front of a group of people that are unforgiving, and yet wildly forgiving – young teens – who like they won't give you an inch as a speaker, and yet, show up, show that you care. And they're here to hang out. And they know that you love them. Like that's all that matters to them. So I had weekly opportunities to practice my craft, to practice telling a story that is 1000s of years old, in new and fresh ways. That is the Bible and the story of Jesus and all this and trying to put on characters, whatever I can do to capture the attention of a freaking 12 year old. It was this incredible challenge of performance of storytelling. And then, I mean, forget the stage element, I just actually get to hang out with teenagers and families and help pull out what I see in them, that other people don't. And I just got to see, Wow, you really have a gift for leadership. Well, you ever really have a gift for stories, you really have a gift for making others feel safe. What if you started to use that? And then start to pull those gifts out of them? So there's this journey that Yeah, I'm youth pastor, and it's weird. And does that feel separated? I don't know. But ultimately, it was this further journey. Again, just doing the thing that I've always been here to do, which is to tell stories, and show up with confidence helping other people tell their stories as well.

Lesley Logan 12:42  

Oh, this is so great, because I think so many people, I get this question a lot. If you for those who don't know me, I also coach people in the fitness business. But I get this question a lot. Like, "What are people going to think if I just announced that I am this instructor now?" And I'm like,

Alex Street 12:57  

Yeah,

Lesley Logan 12:58  

They're gonna be really excited for you. Right? But like, you know, that feeling because I'm sure when you when you left, being a youth pastor, and then you decided to be a story coach, like, did you have that feeling like, "What are people gonna think when I say I'm this now?"

Alex Street 13:13  

Yeah, that was a big moment. That was Yeah, one of my, you know, hinge moments, everything that I've told you so far is kind of the in-who-I-was category. And then there's this moment where it was jumping into that mastermind. But a couple years ago, where I was trying to figure out what am I supposed to do? I know I'm supposed to speak, I'm not a youth pastor anymore. I left that about five or six years ago, realizing I'm not in that box anymore. And yet, there's still something that I'm here to do. I'm here to speak in some way. And, and I saw this opportunity to help, you know, to either speak with organizations or help those running organizations perform better perform in a higher level. But what if, what if I talk about that? What if I show up like that, and I start saying, Hey, I'm leaving the ministry space and going into this space. And still, I'm still have gigs at that point, like speaking at retreats at events with hundreds of teenagers still have, I'm still being invited into these things. What if I start to say, I'm going over here. And then to think about going into the mat to that mastermind. Like, that was the thing I took the jump, I made that leap. And that's all kinds of different things all in there. But then I remember standing up in front of the group with a microphone. I was the first one to introduce myself. And the only thing that I was thinking was like, Okay, how do I talk about my business? That's one thing. But the thing that was most of my mind, I have 90 seconds to say who I am. And the thing was not not "say this" in my head was "don't say youth pastor, don't say youth pastor, don't say youth pastor" because I was thinking these people in this space, entrepreneurship, business, whatever it is, they're not going to respect that my entire resume. was with snot nose, teenagers. Are you... like, like, what good is that? What, that... So I was terrified to talk about where I'd been to one group. And I was terrified to talk about where I was going to the other group thinking that they would lose their influence and their respect caught in this in between space. And that, I think, is where a lot of people as you were just alluding to find themselves, "Now, how do I move forward into a new space," leaving that behind and stepping into something unknown? It's a terrifying place to be. I'll just be honest,

Lesley Logan 15:37  

We're definitely going to come back to this because I want to know, like, it was what was their announcement or not, maybe there wasn't but right. I was in that room, y'all. And Alex was the first person to go and I My name is Lesley Logan. So I'm always in the middle of everything, right. And so I'm so grateful. I was like, thank God, I'm go first, like, but it's so funny. The stories we tell ourselves, because I remember thinking like this. I mean, like, you're listening to different people in all walks of life, talk about basically bragging, you're allowed to brag for 90 seconds. That's like literally what you're told to do. And I was raised, like, Don't brag, it's, like, unattractive. And so like, having to overcome the thoughts of like, it's okay to brag, because I don't want it but I was like, I'm a Pilates instructor like, who in here is gonna be like, Oh, yeah, that girl, that's the girl who's gonna help me. You know, it's just so funny. Like the stories we tell ourselves about all the people in a room. And actually, and it's so funny, because I would, I would never let anyone in the room I was talking to ever let themselves think that way about who they are and what they do, but we get in these spaces. And so and so, you know, I remember when I was like, Okay, and now I'm gonna announce that I'm a business coach supplies instructors, I'm I'm thinking people are going to be like, what you've been teaching for two years, girl like, no way, like, Who are you to do this. And I got to a place where I was so frustrated with not making the change that I needed to see that I just like, announced it. And I'm one of those people who's like, kind of like, will announce things. And I'm, like, run off and just see what happens later. Like, did it catch on fire? Like, how are we doing? But I would love to, I would love to hear like, you know, you're in this space of like, I'm not telling this group. Like what I'm doing now, I'm not telling this group what I was doing. When did you tell all the groups what they needed to hear?

Alex Street 17:34  

Yeah, so let's say I mean, just put a timeline to it. That was September, I think 2019. When even just signing up for that mastermind was me "being it," right, "being it till I see it." That's that that was it. I was like, Alright, well, I'm going for it. Here we go. I don't know what this is. All I know is that I can't take my business, whatever this is to the next level to any level without somebody guiding me along the way. Let's get into a room with 50 other people and see what happens. But you step in that space, everybody looks perfect. I don't belong there. All these thoughts through my head. Don't say your youth pastor, nobody will respect that. Just go up and talk about what you do. And then get the facts and get out of there. That's what was going on my head, Mr. Confidence, Mr. Like guy who has shown up in every room that he stepped into in a ministry setting, and is the one leading the way, essentially, and now I show up in this setting in this new group with these new people. And I'm going in thinking, like, I'm going to be the one who, who brings something today, I'm going to be the one who helps people today. And immediately, I felt so small. And so that smallness is what I said, when I get up to the microphone, I said that I share my intro eventually I did say yeah, so my business is Gen Z matters. It's helping organizations work with the next generation. And I remember pausing and then filling the gap with I'm an expert in this because I've been a youth pastor for 15 years, and my mouth kept going, but my foot was kicking myself. So Oh, man, I was so frustrated with myself at that point. But the cat was out of the bag. That was it. It just sort of happened. And what came after that is what was important, because then I sat down, people were like, Great, good job, good to meet you all that stuff. I think it was the next session. Actually, you and I were at the same table together. And you said something to me, Lesley, that I still have in my notebook. You said, You are a badass when you got up there and grab that mic. You knew your shit. We could see that. You had so much passion. We need more of it. And so I took that when Whoa. So all these gifts that I thought were only valuable of speaking of all these things that I had not been affirmed of yet were immediately being affirmed in this new environment. And that sparked something else inside me that like re-lit this flame to say, holy crap, this is possible. And then later that night, I had dinner with some people and they said, you realize that your story, you being a youth worker for 15 years, that is your superpower, you've had weekly speaking experiences, speaking opportunities. There's worldwide keynote speakers that haven't spoken to a crowd as many times as you have Alex, you got to lead with that. And so that's that started to open me up and go, holy crap. Okay. So whatever doubts I had about sharing with this new group, were very quickly extinguished. Because it was the right group, because they're nice people, and most people will respond that way. That's what I'm finding. Do you know what I mean?

Lesley Logan 20:51  

No, I Oh, my God, I do know what you mean. I want to just like, go back for a second. First of all, y'all can't see this. If you're on listening to the podcast, but like, I, I didn't know what I was telling you would be that, that pivotal in your life, y'all. I'm ..................... Anyways, um, but so if you're listening to this know that like, when you are out, if there is something on your heart, say it to someone, because it might be the exact thing that they need to hear, to take that next step to take that next brave step. And so thank you for sharing that with me. Because I made a commitment to myself a few years back that like I was going to tell people, the thing that was on my mind about them in person in the moment if I could, because you, it's hard to get that moment back. So I wanted to do that. And I'm so glad I did. You don't even you know, I can't even tell you if it was like, I just knew I had to tell you that. And so I'm so glad you heard it. That's also really awesome. But, you really, you said - it be until you see it, you enter the room that is so bold, you enter a room of 50 people. And you didn't feel like you're ready to be there. You're this intrinsic motivation of like, trying to figure out what's next what your next step is right executable, like showing up. And then like the steps you took to act like the what you learn, you made some steps that you could do, and like you had this target audience that you were working towards, which I really liked. So all these words can represent different things for different people. But you really, you really that whole moment was an absolute Be it till you see it moment. And I love that it was like this little you said/called it a hinge like was hopefully or maybe it was the thing that puts you on the other side, you can go back to Toronto and go, yeah, y'all. This is what I'm doing now. And this is why I'm so good at it.

Alex Street 22:36  

So that Yeah, exactly. So that was like, you know, that's one half of that sort of change. And then the other one was yes, then that gave me the boldness to come back. And I was hosting a podcast at that point called made for this. And it was just it was helping people tell their stories and do and discover what you're made for. And I was like, I feel like I'm not even sharing my story of doing what I made for. So here's the here's the chance. And I just turn on the microphone. And it was the most unscripted yet kind of scripted. Like I you know, I had my points, but I just said, I'm just gonna go for this and speak from the heart, and let it go and and told that journey. And that was, that was a faith journey. That was a career journey that was a family journey. Like I felt like there was so much in that to essentially come clean to, you know, families, people that I've influenced, and had, and inspired and had incredible memories with for 15 years that I was like saying, "Hey, this is like, this is what was going on." And it was just a movement away from kind of what I've always believed or what I had believed at that point. And here's the shift, and here's why I think you can too. And here's what to do when you're not who you are. And that was the point of it all. And so then as soon as I mean, I recorded it. And that's one thing. Anybody can go and record something and speak into a microphone with nobody in the room. Hitting publish on that baby. That was when my hands were shaking. That was when you know, I'm staring out the window questioning everything. Is this a mistake? Why did I do this about to hit delete, and hit published and they're publish and there's freedom? That's it. absolute freedom to just go, "Who cares?" Like I mean, what what was I so worried about? And then here's the key, this whole journey of me being afraid to share that story, because what are they going to think? Or what are they gonna think? Well, again, we had that one experience where let's say you and I sit there and my doubt was that you would respect me and you actually showed up and said, holy crap, you've got something special here. And then when I release that, and I'm afraid that they're going to not respect me, the only people that came forward, nobody came forward and said, "What? How terrible! This is awful." Everybody came forward and said, Thank you can we can we set up a call because I'm going through the same experience. Or, thank you for sharing this. It's exactly what I've been going through. And I was afraid to tell anybody. And that just reinforced further solidified this belief that I have that drives everything that stories change the world, when you cheer, when you share your story, it will actually change those that hear it. And that's, that belief is what drives me forward. And if we all believe that, then we'll find the confidence, we need to share what we've got.

