Kelly Travis found her path to success was a route through serious adversity at first. She sits down with Amy today to describe how she forged a successful and fulfilling career after passing through some dark times. But as is often the case, those painful experiences contributed to a passion to help others through their own difficulties.

Kelly was and is a competitive runner, and an All-American, in fact. College for her was an opportunity to continue with her sport. Full of anticipation and willingness to work to advance, she was unfortunately placed in the hands of a bad college coach. His body shaming and demands for weight loss profoundly intimidated the impressionable 19 year-old. She tried hard to please, but relentless demands from him and those she imposed on herself landed her in the hospital for 6 months with a severe eating disorder diagnosis.

During her hospital therapy, Kelly decided she would return to school, but not as the business major she had been. She determined she wanted to do something that would help her to empower women. When she returned to school, she began a major in public health, concentrating on mental health and addiction. This led to a first post college job as a social worker with at risk youth.

Kelly was still struggling to find herself. After a couple of years, she did a complete pivot away from social work. Since she had always had an entrepreneurial streak, she ventured into the business realm where she spent a decade. She found her competitive nature was very helpful in the publishing field. But the arrival of her first son gave her a time to examine where she was in her life, and although she was financially successful, she was not fulfilled and happy. She felt a need to be authentic as well as creative. She pushed ahead, put in the work, and started her own consulting firm. She was edging closer to something that felt true to her. When her second son was expected, she pivoted once more. Her self work was not yet complete, but she moved forward and began a coaching practice.

She initially started her business by being a trainer, but this morphed into something much more. She realized the commonality of what makes us happy and successful in any walk of life could and should be applied to the work she was doing. Her business model was taking new form.

She began helping clients to learn successful goal-setting techniques. She discusses with Amy everything from establishing a client’s real goals (as opposed to those created for them by others), to the incremental steps she or he must take to achieve those goals. She delves into self-sabotage, Imposter Syndrome, fear of taking action and other roadblocks people set up as she did, along the way to fulfillment.

Kelly Travis has created a unique life coaching practice rooted in her own experiences and refined by her continued education. She offers clients guidance as they take their own journey of self-discovery. She helps them recognize those often self-imposed inhibitors that delay or even stop personal and professional growth. She teaches the structure of goal setting and importantly, holds clients accountable when they make excuses, fall back or aren’t putting in the work.

There’s a lot to digest in today’s episode with Kelly Travis. Her interview will leave you asking yourself more than one or two good questions.

• How to set attainable, realistic goals
• How ingrained habits and traits can be a double-edged sword
• Career success, like personal happiness, is a process not an event
• How “stepping outside the box” is important to anyone who wants to succeed
• Why an “all or nothing” mindset is a landmine.

Links:

• kellytravis.net
• She Doesn’t Settle (podcast)
• @kellythelp on Instagram