Lesley Logan 25:27  

Oh, I'm in love with this because I do. So, because I resonate so much with this whole idea of like, you have to hit publish, and you're like, Oh, my God, this is it. Like this is when it's going to go out and like what, like, what have you and it's so funny, because I think, you know, I'm really grateful. My husband when I, because I do share, I'm like, this is what I'm afraid of. Because it's easier if you just like put it out there. Like all of a sudden, a lot of the fear is like, it sounds so silly. When you say it out loud. Sometimes you're like, really?

Like, that's so weird. But, um, so but I think oftentimes, we don't actually acknowledge what that fear is like, what is the fear that is going to happen? And we just, we have it in our head, but we don't actually speak it out loud. And when you speak it out loud, it doesn't actually give it power actually, I think takes a lot of that fear away because you see it, black and white, like this is it it's like really? Is that really what's going to happen. Like you can really have that conversation with yourself. But I love that you didn't delete it, you did hit publish, and I wonder were you like, check, like refreshing your email or reviews are like, were you like checking to see if people had any responses? Or did you just like, were you like me? Or like publish? Run away! 

Alex Street 26:40  

Yeah, definitely, there was a sense of, okay, who's gonna see this, who's gonna who's gonna listen, and you know, it's not it was like, there was 150 listeners per episode, like, this is not a massively published thing this is. But even To that end, it's mostly people that knew me, I think at that point who were listening to it. So now, anybody that knows this is going to is going to hear the journey. And so there was a little bit of that. But then this letting go, I think what happened when I hit Publish was that was actually me letting go of those expectations. And those, you know, what are they going to say, kind of thoughts and fears. And, and what I realized, even with that is that, so much of this, so much of showing up is about you, it's actually for you at first, it's it's for you to let go of a lot of those fears, it's for you to let go a lot of a lot of those doubts and self limiting beliefs that you have for yourself that truly nobody else has. 

Lesley Logan 27:43  

Right...

Alex Street 27:43  

People are thinking of you a lot less than you ever think they are, like 

Lesley Logan 27:49  

So true!

Alex Street 27:50  

To zero amount. 

Lesley Logan 27:53  

It's so true! 

Alex Street 27:54  

And so so much of these fears that are holding us back from showing up. It's not about appeasing anybody that's out there or helping them see it all, it's really just about you getting to the point where you actually do have that. You create that confidence that wasn't there before, to do the thing, so that you can continue to show up, and then it becomes about your audience and really showing up for them. So that's what it was, for me. It was, I had to do that. I had to do that for me.

Lesley Logan 28:19  

Oh, I love that. It's so true. I want to reiterate like people really don't talk about you as much as you think that they do. They're not even thinking about you. And the ones that are that is that they're not thinking about you... They're thinking about 17 other people other than themselves. So they'll just be like, "Oh, did you hear about Alex, he did blah, blah," and then, "Oh my gosh, but john did this..." and like, like, they're, they're not even it's like in one ear out the other. It's like not even sticking with them. And so if people are the like, not your people anyways, but um, I do think you said it, like, there's an action you took and action is the antidote to fear. So, confidence is this interesting thing, that it's really hard to be confident in an area you haven't done something before. It's hard to step in confidently going "I am a stories coach," if you've actually not coached anyone on stories. And I've been doing a lot of research on this because people always asking like, Lesley, you're just so confident. And it's like, really, I do most things scared at as fuck. Like, seriously, like, including this project of a podcast. But, um, but I, I have I have I know that the more I take action towards the thing that I want, the less the fear has the power, the less like things that are stopping me from doing it and you get so much clarity from that, and you get a lot of like you, you get that boost of confidence that comes from that. And I think, you know, I was talking with my therapist, which I think everyone needs, needs someone like that, about confidence versus self esteem. And she says Lesley, you could have confidence on a snowboard and be not confident on skis. It's not like it's not something you have all the time, right? It's like it, confidence is very much in the moment, and you can have it like you can make it happen. It's a state of being. But it's not necessarily like, if you're not confident in one thing, then you're not confident. Right. And it's a difference on like self esteem, which is like, where you where you believe in yourself more than you don't like as a high self esteem. That's how I'm thinking of it. And maybe over time, as I research it, it will change. But I feel like the you know, the more people who are listening to this, the more people take action towards the thing that they're wanting, the less the fear is control. And the more confident you'll become, because you'll have done something in that area of what you want. It's a kind of a cheat in a way.

Alex Street 30:46  

Well, right, and so much of fear. And that doubt, like take it to snowboard, and you're going to be terrified that you can't do this thing. And it's a completely made up scenario. And so whether it's, can I actually make it down the hill and survive without hitting a tree? Well, it's made up until you have the evidence to see it to know if you can balance on that thing or not. And it's the same with, if I put this out there, what will people think? If I start talking about myself in this way, what will my old clients think of me? What will the new... will the new clients accept me? Like there's all these questions that we make up without taking any steps of action? So you're creating this terribly convoluted and complicated story with it's a choose-your-own-adventure in your mind, and you're not actually going down any path and it's wildly exhausting. Like, no wonder we're walking around, overwhelmed, tired, distracted, because you have 16 narratives going on in your head about what's about to happen. Instead of saying, this is I think, where I'm being led, this is consistent with my story. And so I'm going to take this next right step? And we'll see if it's the right step. If it's the right step, or the wrong step, at least it's a step. And that might just be the most confident thing that we can do today and call, call it confidence. Don't call it a whim. Don't call it an accident. Don't call it. I don't know. I'm just winging it. No. Yeah, that action, as you say, Lesley, that is it. That's, that is confidence - to go and do anything today? It's not to belittle it, but like, that's it. If you show up. You're, you're creating confidence. And I think that's it, we're waiting, we expect competence to be the same that you're born with. And simply not. It's something that's created in you. And it has been created as you believe, as you find the boldness, and you learn to bounce back.

Lesley Logan 32:46  

Oh, I love this. I love this. It's you're not born with confidence. It's something that... I love that so much. All right. So I'm Alex, I want to make sure that listeners hear a "be it" tip from you. So what is bold or executable, intrinsic or targetable tip that you could give those listening, because I'm sure they've resonated with you so much and a tip from you, would, might just be the next first step they should take?

Alex Street 33:14  

Yeah, I love it. I think my my tip, my encouragement will be kind of all of those things. And it really is. Get someone to help. That's, that's for me. I've had friends that have had conversations with me all along. And I adore these people, I have been on the journey with them. And yet, they don't understand exactly the choices that I want to make, or the world that I want to get into the work that I'm doing. Now. They don't understand the level of that. And if they do, they can tell me things. They can challenge me in certain ways, but not specifically around, like, what's my business going to do and what's my impact going to be? And so I would say you know, the bold, executable, intrinsic and targetable invitation or tip is, I mean, really to nail it down, it's get a coach, get a coach or get in the room with other people who will be able to coach you who are specifically on this journey that look like the same journey that you're on. They're all afraid they're all taking the next step. They're all trying to get their business right. They're all or they understand where you're at and how to get you into the next one will challenge you ruthlessly and will target in on what your need is, and we'll help you get there. So that will require boldness, because Holy crap, the money, I don't know. It's executable, because well, I got to find someone. And then I got to say yes. And instead of just letting it hang there, the intrinsic drive is alright what? Okay, I know I need to make a change, but it's not happening on your own. So let's listen to that intrinsic self sense. That is bringing you to towards community and bringing you towards others and find that help. And then the targetable is, get it done. Do you have a coach or not? If you don't, then it's not happening. So I would say that for me, that's I mean, that's been my game changer. That's the way that I'm helping people now and seeing that happen in their life, those that are bold enough to step in and say, help me understand my story. 

Lesley Logan 35:24  

And you all...

Alex Street 35:24  

Turns into, like, change.

Lesley Logan 35:26  

Alex have so many, like you help so many people. And so where can they find you? What's your Instagram handle? What's the best way people can get in touch?

Alex Street 35:34  

Yeah, fantastic. So my website is AlexStreet.ca. You can kind of find all the info there. And then yeah, I hang out on Instagram all the time. So that's @streetsays, 

Lesley Logan 35:45  

oh, y'all, if any I know so much probably resonate with you. But do us a favor, screenshot this, share it tag us both. And please put a takeaway, like, what is something that you took away from this, so that Alex, and I can hear what resonated with you and root for you and cheer you on in this way. Like, you're not alone in this journey. And I'm so grateful for you listening. I'm so grateful for you Alex being here to share your story. I couldn't think of someone better to bring on the show to actually talk about story and share it. I think I'm so grateful we met and nothing happens by chance. We were meant to be in that room together and many people in that small group together. And I'm really excited to see where you both go from here. Thank you for being here.

Alex Street 36:25  

Oh gosh. Lesley, this is so good. It has been such a joy. You're a fantastic host. Thank you for leading us through this conversation. I'm truly excited for how this will help people. 

Lesley Logan 36:38  

Oh... hold on. Hold on.

Reminiscing about Cambodia? Yep! That's what LL and Brad do right off the bat in this episode... just waiting for the world to open back up and then the retreats can start again. After that, they answer why they do a recap episode after each interview and review all of the amazing concepts that Amy Ledin shared in the last episode. From "finding one good thing in the middle of the mud," to "getting rid of the clothes that no longer fit you," you'll have plenty of take-aways. Enjoy!

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• LL missed Cambodia
• Why do a "recap episode" after each interview?
• It's so important to find "one good thing in the middle of the mud"
• Inner Bitch vs Inner Boss
• Mental "software updates"
• The value of boundaries and intentionality
• Getting rid of the "clothes" that no longer fit
• Why "go all in" with your side hustle

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Lesley Logan Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Follow Lesley on Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcription:

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I’m Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and fitness business coach. I’ve trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it’s the antidote to fear. Each week, my guests will bring Bold, Executable, Intrinsic and Targeted steps that you can use to out yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It’s a practice, not a perfect. Let’s get started.

—-

Lesley Logan 01:02

Hey you, welcome back to the Be It Till You See It interview recap, where my co-host in life, Brad, and I are going to dig into the profound conversation I have with Amy Ledin in our last episode. I love…we’re just gonna leave profound in, because it’s not a word I use, but I love it. I think of my husband every time because it’s something he used all the time. If you haven’t listened to that interview, feel free to pause this now, go back and listen to that one and then come back and join us, or be like me – listen to this one and then, now that you know all the good stuff, go back and listen to the other gold that we could not bring into this shorter version. So, we have some quick announcements. I’ve been thinking a little bit about Cambodia lately, because, and in a way that I’m just reminiscing but also sad. It’s been over a year since we’ve been there. If you don’t know us very well, we used to go two, three times a year.

Brad Crowell 02:01

It has been over a year.

Lesley Logan 02:02

It’s been over a year.

Brad Crowell 02:03

Last time we were there was March last year.

Lesley Logan 02:05

Yeah, we were flying in, on March 14 as like the world was shutting down. (Brad: We were flying home) We’re flying home, excuse me. (Brad: On March 14)

Lesley Logan 02:14

Yeah, flying home. And it was so sad because I was like, how long are we saying goodbye to this place? And I did not think it would be a year. I just thought like, it’ll be…

Brad Crowell 02:26

No. I thought it would be a couple months. (Lesley: Yeah) And then like, I figured that our trip that we had planned for later that year was gonna be fine and we were gonna be able to, you know, sell retreats and go and hang and (Lesley: Yeah) see our friends and family there.

Lesley Logan 02:39

Yeah, and I just, so anyways, the announcement here is we really miss Cambodia. I’ve been looking at pictures of the last five years of us going there and looking at all the different retreaters and just thinking about each person we met because that shared experience is something that you, like, you cannot repeat. Even though we keep going back to Cambodia, we’ve had several retreaters come back with us multiple times and it’s always a unique experience. And so, just so you know, we are going back someday. We are constantly refreshing the website to see if they’re letting us back in yet, (Brad: Yeah) and you will be the first to know when we can go back. (Brad: Yeah) So, Babe, (Brad: Tell me) we have an audience question to respond to. (Brad: Do we?) Do we?

Brad Crowell 03:23

We do.

Lesley Logan 03:24

Okay. So I’m gonna be honest, I made this question up because you may be wondering…I thought you might be wondering why we’re doing these debriefs. And this is our first week of the podcast and so you haven’t been able to ask us anything yet. And so, this is our little shameless plug to ask us anything you want! Big AMA, as Brad likes to say it (Brad: AMA), ask me anything, we can go AUA.

Brad Crowell 03:51

Ask us anything

Lesley Logan 03:52

Ask us anything.

Brad Crowell 03:56

Yeah, you could just DM us at the pod and ask (Lesley: Yeah, be_it_pod) you know, whether that’s a question about us, or whether it’s a question about, you know, I don’t know, business, Pilates, work life, you know, love, friends, dogs.

Lesley Logan 04:11

Why we got three dogs and how we feel about that. (Brad: cactuses) Brad knows a lot about cactuses at this point. Okay, so I thought you might want to know why we’re doing these debriefs and so I thought I would let Brad talk about it because we are big podcast listeners, and we love pods that have these.

Brad Crowell 04:26

Yeah, I mean, we both… it’s definitely a borderline obsession, the amount of podcasts that I listen to at least.

Lesley Logan 04:37

Oh yeah, well once you taught me about…once I got okay with listening on 1.5, and you don’t have to listen to us on 1.5. I’m a fast talker, so…

Brad Crowell 04:47

Yeah, I listen to things on 2.0 and I blast through these different pods and I feel like I’m going back to college, half the time and then I’m actually able to get through the news that I want to get through every day, (Lesley: Yeah) which, you know, before I never had…who has time to sit down, plop themselves in front of a TV for an hour, and listen to one person? Come on. I can get through that hour program, I can get through two of those one hour programs while I’m walking the dogs. I mean..

Lesley Logan 05:14

Yeah, and also the ones we listened to were on TV, and then they took the commercials out so it’s even shorter. (Brad: Yeah) Yeah, no, when I’m on my run and I’m listening to my news podcast I’m like, I just have to remember that when they say tonight it was last night, you know, I got to keep my dates in line, but anyways…

Brad Crowell 05:30

Yeah I think the bigger point is that we, because when we walk, we get the chance to chat each other up on the things that we are learning about and discovering and whatever. And we thought that it would, there’s always a commentary to the pod or commentary to the news or commentary to the book that we’re listening to and I was excited about the interviews that you’ve been doing, and I started talking to you about them and you were excited. And you were telling me about them and I was like, we should just have another episode that’s where we’re kind of talking about what you discovered or what you covered with your guests.

Lesley Logan 06:15

Basically, you are in on the dog walk without the dogwalk. And it’s so fine because I love hearing what Brad’s takeaway of something that I also experienced because he sees the world in a much different light than I do. And so, if you are a “I’m a big ideas, big vision person,” he definitely likes to go, Okay, but how do we do that? He gets really into the nitty gritty. When he said you can ask about cactuses, you can ask him about cactuses. You can ask me and I’ll be like, well I like the ones that look like this, I like the one that’s like a cigar. You know I don’t even know what they’re called. So, that’s why he’s here. (Brad: It’s a Saguaro) Thank you, you can say that one more time, it sounds so pretty. So he’s here because A) I love spending time with him and B) I thought it’d be so fun for you to hear us talk about these interviews and what our takeaways are and get to different perspectives. And so with that. (Brad: Awesome) Let’s get into this interview, but before we do, here’s a deal. You may not know what it is that you want to be right now or we want to do right now or any of the things that, like, make you excited about life, but I promise you that when you prioritize your time for yourself, that things will show up for you that there’s a practice to prioritizing yourself and I fully believe that my Pilates practice is me showing the universe that I prioritize me and how I feel and connecting my mind and body and so with that, I want to give you a free class at OnlinePilatesClasses.com/beit. So that’s OnlinePilatesClasses.com/b e i t. Okay.

Lesley Logan 08:03

And now

Brad Crowell 08:05

Let’s talk about Amy Leadin. Oh, sorry. Let’s talk about Amy Ledin.

Lesley Logan 08:10

I know, we did this, I did this to her

Brad Crowell 08:12

On the pod?

Lesley Logan 08:12

Yeah.

Brad Crowell 08:13

I heard that and now 

Lesley Logan 08:13

I know.

Brad Crowell 08:14

And then I literally did it.

Lesley LOgan 08:15

You just did, and here’s why. This is the thing, y’all, I said it one way, and you’re like no I think it’s another way. This is like two years ago. And better yet, and I’m like no, no, it’s this way. And we had this discussion back and forth. And then I heard her on another podcast and that host must have said it the other way, and then we’ve convinced ourselves that was one way, and even when I hear her on her podcast I don’t hear her say it the right way and then I freaking did it to her and I was like, oh my god I’m so embarrassed. And we just did it again. So, you know what? You’re never gonna forget how to spell it.

Brad Crowell 08:49

Well, Amy is, I mean, she’s awesome. She is unbelievably inspirational as a human being, as a mom, as a cancer survivor, as I mean, what an incredible outlook on life. When, when, you know, slogging through some really emotionally devastating situations. And she bears her soul on her own podcast, she is the host of F* it, and she’s an online wellness trainer. She has been an online wellness trainer for more than a decade. She has the most amazing mindset hacks. She loves to share those hacks and the tips and tricks that she has used over the past seven years as she fought cancer, and won! (Lesley: Yeah) She just recently got news that she’s cancer free. (Lesley: Yeah.) And, man, it’s just jaw dropping to listen to her.

Lesley Logan 09:51

She’s something. She’s so special to both of us as a friend. And I remember last Fall when she told me she had cancer again, it was so hard not to just cry, because on the call with her…because she’s just a dear person in my life and I have calls with her every other week. (Brad: Yeah) But I couldn’t do that because I know that she is a mindset queen and she can’t have anyone to think anything negative, rather it’s like a negativity free zone around ‘oh my god is she gonna die’ like none of those. You can’t. So I just had to like… And I think that was really helpful for me. It was like okay, I got to be strong right now, and we’re going to think positively right now. And it was a good, good lesson for me even though I wasn’t one actually going through it. And now she is cancer free and we talk about that in the podcast. So let’s talk about something that I loved in the interview. She said that it is so important to find one good thing in the middle of the mud and I freakin’ love this, y’all. In my coaching group for fitness business instructors, we have a rule. You can have a moment – it’s called ‘I Need A Moment’ in the channel – you can have a moment, but I literally will go back, even the person I can tell cried when writing the post, and go…after all the love and I see you and this is awful..I will go, “Don’t forget to post your win.” You’ve got to find something good in the middle of the mud. You’ve got to find a win in your day. Because our brain, it really does search out for things we believe to be true and that’s why because (this is where we have to be very careful) because thoughts become facts really quick. The more you think something, the more you believe it to be true, and then you just by sheer nature, we want to confirm how true we are, so we seek out the information to prove ourselves correct and we actually don’t see any of the other stuff. And so, in the middle of the mud, what is one good thing that’s happening? Like, when I was homeless and without a car I was like, what’s one good thing right now? Well, I don’t have to clean the kitchen.

Brad Crowell 12:02

Yeah. I love this. I want to call it an analogy, but now it could, it’s an analogy, I love this analogy because, I think we can kind of take it one step further, in the middle of the mud. That your mind will create a stepping stone that you will use while you’re going through or going across the mud, right, and that stepping stone is your choice. What kind of stone it’s going to be. And it will be negative or positive. It depends on what you dwell on. So, even though there’s the mud and all the crazy that’s happening with life and things are difficult and tragic, that stepping stone you create will be the thing you’re dwelling on. So if you’re focused only on the negative, that stepping stone, your mind is going to look back and remember, oh this stepping stone that’s what got me through it. (Lesley: Yeah) Right? And if your focus is on how bad and how life is happening, everything sucks and it’s the worst. Or, you can look at this and it’s your choice to look at it and go, there was still a silver lining, I know that’s another one, but there was a good thing that happened here, and your mind will dwell on that instead and instead looking back on the path, you can go wow look at how crazy that mud was, but that one lifeline got me through.

Lesley Logan 13:31

Yeah, I agree and I think I hear a lot of parents who do two roses one thorn or whatever…that kind of thing and I think, I hope they go the reverse though I hope they do a thorn and then two roses because that’s really good. Here I am telling parents this is how you got to do it but the truth is our subconscious is really malleable and it needs double the positivity to outweigh the negativity, and I sometimes, I have friends who will remind me. They’re like, Lesley, you were homeless two other times before that. And I was like, I was because I wasn’t focused on what was happening to me. That was negative. I was focused on what was happening for me that was positive, and those things and how they’re helping me get closer to where I’m going. And so sometimes I have to have friends remind me of the crap that I’ve survived. I’m like, oh wow I’m even more awesome…but anyways, the point is, find one good thing in the middle of the mud, that was my favorite.

Brad Crowell 14:23

Yeah, I think it’s great.

Lesley Logan 14:25

What did you love that she said?

Brad Crowell 14:28

Well, I found. She said something at the very end, which she just kind of threw in there, and she was like, “Well, you know, my inner bitch versus my inner boss.” and I was like, huh? I thought that was hilarious, first off. And then I thought, man, that’s the, like we all have the angels on your shoulder kind of a thing where in our minds we have that mental conversation with ourselves. I know you mentioned before talking about negotiating with yourself. Your inner bitch versus your inner boss. It’s like negative self talk versus being it. Right? Be it. Right? And in her example she was talking about how she uses her…her inner bitch is definitely noticing things that she’s frustrated with, right? (Lesley: Yeah) And then she again chooses how she’s going to view that with this ‘finding that one good thing in the mud’. But her inner boss goes, alright well, if my inner bitch is so frustrated with this, then tomorrow, I’m going to make this change so that…because it’s clearly…this is bothering me. What am I going to do about it? I’m going to do this about it. And she’s very intentional about it. And then she has a lot of different tips and tools that she talked about with writing things down and she has her cards and she has all these other things that she does and she focuses on it, she identifies it with their inner bitch, she focuses on it with her inner boss and then decides what she’s going to do about it and I thought that was pretty awesome.

Lesley Logan 16:17

Yeah, I agree. I, first of all, that already to me is an action step – and we haven’t even gotten to the action steps – (Brad: Yeah, yeah) but we have that self talk, all of us do. You can call it your inner bitch, you can call it, you know, the devil on your shoulder, you can call it your negative self-talk. But whatever you’re saying to yourself, is something that is bothering you, about you, and the best way to like squash that isn’t to just listen to it until it’s done. No, it’s just gonna keep getting louder. It’s like okay, well, what action steps can I take to quell that because it’s obviously something that’s bothering me. That’s what she said. It’s her boss moment. So freakin’ love that. I love that it made you go, hmm? You can’t see my head but he tilted his. Yeah. Alright, so now I want to talk a little bit about the action items that Amy Ledin said she recommends to ‘being it’. So Brad, what is your favorite action item?

Brad Crowell 17:13

Yeah, I mean, remember the B.E.I.T, you know, what bold executable intrinsic and targeted action items can we take away from that convo that you have with her. There was something that I thought was really interesting. She talked about software updates. And (Lesley: Of course you love this) Yeah, I mean, clearly that’s what I gravitate to anything tech, right, but I thought that was fascinating. What she described she said, when she has a win, she goes back and takes notes on her win. She writes down what the problem was and then she writes down what the solution was, and not just the solution but how her life benefited from the solution. Like how, what changes did she see in her own life, when that happened, and it’s, and then she puts it on a card and she puts that card in a drawer. And this must be her win drawer or her whatever, you know, her software updates drawer because when she is really having a hard day, she goes back to that drawer, pulls out that card, and then reads it. And it’s this incredible way to reset, you know. She called it a software update but basically, it really reminds herself of something that was tangible, that was so positive in her life, so she can again dwell on the positive instead of wallow in the negative. And I thought, man, that is just a really incredible life hack. (Lesley: Yeah) A mental life hack.

Lesley Logan 18:59

Yeah. She, I mean, every time I get to do a call with her I get these little tidbits cuz she just talks about how she does it. She literally does these things and she lives them so much, she just talks about them like everyone does it. (Brad: Yeah, yeah) And she’s like, yeah you know when you do your software…I’m like yeah when I do those, note to self. Like, if she can…y’all, if you’re like, I don’t know she does it all. She is, she just has a lot of boundaries and she’s very intentional and that’s how she can do it all. That’s how she can do this with five kids. I don’t have five kids so I could probably find the time to write my software updates down. And I highly, if you do that please tag us on the pod on Instagram @be_it_pod and let us know. So maybe my biggest takeaway was, she was like go all in on ‘being it’. Which this, I forgot about this… So her whole thing was like if you lose the weight, get rid of the clothes because otherwise you’re subconsciously hanging onto that old stuff. She’s an online fitness trainer and she’s lost over 100 pounds and kept it off. And she’s shared how like one of the times she lost weight she didn’t get rid of the clothes and of course and then she ended up…that’s telling her brain this isn’t real yet, this isn’t staying, this isn’t going to last. I remember when I left my job in retail, I went to the Lululemon store with money I didn’t have, to get at least two weeks worth of leggings and tank tops and everything so that I was like, you’re a teacher now. And so you have all these, like, this is your work wardrobe now. Because before, my workout wardrobe was dresses and jeans and shoes and like all these things and jewelry like I had, I have so much jewelry, I still have it. But that was my work wardrobe so I had to…I had to go all in and make sure that…like this is that you have enough clothes to do this job, and so I love that I think that whatever it is that you’re wanting to do, if you’re like I want to go all in on my health and wellness, then go through your cupboards, go through your schedule, like, make sure that your wellness is scheduled in, go all in on being it, I love it.

Brad Crowell 21:02

I think that’s really interesting, I think there’s a couple…that makes me think of…I kind of never went all in on working in startup companies. I always kept one foot in the restaurant world still. Like, I kept a restaurant job, even though I had a full time job during the week, I still would work Friday or Saturday night at a restaurant. I did it for years. I worked in restaurants for 13 years and probably for six of those years I also had a full time job, because I never truly believed that my full time job was actually going to stick around and pay the bills. I mean, I was working in a volatile environment, but I, I never truly committed. In fact, I still have my name tag from working in a restaurant.

Lesley Logan 21:56

And how…so let’s just talk about how that didn’t help you. Like, you obviously were probably working a lot, and then, (Brad: Oh yeah), so you were not sleeping that much, and…

Brad Crowell 22:08

You know how good I am at sleeping. (Lesley: Yeah) But no, certainly not.

Lesley Logan 22:11

Yeah, so I mean like can you, can you tell everyone like why, why that probably…like if you look back and you can see, is there anything you go, gosh I, maybe I probably…maybe these things would have gone a different way or maybe my life would have gone a different way if I had just gone all in?

Brad Crowell 22:26

Yeah, I think it, you know, it comes down to the subconscious decision making factor. Right? Like I could always just say, whatever I just can go back and work in food. Right? Or, you know, when you’re pushing really hard to make the business work. Maybe instead of going that extra mile, you just think like, alright, well if this doesn’t work out, it’s okay. (Lesley: Right) And that’s not good for you.

Lesley Logan 22:59

That doesn’t make you go like that doesn’t make you take the big risk or do the thing or really go big on it because you’re…

Brad Crowell 23:07

I certainly wasn’t being bold, that’s for sure. I think that’s another thing. Another thing…I was thinking about this…before. So basically, I think, how’s this applicable to people in the fitness world? You know, there’s always a moment in our career, our service industry career, where we begin to resent our customer, our client. Probably because they’re assholes and they demand so much and they don’t appreciate us and it builds this amazing resentment. (Lesley: Tell me how you really feel), I mean I didn’t work, I didn’t work as a teacher but I worked as a, I had a web development company, and sometimes I was like my stupid clients need to just like…they need to learn how to make a post all by themselves or they’re not appreciating me or whatever it might be. And I decided, like, I heard this guy, make this…he was speaking to a crowd and I happened to be there at the event. And he said, you know, when I left this incredibly stressful job that literally landed me in the hospital with an anxiety attack, and I wasn’t even 40 years old. He said when I got out of that, he said the first thing I did was I sold my company, and then I made this amazing decision that I was no longer going to work with assholes. Those assholes whether they were my friends, my business partner, my family, my clients, I wasn’t going to take them on. I wasn’t going to partner with them, work with them, nothing. He said, I want an asshole free life, because I don’t need that shit in myself, in me.

Lesley Logan 24:49

To me that is so bold and so intrinsic and like that’s ‘being it’ because when you draw a line in the sand, and you burn the boats like Tony Robinson (Brad: Burning the boats, yeah) you like, you’d make different decisions in your business.

Brad Crowell 25:02

Well, it was scary for me because the first thing like I was sitting there, as I had this web dev company thinking, Man, I want to fire five clients, literally right now. And I was like, but I can’t. I need the money. Right? And so like it was this fascinating, okay cool, I gotta start to shift here. But while I didn’t just go like scuttle my entire income. What I did do was I decided at the moment – Okay, any future client that comes on, I’m going to love them. I don’t need a shouting match with the client, I don’t need someone who’s gonna threaten that they’re gonna sue me. Like, I had some crazy things happening because I needed the money. And I, and I made the decision at the time, that that’s not gonna happen anymore at this point. I’m going to only work with people who are awesome, and then slowly get rid of those clients as I replace them with new ones.

Lesley Logan 25:52

I love that you share this because I think that is really a great example of what will happen to you if you don’t go all in on ‘being it’ because had, like, not to judge, like how you ran your website business but had you been really bold from the outside, even though you needed the money and said, these are the only clients I will work with this is how you work with me if you want to work with me, this is how you treat me and how I will treat you. These are the expectations we can have. If you went into it like that with that bold, this is who I’m going to be in my web development business, you probably wouldn’t have had those crazy clients, but when we are half in or we’re a little worried, or we’re like, not trusting of the outcome, we tend to make excuses for things. We bend our own rules, we say yes to things we probably wouldn’t have said yes to.

Brad Crowell 26:40

Well look, I also, you know, I don’t think I knew any better. (Lesley: Oh, that’s also true) You know, like the one when we first started out, I think there’s a sense of confidence, like the mindset side, like there’s two, there’s only two parts to the businesses: what how you think and what you do, right? So I thought, if I could just get a client I can slowly leave my job. Right? So that’s how I thought. So then when I went out to go get a client, I was like, You’re gonna pay me? Yes, I’ll take the gig. Right? Whatever I was like. Then I was like, there’s someone else who’s gonna pay me, then there’s someone else who’s gonna pay me. Okay, this is great! I mean, I was working way too much for hardly enough money with clients who sucked. And then slowly over time I began to realize these people actually need me, they can’t do this without me. I’m working two times as much for the pay that I’m getting. And these people suck, so I mean that took, unfortunately for me that took years.

Lesley Logan 27:45

Yeah, I think the best thing though is that like anyone listening to this who’s like, ugh, do I have to go through that? You don’t. You actually just heard (Brad: You do not) how shitty it got and went for him, so you can actually learn that. And, you know something that someone told me, they didn’t tell me, this is how much I listened to my podcasts, they were like in my ear and I’m like, thank you…like we were having a conversation…and they said, this host said on their podcast. you can’t use the excuse ‘you don’t know how to do the thing’ anymore. Like, if this is what you want to do, enter whatever it is you’re trying to work on right now, then you need to act as if you are the person (basically be it), and then being that person, what would they do if they do if someone asked them this question? So if you are going all in on being X, and you’re like, I don’t even know what X, X does it, then you use Google and you find podcasts with people who’ve done the thing that you want to do, you find interviews with people who’ve done the thing you want to do, and you actually do the research because guess what, when you are the boss, when you are truly being it, there are a lot of things I don’t know how to do. And I don’t go, I can’t do it, I don’t know how, or I don’t go, let me…

Brad Crowell 28:58

We would never move our company forward if we didn’t just make things up.

Lesley Logan 29:03

Yeah. Or like let me just swim over here in a bunch of mistakes for a while. No, I go all in and I go super bold and then I ask the internet questions to get the answers that I need to do the executable things to figure out the targeted next steps, and then I filter it through the intrinsic value of why I’m here to do what I do, so that is my tips, our tips on going all in on being it because it can be really nice to hear “Go in, be on being it. You do you. You do you, boo.” But like, the truth is that I hope what you heard and Brad’s example in my example is like actual examples of how to go all in on being it and I’m just so grateful that you’re here. Thank you for listening to us. Thank you for letting us be part of your life. You could be doing a lot of things right now and we’re so grateful to spend part of your time with you. So, we are so grateful. Keep coming back, keep sharing this podcast, tag us on Instagram @be_it_pod with your takeaways. We will reshare those and we just want to get to know who you are more, and, and how you’re using these tips and then you know, catch us on the next episode. Thank you so much.

Brad Crowell 30:12

All right. Cheers.

—

Lesley Logan

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

One thing that would help both myself and future listeners is for you to rate this show and leave a review.

And, follow or subscribe for free wherever you listen to podcasts.

Also, make sure to introduce yourself over on IG at be_it_pod on Instagram! I would love to know more about you. Share this episode with who ever you think needs to hear it.

Help us help others to BE IT TILL YOU SEE IT. Have an awesome day!

—

Lesley Logan 

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.

Amy Ledin, a 7-figure earning fitness, fat-loss, and mindset coach, met up with Lesley Logan to talk about how to battle those limiting beliefs. She's a walking, talking example, having defeated stage 4 lung cancer, been a single mom, and gone through losing 90+ lbs. herself (and keeping it off!) They cover the stories we tell ourselves, how to gamify your success, moving forward one day at a time, shame, dwelling on fear... you'll take a lot away from this one!

If you have any questions about this episode or want to get some of the resources we mentioned, head over to LesleyLogan.co/podcast. If you have any comments or questions about the Be It pod shoot us a message at [email protected] .

And as always, if you’re enjoying the show please share it with someone who you think would enjoy it as well. It is your continued support that will help us continue to help others. Thank you so much! Never miss another show by subscribing at LesleyLogan.co/subscribe.

In this episode you will learn about:

• Amy Ledin's background, how she is the "Queen of Struggle"
• Limiting Beliefs
• everything in our life is just stories we tell ourselves
• find proof on the other side
• what you see is possible, that’s what your brain will start to chase
• Master the mindset to help you become the fighter
• Find one good thing in the middle of the mud
• Take it One Day at a Time
• How to "Gamify" it…
• What are brain “Software Updates”
• The value of taking faster action
• It’s not a loss, it’s a learn
• Asking the question: Is this thought serving you?
• Shame does nothing for you
• Dwelling on fear
• Asking the question: HOW is this for me, not WHY
• What are you learning in the moment?
• If you lose the weight get rid of the clothes
• Inner bitch vs inner boss

References/Links:

• Mind Movies by Joe Dispenza

About Amy Ledin:

Amy Ledin is the Co-Owner and Operator at Lean Bodies Consulting. has been in the online wellness space for over a decade. Her coaching in this space has led to her passion in helping women build strong personal integrity. Fighting cancer for now close to 7 years, Amy loves sharing her mindset hacks and strategies that helped her through her fight to not just be a survivor, but an overcomer.

If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating and leave us a review on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox.

Lesley Logan Resources

• Lesley Logan website
• Be It Till You See It Podcast
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan
• Online Pilates Classes by Lesley Logan on YouTube
• Profitable Pilates

Follow Lesley on Social Media

• Instagram
• Facebook
• LinkedIn

Transcription:

INTRODUCTION

Hello! Welcome back to the BITYSI podcast.

I can’t freakin’ wait for you to dive into this interview. Amy Ledin is one of my dear friends, and you’ll hear me totally mess up her name in the very beginning because we are not perfect. Have you ever. Okay. Have you ever had that time you’ve convinced yourself you’re right about a word, and then someone else says no I think it’s the other way. And then, you can’t remember which way you think it is nor do you know which way it’s right? That is exactly what happened. My husband and I used to go, No, I think you say it like this. No, I think you say it like this and that’s why I just put her on the podcast and she said it like this, and when it came time for me interview her myself, she means so much to me I was like so excited to like honor her and like edify her, I totally got it the way that I had been fighting to say and it wasn’t. So, just proof. And I love it because, here’s the thing, y’all, it’s not gonna be perfection to being it till you see it, the thing that you want to have, the life you want to have, the relationships you want to have, the health you want to have, the goals you want to have, the blanket you want to knit, it’s going to have mistakes along the way. But that’s where the journey is and that’s where the story is and that’s where you learn things about yourself and about things, you just like never even knew.

So, I had to share that with you, cuz I like you to be super super honest with you and so I would love to know, hit me up on Instagram…If you have ever totally biffed a dear friend’s name in an introduction because we’ll you’re not alone, and that’s important, you know. I want you to check out the show notes and learn all about Amy Ledin. She is beyond a badass. She has her own podcast called F* It. You are going to want to listen to it after this. She is a health coach, and she is a survivor of so much. But as a cancer survivor and I know that for me, you know, I have not yet had to survive something like that and so sometimes it’s really easy to think like, Oh wow I haven’t had it so tough, so I really have no excuse. And the truth is that we all have our own obstacles, and we all have more to conquer as we’re on this planet for however long, and it’s the mindset you have going through the obstacles that feel small and like maybe you shouldn’t be whining about. That is practice for if you ever have those times where you need a lot more support from yourself. And Amy shares how she survived cancer and how she used her mindset to do that and also she uses it every single day, in that she does and what she teaches her kids. So I can’t wait for you to dive into this. Be inspired by her. Please check her out on Instagram and on her podcast.

—

Welcome to the Be It Till You See It podcast where we talk about taking messy action, knowing that perfect is boring. I’m Lesley Logan, Pilates instructor and business fitness coach. I’ve trained thousands of people around the world and the number one thing I see stopping people from achieving anything is self doubt. My friends, action brings clarity and it’s the antidote to fear. Each week, my guests will bring Bold, Executable, Intrinsic and Targeted steps that you can use to out yourself first and Be It Till You See It. It’s a practice, not a perfect. Let’s get started.

—

EPISODE

Lesley Logan – 00:03

Okay. Oh my goodness! Y’all, this woman that I have for you today. I have to say this, we’ve shared this right before on her podcast. But when she got up in the front of the room of this mastermind, my first mastermind I’ve ever been in, and she spoke, I was like, Oh, my God, this woman is amazing. She’s so powerful. I have to know her. I have to get to know her. I have so many questions for her. And then when we were asked to get accountability partners and she looked right at me, I was like, Oh, my God, she wants to be my accountability partner! I’ll let her finish her side of the story. But in the last couple of years, I’ve gotten to know her. We’ve been through so much together, we talk about everything.. We have bi-weekly accountability talks, and really just help each other out. And I just enjoy her as a friend, as an accountability partner, she’s a mentor and a friend. We can just go off and talk business with each other, and she’s taught me so much. So, Amy Ledin. How are you today?

Amy Ledin – 01:00

Oh my gosh! What an intro? Well, let’s just say the other side of that story, because I was intimidated as hell seeing you because you were so, what I loved about you, Lesley, was you were to the point, you are very direct. And you know, you just know how to consolidate it. I remember when we got into small groups you were so great at the problem solving, and I’m like, I am intimidated by her because I want to be her. You know, when you kind of have triggers that you’re like, this is because I’m seeing something that I really want to have. Because you were just so cut to the point. And so I love that we both when I saw you, like I want her as my accountability partner. Because I wanted someone that, you know, with coaching, it’s like, you want to respect and that you’re a little bit afraid of and not like it’s negative afraid, it’s like afraid of disappointing, afraid of, you know, so it was I knew it would be the perfect fit.

Lesley Logan – 01:54

Yeah, that is so that’s so funny. Because I have to say, like, y’all, when I had to go up into this in this room and talk in front of 50 people, and I just was like, Oh my God, this might, I’ve never been a mastermind, like, you know, these people are throwing up numbers I’ve never, I’ve just only dreamed of, and you’re supposed to go up there and brag. And that is like the epitome of like being it. Like, I was like, Okay, get up there, you better be bold, you better just like brag your ass off. And so putting yourself in those situations that scare and intimidate you in a good way I think it’s so great. Thank you for being here. For people who don’t know your amazingness, can you tell everyone a little bit about what you do?

Amy Ledin – 02:35

I am an online, you know, I would say fitness coach, but I always say you know, mindset because the front door is that I’m selling you on losing fat, but the back door – because I know that’s the door that matters – is I’m changing who you are. So I, I rope you in with the fat loss, but I actually really get you to change your identity.

Lesley Logan – 02:57

Yeah, because that’s an interesting thing. Because I’m in fitness as well, Pilates teacher, and the truth is, is that if we were to come at you and say, here’s what we’re gonna do, we’re gonna actually help you. Like, we’re gonna help you change your mindset so that you approach your health and wellness better and differently, very few people would sign up. You actually have to, like rope them in to use your words to like, with the thing that they think that they want, which is the fat loss, and maybe that is what they want. But so much of it is like, what’s going on in their head and like how they’re talking to themselves and how they treat themselves and, and you have so many amazing ways to help women specifically with their mindset. And, you know, I’m sure that comes from self practice, like, from your own life.

Amy Ledin – 03:43

Absolutely! I mean, I’m the queen of struggle, some brought on by myself. And I think, you know, I’m going to share… I had stage four non-small cell lung cancer for over seven years. But the first two years was accidental mindset, you know, finding hacks because I really just had no choice because if I stayed in my fear, I wasn’t going to be able to accomplish much of anything. And, you know, I was a single mom at the time and building my brand and, you know. I finally got to the point where I’m like, okay, I may have cancer for a while and I need to actually start adapting some mindset tools versus just kind of compartmentalizing it, which compartmentalizing for seasons can be okay. But eventually, you know, you have to tackle it. And so then I just became obsessed with really chasing a future self that stayed out of the fear because I didn’t want to just be a survivor. I really wanted to be like someone that is the thriver. I mean, I immediately Googled like, stage four Iron Man winners like I wanted to find like the extremes because I feel like you know, it is the power of belief, right, that once you see what’s possible, then that is what your brain will start to chase and so, I thought that there were a lot of people that weren’t just like cancer survivors they were dominating you know their businesses so that’s where it started for me.

Lesley Logan – 05:08

Oh! This is so great. So I mean first of all can we.. we can share that you are cancer free and…

Amy Ledin – 05:15

Yes!

Lesley Logan – 05:16

Yes! And we can dive more into the more recent news on that soon but I really love what you said. You were searching for evidence of what you wanted to see, wanted to see proof of, which is people thriving people doing iron man’s and having these crazy businesses and all these accomplishments post-cancer so that you could see that and be that for yourself while you’re going through your cancer. That’s amazing!

Amy Ledin – 05:45

It’s such a game changer. I mean, I say to anyone that’s having because it’s like everything in our life is just stories that we’re telling ourselves. It’s how we’re defining it, right? And one, we can realize that we don’t even need to put definition onto the stories that are coming our way. But two, it’s if you’re having a limiting belief or something that’s holding you back from your greatness because I do believe we are all destined for greatness and you have to at least start to believe that first and foremost. So when you’re starting to have primal feelings of fear, anger, anything that’s negative, you got to stop yourself and go. Okay, I gotta find proof on the other side. So if you’re like a single mom struggling right now, it’s like, find every freaking story of a single mom that’s overcome. If you’re going through a divorce right now, it’s finding people that have thrived through that because it’s one thing to tell it to yourself. But you got to see it because you will become that. You will start to chase that. Your body will, you know, gravitate towards that. I had a guy on, Chad. Chad Wright came on, he’s a former navy seal and he’d said, he goes, you know it’s so powerful when you see that your physiology will even change. He goes, I do ultra marathons and you know the crazy thing about ultra marathons is it’s not until they get about two mile 95 that it’s actually new territory for them, which is insane. That means that they’re always practicing and training for something that they don’t even get any new direction for like a while, right? And he was training with his mentor and they were racing and his mentor made the comment about that he was going to…his body was starting to like…he’s like, Oh I don’t know, you know, we’ve got former hours. I don’t know.. And he goes, in that moment, I actually knew that Greg’s body was going to start to break down and within an hour, his physiology just started to change. So, I’m always like I want to hack it for the positive. I don’t look for the side effects. I asked my doctors not to tell me side effects of my medication. I don’t like to hear that kind of stuff because I asked myself, does it serve me to know? No. I’d rather actually go look for all these amazing stories so that when I’m taking my medication I’m not even thinking about that. And it really does make your…I mean, I’m not a unicorn, I always say to people like I’m not special I’ve just learned to master the mindset in those ways that’s helped me become the fighter.

Lesley Logan – 08:06

This, exactly. I used to be a marathon runner and I ended up being a half marathon runner because it’s way easier to stay in shape for half marathons. If you are thinking about being a runner let me just say you can easily do a couple six mile runs and an eight mile run and like you’re good in a week. So, but it’s true, like, if I remember I did this one marathon a couple years in a row and I had the same thought at the same mile and at the same end I can look at my times and it’s the same exact mile that I got the slowest mile of the entire race. It’s only not because I wasn’t trained for it, not because I wasn’t ready for it, but because I was like this is the hardest mile. This is the mile with the hill on it. And if I didn’t know that there was a hill there, I probably wouldn’t have even thought that. And then the next day I was like, well this is where I had my slowest time and like again I didn’t actually set myself up with the mindset that I could do the thing. And so when I started doing other races I would not, I would purposely not look at where the hills were, where the things were. I’m like, It’s San Francisco. It’s gonna be hard. I would just go without knowing what the race was because I could just go, I’m gonna…this is what I want to do it’s how I’m gonna feel, this is what I want and I had the best races in my life when I stopped figuring out like where the hardest part was or looking for the negative thing. I really liked that you pointed that out because we are also you know thoughts become facts. The end. The problem is that what you believe is what you perceive, right? So if you are like, Oh this divorce is going to be hard or starting my own business is going to be hard or changing my wellness routine is going to be hard, then you’re only going to see all the things that make it hard. I love it because you’re like, look for the people that are doing the thing you want to do because then you’ll see that it’s A) possible and the you can actually look for the evidence of that. So that’s, that’s really, really awesome. Did you? I mean, like, when did you start doing this in life? Is this something that you’ve always done? Did someone teach you this?

Amy Ledin – 10:09

You know, well, my, I’d asked my mom that because I’m like I did a podcast once on, like looking for the silver lining. And I do think it’s something that, you know, I definitely was raised to in every negative situation, stop and go, okay. But there is…you gotta find one good thing in the middle of the mud. Like, there has to be something good in the middle of the mud. Because again, then your brain does start to focus on those things. And I definitely think that I at least have a little bit of that armor to help me through my cancer. But you made a good point, it was literally just seeing it one day at a time. Because if you would have told me I had to fight this for seven years, would I have necessarily showed up working as hard as I did? Maybe not. That’s a really good point. Because this is why you do have to just say it’s one foot in front of the other, versus anticipating the hard points. And just going, I can make it through today. Because everyone can make it through a day. I mean, I’m preaching this to myself today on this day, especially that I can make it through today. I don’t know what next week is going to necessarily look like. And I didn’t know what it was going to look like. But I knew that I could get up and crush my business in isolation in that day. And just doing that day after day is what made the business continue to go because I didn’t look ahead at like what was going to be here next year, it was more like, you know, yes, creating your future self. And I think that’s super important in like designing a map for your future because you do chase that. But in isolation of waking up every day. It’s truly just saying, I can do it today. And it gets the deprivation mindset away because you get a lot of that in fat loss where I’ll hear clients like it’s so hard and like, yep, now it’s gonna be hard for you because that’s what you’re telling yourself. And the more you state those things to yourself, it just comes true for you.

Lesley Logan – 11:58

Yeah, I am, there was a time when I, I still have things that I can’t eat with my stomach. But I had 10 years of stomach issues. And in trying to figure out what I could and couldn’t eat, you go through elimination diets and things like that. And, and you know it, my body would look super one way in the morning, I thought I could be like a swimsuit model. I mean, the way I would wake up and then I would go to bed looking like I was nine months pregnant. And it was freaking crazy, messes with your mind. But you have to go through. And figuring out what you can and can’t eat. It’s just a process. So it’s hard. But when I wouldn’t know what I could eat, I hated going to restaurants because people will go, I would say, Oh, can you take this off, take this off. And the servers in LA are so used to every weird diet that comes through there, like whatever…If you want to pay two times as much for this burger that you’re not going to get the patty on, that’s fine. Like, they don’t care. But people would always go, Oh my god, well, what can you eat? Like when I tell them what I can’t eat? They’re like, Oh, could you like, that’s just like, what else is there? And I’m like, Well, if you go at it like that, it does sound like I can’t eat a lot of things. But I just ordered a dinner at a restaurant. So I just couldn’t. I told I told Brad…I said I just don’t, I would rather not eat when we go out. Because it’s almost easier for people to think that like I don’t eat than for me to hear to have to like challenge that I have plenty of food that I can eat that I’m not limited that I that I’m not you know, being deprived that that mind..because I can’t be around that kind of mindset, because it’s already hard. And I don’t wanna make it harder. And so I think that is…we do really set ourselves up for the success we can or can’t have. And so I’m like that looking for that silver… that something nice in the mud.

Amy Ledin – 13:43

Yeah, Always. Always. I mean, it becomes almost a game in that, you know, like, Alright, we’re, you know, you could be I remember John Maxwell saying like, his flight had gotten canceled. It was like a big event. And that’s an easy time to be like, Oh my gosh, you know, like I need to be… and he goes well, it’s an opportunity to talk to someone, you know, like, I now have a few extra minutes. And it may seem so small, but it is just like the power of gratitude that this just magnifies in your life. That I’m going to walk into the same exact grocery store that someone else walks into, I’m not going to see all the shit that they see. And altercations or the yucky produce or whatever. I’m seeing everything amazing. I’m seeing the person complimenting another and that’s just me with a filter on our brain and you know, it’s going to show that to you.

Lesley Logan – 14:32

Oh, yeah, yeah, I’ve definitely experienced that. When I moved to Las Vegas, most people were so excited and I didn’t really know what to expect because I’ve never lived here. I’ve actually not moved in how many years…I lived in LA for like 13 years. I hadn’t moved, you know, in so long. But I didn’t remember what it’s like to be new somewhere. And everyone’s so excited. And then I got this message from someone saying everything I would hate about Las Vegas. Like everything that I would hate about, like all the bad things that are happening in Las Vegas. All this stuff and I literally just wrote thanks for thinking of me and like period like close it out. Because I don’t want to know this because like I don’t want to be looking for that stuff when I’m new somewhere. I want and it’s very true, like if you can see the blessing in what’s happening it does make it easier for us to have an opportunity to learn something about ourselves, learn something new and and really see how everything happens for you, right? Like it’s like not that you would ever wish cancer on yourself ever again but the people you’ve met and the experience you’ve had and what it’s done right you’ve changed to how it’s happened.

Amy Ledin – 15:40

I say it’s for me 100%. I tell that to people. I’m like, it’s actually to my advantage. And they’re like what? You’re actually happy? Listen, my perspective is completely different than yours. And I say that meaning you haven’t had to have the same thoughts that I’ve had. So, I see it as my advantage of having a little bit of that veil lifted of the what if you’re not here. And it’s made me take faster action because I do see that time is our biggest commodity. But like everyone else, we get guilty of forgetting this. You know, I’ve gone through the honeymoon phase after I was in remission that you’re, like yes you know I’m gonna do it all I’m gonna ask all the people and be bold, and then you forget. But like you’ve mentioned about the person that gave you the list of all the negatives. I’m a big believer in these…I call them software updates. And we need to do them on our brains often. And I make lists of everything. Like when we moved down here to Florida not knowing anyone I knew that I was going, I know my brain well enough that I’m going to have days where I don’t like it as much. So, I create these lists that helped me in those low times. I did it during cancer. I’ve done it for let’s say that you’re struggling with – fat loss. You need to make the list of all the things that you gain by getting to your goal. All the things that you gain so that when you are in you know hurting yourself, you’re in front of yourself, and you’re not working as your best self. You go to that list and you give yourself the software update. Like I recorded our new house and every little video of it so that on the days that I’m like, “man what are we doing down here? Like this is not our home. It’s not our place, we’re kind of in between homes.” I go watch all that. That’s my software update to remind me of what’s to come. So, for a person in the middle of the starting of their business, go look at that list. You know, make it a mind movie. I love the mind movies app that Joe Dispenza owns, and that it actually adds music to it because again your brain doesn’t know the difference between the imagination and reality. And it’s actually going to start to see like, “oh my gosh this is what’s happening to me this is what’s possible”.

Lesley Logan – 17:47

That I love! That is a really amazing thing. And, y’all, she does do software updates on her podcast. F* It! So, if you forgot what that podcast was in the beginning, gotta check it out because she’s these little doses of reminders. And it’s true especially on your hardest days. If you got to have those lists or you have to have that go to song or that go to podcast it’s like oh that’s the one that reminded me of why I’m doing what I’m doing what I’m doing all of this for. Yeah! I just love that so much. I mean I lived in a 500 square foot apartment for seven years with my husband for six years with two dogs in L.A. And I would just go, when I would be traveling I would look at my goals. I had my big vision out whenever I came home and I’m just really feeling small. And I’m like well this is why you’re staying in a small place. Here’s what we’re doing here, you’re reinvesting everything and like because otherwise, you just start to like, you start to focus on the wrong things. And that takes you out of everything. But I do want to go back to that one day at a time. You know, I had an interview with Rob Mac. And he says, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase. You just have to see the first stair.” So, I knew what I wanted to be doing. But I couldn’t see how to get there from where I was. But I could see the next step, and the next step was moving, and so then I moved. And I think that is really important. I think sometimes we get stuck in having to know all the things. And you said it like, if you knew that you were going to have cancer for seven years, you probably wouldn’t have done all the things in the beginning. Because like well, you know what differences they make. I’m gonna have this for seven years.

Amy Ledin – 19:23

Exactly, exactly! I think it’s an advantage not to. And then the key like you said is to take action. It’s like, when you go to uh you know, a good coach or a good mastermind is usually going to say to you what can you do before you leave here this weekend. Because those are signs to yourself, that you’re telling yourself you’re doing things. You’re telling yourself that you’re believing in yourself. Because a lot of us it’s just lip service, right? I mean I hear it a lot and that was like, “Oh yeah, I was just stressed. I’m going to, I’m going to get better at it”. And I go, “Okay! Well, what does that look like for you?”. Then let’s map that out because you are going to have a stressor again and we need to already have some strategies, because then your brain will start to look for those strategies. But if you don’t have anything there, it’s, it’s, it’s gonna just continue to chase the old path. So having that next step, Hey, I don’t know how I’m gonna make a million, but I do know how I’m going to get the next 10 you know, in my next launch or whatever.

Lesley Logan – 20:20

Yeah, you teach something amazing because you have your DC Bootcamp. And you talk about, like, if you don’t make something happen in the day that you want to make it happen, then you then it’s not a loss. It’s a learn if you create a strategy. And I love that so much. Because it’s true. Like, you’re not going to, you’re not going to do everything you say, you’re gonna do all the time. That doesn’t make you not good enough, or not able to do the thing. It’s just life. Life will happen, things do happen, but making the excuse for life like, Oh, I was stressed out, or I have three crazy dogs. And today, they’re just wanting a lot of attention. Okay, so then next time, what are some things I can do in place of that? Could I get up 15 minutes earlier? Could I add the extra glass of water as soon as I wake up next to the bed, so I don’t have to pour it? So I don’t have to remember to pour it. Like, if you’re trying to drink more water. Maybe it’s that you pre order your groceries. Or that you have a friend that you text when you’re like, hey, next time I say this, just text me back this message. Like, they’re just coming up with strategies. So that you, because you’ll be tested, we get tested all the time, you know? And that’s I feel like is the universe trying to go? Yeah, you really want this? Really, you want this?

Amy Ledin – 21:38

Totally!

Lesley Logan – 21:39

Okay! Let’s see how you do it this time.

Amy Ledin – 21:41

It’s so true. And not judging yourself for it. Like I you know, used to be I think a lot of high achievers that is to a fault. Because then what happens is when they fall or they fail, they stay down in that low place for so long. Whereas, you know, I always share my spicy chicken sandwich. I used to eat the spicy chicken sandwich from Wendy’s. Like, I love spicy chicken sandwiches, but they do not love me. And I would every time I’d wake up in the morning and regret spicy chicken sandwich, I would say oh my gosh, never again. But that’s all I did. It was just words, right? When I started actually writing down and doing the pen to paper of like, what it makes me feel like or what I’m going to do instead like an alternate meal. Sure, I maybe slipped up another one or two times. But again, it’s like if you see your brain is a program, and it finally sees other options up there in the air for you. You’re going to not pull into the Wendy’s anymore, because you’re gonna go oh my gosh, this does not make me feel good. I wrote down how this made me feel. This is the lip service that, you know, I haven’t had a spicy chicken sandwich in like three years now all because of just that little, you know, strategy. And it’s just because most of us we’re honestly just on autopilot. We’re not realizing that we can take control of it.

Lesley Logan – 22:57

Well, because I forget how many thoughts we have in a day. But like 98% of them are the same exact thought, like we’re not having new thoughts. And so when you do those strategies, you’re actually giving your brain a new thought to think for the next time that happens because we do go on autopilot because kind of part of it is that we have to and part it’s like it makes things simpler. We only have so many decisions in a day. So, it’s okay if that’s what you’re doing, but you want to go in the right autopilot. You want to set yourself up with the best pilot possible. 

Amy Ledin – 23:24

Yes. 

Lesley Logan – 23:25

You know, I want to chat a little bit about this because I’m came back and I know, like I remember it because we’ve been friends. I was like, Okay, alright, everything. We’re just going to talk things positive on Amy, we’re not going to actually go down the rabbit hole of what could happen. I’m not going to look up what could happen because I only want to have it in my mind because I want to put it in her mind. Like because I know you and and, you know, I just remember thinking after I got off the phone with you, I was so heartbroken for you. I just didn’t want to tell you. Because I didn’t want you to even have that in your mind. This is key with friendships, y’all, you got to have people around you who really help your mind stay on. But I just want you to know, like, what were some things that you did? Because I can imagine like anyone who’s like, maybe someone’s going through a second divorce and like, I’m here again. You know, or maybe they have a thing that they’re working on and you’re listening like it didn’t happen again. Or the same bad thing happened to you. You know, I definitely can resonate. I have a whole story on some things…you just feel like you’re getting knocked down when you’re down. What went through your mind on how you could get through this again?

Amy Ledin – 24:35

This last time and it was definitely the hardest because I had really celebrated the last one and really thought that that was it. You know, and not that I never, I mean I always thought it, but I did realize something. And this is really key. I unconsciously was still thinking it was going to come back and I didn’t know this when we even had that conversation. I’ll tell you why. This time when I got back into the gym. And when I started trying to force…because I didn’t have an appetite like after I went into remission…and I would kind of just like not take it seriously you want to know why because I thought unconsciously it was gonna come back. Whereas this time I started making decisions that showed myself I don’t think it’s gonna come back. I started working hard in the gym again whereas you know for the last couple years I kind of just was skating by because I’m like well if it comes back what’s the point of trying to get my squat up to heavier because it’s uncomfortable, right? You have to lean into that. And the same thing with my eating issues was I was like, why should I force myself to eat if I’m going to go back on chemo? So that I point out just because it is so important that your decisions that you’re making really aligned with what you want your future self like fully. And I didn’t even realize that if you would have asked or told me that last year I would have said, whatever I don’t think it’s gonna come back. But I was still doing things decision-wise unconsciously. But this last time, you know, I just went all in on mindset, you know. I started future-self journaling every day, really writing what it would look like on the other side. And I asked myself at least 100 times a day – Is this thought serving you? Is this decision serving you? Is this…with everything. So when I would go to fear I would have to stop myself because I did learn that I went to fear. I mean I broke down with a couple friends where I was like, Am I going to be able to do this? Like I actually feared that it wasn’t my mind that wasn’t going to be able to do it. I didn’t think my body was gonna pull through for me. Because I felt like my mind was strong but like I was losing weight faster than I ever had and I was noticing that I was much weaker than I ever had been and so that started to mess with me. And so I just, I mean I had to go all in on personal development. I mean every day I went for two anger walks, you know, where I’d go out in the morning and then I’d go out in the afternoon and I don’t you know, I used to think like oh there should be a point that we are just strong enough to handle. I think that’s the biggest mistake people make is that we get too confident and like what we think we know. I think the best of the best…they actually do it more than even you and I, meaning they know that they have to surround…your bubble becomes you know the sum of your five people. I wanted to make sure that they were people that were fully like pushing into me and reminding me that I’m going to do it because I’m human. Like you said, like we’re going to have those doubts and so you want to make sure that when you’re not alone someone else you know is helping you with it. And you know if it’s something that, like cancer, is kind of brought on and you don’t ask for it. But let’s say that you’re going through a divorce or you’ve lost some more money or you’re not growing, it’s like learn that shame does nothing for you. Because I didn’t go to shame. Because I had a colorful past that I would be like, Is this why this is happening to me? You got to stop and go. Is this serving me to even go to that place? Because that’s going to take you down an even slower rabbit hole where then you can be destructive because you can start to sabotage yourself.

Lesley Logan – 28:00

Well, and also you will find evidence as we already discussed to prove that you’re correct. So you’re just gonna find all the evidence to show that you did this and you did this and so this is why your cancer is back. And that doesn’t serve you at all, it doesn’t help you and then take the next step at all.

Amy Ledin – 28:20

Yeah. Well and I actually met…so there was a guy last year that sadly…he died of my…we had the exact type of…same type of cancer. And he had the same gene mutation and he lived about five years. But even in his…he had his wife post something for him right after he passed and it was so heartbreaking. But what made me the most heartbroken about it is he was still looking for the reason why he ever got cancer. And I thought it’s such a shame. What does that serve you? Why do you need to go? Because that path actually just gets more fear and then you’re angry. Because he was an extremely healthy person and so he was always chasing the why. And I stopped that at year two. I just said, I don’t know why but I gotta face it and it’s not gonna serve me to keep searching that when I need to despite this.

Lesley Logan – 28:08

Right. Because there’s a difference between figuring out why something happened to you and. And how something is for you. And..

Amy Ledin – 28:13

Yes!

Lesley Logan – 28:14

And because one is like going back into the past. And one is figuring out how this is better in your future. And I think that is hard because of course, people probably listen, as well of course, I’d want to know why it happened. I’d want to know how it happened. I’d want to know what I did. Wouldn’t it be nice if I knew? Did I eat something, drink something, did I go near a building of some kind? It’s, I guess that would be really nice to know..

Amy Ledin – 29:38

Yes.

Lesley Logan – 29:38

If that was actually possible but what I think we all know about cancers is like a lot of it doesn’t make sense. Like a lot it doesn’t make sense.

Amy Ledin – 29:47

You. You nailed it. You can still ask the why but rephrase it. How is this for me, that’s happening to me? Like what you know instead of like. Why me? Why me? It’s that victim mindset that takes you into fear. Whereas you can still ask and you know, I wanted to find out because I knew that my cancer was a trauma type cancer, but it wasn’t a poor me, why me? It was okay. I want to know why this is happening for me. So that now I can arm myself. So same thing…if you’re going through, like you said, your second divorce or you’ve lost something in your business. Okay, what am I needing to learn from this? That’s what my therapist used to always tell me. Amy, what are you learning in this moment from this?

Lesley Logan – 30:33

Yeah. I know, I know. Because also, I feel like when you’re when you get smart enough, and you’re like. Okay, I know what she’s gonna say. I know what she’s gonna say. And it’s like, Yeah, but you need to hear it. Because otherwise you wouldn’t actually be solving this problem like you.

Amy Ledin – 30:45

Show it that way.

Lesley Logan – 30:47

You know, so you got news.

Amy Ledin – 30:52

I did!

Lesley Logan – 30:52

Recently, you’re cancer, free, free, free, free, free.

Amy Ledin – 30:55

Cancer free! It was crazy. I mean, honestly, it was, you know, I came down here to the states from Canada to get ready for lung surgery. January 20 was supposed to be surgery. January 4 I had scans and then January 8 they called me and said, You’re not going to believe it. Like, we have no sign of, no evidence of active disease. You’re not even going to need to have surgery. Like it was incredible. It was, and I made sure that, you know, right after that, I went right into truly believing that and showing myself that I believe it and getting right into like, it’s never gonna come back. It’s kind of like the person that loses the weight – get rid of the clothes, right? Because you’re still telling yourself you might go back there if you keep them. So, I went all in on trying to get my appetite back right away, and really just believing that it’s not going to be so it’s been incredible.

Lesley Logan – 31:47

Oh, I mean, I know I was so happy. I’m and also what’s been really awesome, y’all, to see – if you might not know Amy, but you know someone in your life was like her – you can see them taking the action and doing the things. It’s inspiring, but also all possible. Like, what she’s doing, because even though she says not a unicorn but also special human beings but also unique. But she’s right. Like what she is doing with herself is something we all do. On our day, no matter what we’re going up against, maybe we’re not going up against cancer, but maybe you’re you know what, and I think that’s also important, like someone sitting here listening might be like, well, I don’t have cancer, it’s just that I like, I just hate my job. It’s okay that your biggest problem is that you hate your job.

Amy Ledin – 32:26

Yes!

Lesley Logan – 32:26

Like, I used to think, Oh, my problem isn’t big enough. Like, I didn’t lose a family member or I don’t have cancer, or this didn’t happen to me, but it doesn’t mean that the problem that you’re in doesn’t feel huge and big and all encompassing. And the reason I’m calling you out on that is because you need to – you the listener – is that it’s so important that you don’t discount the problem you’re in because then you do not see yourself without that problem. You don’t take the steps to get to see how it’s happening for you. And I think it’s really, really important that you…that we acknowledge the problems that we have, and we don’t discount them because they’re not big enough, you know.

Amy Ledin – 33:05

Because your body doesn’t see it any differently. Look at PTSD. They’ve learned that with PTSD, you don’t need to be a soldier over in Afghanistan to have PTSD. You could have just had a neglected parent, because it’s about the way that your body responds physiologically, right? And so I always say that people are like, Oh, well, I don’t have cancer, like you. I’m like, it does not matter. Your problem is your problem. It’s perspective.

Lesley Logan – 33:29

Yeah, it totally is. It’s we, it’s all, it’s all in you. And it’s and we have to shift our mindset around that. And that’s a really huge thing. So I really, I mean, we’ll have to have you back for so many reasons. I just love talking to you. And, and I love having excuses for us to talk to each other.

Amy Ledin – 33:48

Totally!

Lesley Logan – 33:49

So but before I ask you one last question, I just want to make sure everyone knows where they can find you. Your Instagram handle is Amy Ledin. Is there an underscore in there?

Amy Ledin – 33:58

Yep. Amy underscore, Yes. Within, Yep.

Lesley Logan – 34:00

Yeah. Ledin and, and you know, it’s so funny, y’all. I have to tell you this, Brad and I go back and forth on each other it’s Leden or Ledin. We do it all the time. I’m like no, and we’ve changed positions. And

Amy Ledin – 34:14

Most people say Leden, if you phonetically, you’re going to look for Amy underscore Leden.

Lesley Logan – 34:22

It’s, it’s so funny, because, because we both love you so much. It’s like, I think that’s Ledin and I’m like, no, it’s Leden. And then I heard someone else introduce him, like, they introduce his Leden and he’s like, Okay, and then he’s like, it’s Ledin. I’m like, No..

Amy Ledin – 34:33

I love it. I love it.

Lesley Logan – 34:33

Too funny. Okay, so now no one can forget your name and they’re gonna find you on Instagram. Follow her everything, DM her, let her know your takeaways. But before I let you go, I think it’s so important to have all this information. It’s great and it’s inspiring. And some people who are high achievers, I know you’re already thinking, Okay, I’m going to do this right now. I’m going to go with my strategy right now. But the reality is, it’s like life is happening. And how do we prioritize ‘being it’? And I see ‘being it’ as anything that’s bold or executable or figuring out what your intrinsic motivations are, targeted actions, but like, how do you prioritize that when life is happening? It can feel like a whirlwind.

Amy Ledin – 35:16

For me, I have always really tried to get really tight with my inner voice, because I feel like if you can learn to squash…because I feel like we’ve got like an inner bitch and an inner boss, and the inner bitch, if your inner bitch is too loud, it’s going to affect all your areas. So at night, it’s almost like a brain dumping, where you don’t have to do it on writing, but you lay in bed and do a little reflection and where your inner bitches the loudest, you need to squash her tomorrow. And those little…so maybe for one week, it’s you need to be a better mom, and I need to be spending more time with the kids. But maybe the next week, it’s not, you know, I mean, I time block, and I do all the things to manage my day. But I find that if I can learn to squash that, it just builds my confidence. Whereas if I let that nag for a few days it can get worse and worse.

Lesley Logan – 36:05

Oh, I love that because it’s like an intrinsic thing. And like I targetable and executable thing like you’re because you’re right, the inner bitch. Like they, they change their mind about what they’re pissed off at all the time.

Amy Ledin – 36:17

Totally

Lesley Logan – 36:18

And, and it’s and that is something that is nagging at you, and you’re probably wanting to deal with more. And so instead of ignoring her, you could just take the boss and go, Okay, how do we project manage this little thing? How do we like, put some time in for more family time? Or how do we put some more time in for sleep or whatever and like, so you’re letting the inner bitch like have their moment and tell you but then you’re bossing it up.

Amy Ledin – 36:41

Yep

Lesley Logan – 36:42

I mean, I may have made my own words up there for how you do that. But I love that so much, Amy, you are amazing. You’re just a true gem. And I am. I mean, I’m so happy it was in that room, it was so random how I ended up in that room, it was really like, spur of the moment decision. And it’s changed my life so much because I get to have you as one of my best friends in this world. And I learn so much from you. And if you’re listening to this now, please screenshot this tag, tag me, tag, Amy, share your takeaways, please. Because it also gives us a reminder of like, what worked for you, what level it landed with you. And it’s a reminder of like the things that we say that we can remind ourselves with too, because everything we just tell you. I think that’s because we tell ourselves that all the time.

Amy Ledin – 37:25

And I think that’s important for your listeners to hear is, I mean, and I don’t just say this lightly, but I mean, I’ve had so much time with you over this last year, like you’re the real deal. I’m so thankful that you were in my life. And I love the takeaways that you give because you’re constantly troubleshooting on yourself. And that’s what’s so cool about it is like you and I will have these conversations and we share a lot and we’ve gotten really vulnerable with things but like you are such the, you are you show the power of the troubleshooting and you’re like, it’s like figureoutable. You know?

Lesley Logan – 37:56

Yes, Yes. Oh my gosh. Well, thank you, Amy, for being here. Thank you everyone for listening, and I’ll talk to y’all soon.

—

Lesley Logan

That’s all I’ve got for this episode of the Be It Till You See It podcast!

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—

Lesley Logan 

‘Be It Till You See It’ is a production of ‘As The Crows Fly Media’.

Brad Crowell

It’s written, produced, filmed and recorded by your host, Lesley Logan and me, Brad Crowell.

Lesley Logan

Kevin and Bel at Disenyo handle all of our audio editing and some social media content.

Brad Crowell

Our theme music is by Ali at APEX Production Music. And our branding by designer and artist, Gianfranco Cioffi.

Lesley Logan

Special thanks to our designer Jaira Mandal for creating all of our visuals (which you can’t see because this is a podcast) and our digital producer, Jay Pedroso for editing all the video each week so you can.

Brad Crowell

And to Meridith Crowell for keeping us all on point and on time.