Wow.
I'm trying really hard to get back in my blogging groove and normal routine, it feels like all I can manage is trip re-cap after trip re-cap!
(I've been microblogging my day to day life on Instagram + Facebook...let's be friends?)
Does anyone else feel like this summer is going by in a whirlwind?
I guess that's usually the way it goes. Long days and nights, travel, a busy schedule that floats by at a hectic yet relaxed pace, one day and week at a time, hopping from weekend to weekend and trip to trip until your routine and schedule are completely blown to bits and all you can do is pour another margarita, take a deep breath, and enjoy the ride.
I've been marinating on this blog post since I came home from my trip to Nashville on Sunday night, struggling to put my heart into words. If I know I have to get something big off my chest, I feel anxious and restless and distracted until I sit myself down and do the work. So I'm sitting down right now on my front porch and writing until my head and heart are at peace again. I have SO much to share.
Literally my view right now.
I feel blown open, breathless, like the last piece of the puzzle I've been working on all year has clicked into place.
It's no secret that I've been working HARD to overcome a ton of inner resistance, perfectionism, fear, and self doubt this year to learn how to trust myself and believe in my dreams. Inner work is hard. It's emotional. I'm not trying to change, but rather uncover who I really am underneath all the layers and labels I've pasted over my heart as I've struggled to find my place in the world.
How do I describe how it feels to finally know that I'm living my purpose? That I am HERE, I've arrived, I don't have to struggle-bus my way up the success mountain anymore? The hard work is not over, oh no it's just beginning, but the cloud of anxiety and fear is completely gone.
I trust myself. I see myself as a leader, and I am so incredibly proud of myself for listening to my gut almost a year and a half and signing up to be a Beachbody coach. I had no idea what I was getting myself into and had to do two months of Googling and research to convince myself this wasn't just a scam, but all the time there was this spark deep inside that was saying yes yes yes, go go go, fly fly fly despite my rational brain telling me this was a crazy stupid idea.
Good thing I've learned how to listen to my intuition because it led me to Nashville last week and my life will never be the same. The last ties holding me back have been chopped to pieces and I'm not letting fear or uncertainty keep me from sharing my story and building this business.
I drove down to Nashville from Chicago last Wednesday with my friend and roadtrip buddy Katie to attend our first Beachbody Coach Summit with seven of the coaches I personally mentor! I think it was the last major trip of my poor '03 Ford Focus that's seen me back and forth to Pennsylvania, Baltimore, and Oregon, ha.
Coach Summit is the annual Beachbody conference and convention, and it has grown over the past few years to 25,000 coaches. There are live workouts with the celebrity trainers, training workshops, keynote sessions, recognition celebrations, and parties. It's a chance for corporate to announce new products and tools, and most of all a time for coaches to bond with their teams! One of my favorite parts of coaching through Beachbody is that we're all independent small business owners, but we're part of a network of other coaches so we never feel alone.
Eight coaches representing my team Inspire Joy, which is now 100 coaches strong!
We've only been coaching anywhere from three to 17 months, a brand new baby team, and I don't think any of us knew what to expect. We arrived with wide eyes and open hearts, and a shared desire to re-ignite our spark for the work we do, sharing our stories and fitness journeys to inspire and encourage other women to get started and believe in themselves too.
We literally took over the entire city. All the workshops, sessions, and opening and closing celebrations were held in the Music City Center (biggest convention center I have EVER seen!), Bridgestone Arena, and the NFL football stadium!
We worked out, went out, learned, grew, bonded, survived off of Shakeology, snacks, and BBQ, and way less sleep than we needed.
One of the most unique experiences was shopping at the "Core," which was like a Beachbody mall full of the latest products and apparel that haven't been released to the public yet. I snagged a copy of Autumn's new 21 Day Fix cookbook, Fixate!
It was also really cool to see my name on the "Leadership Ladder" as a team leader. I still can't really believe I've grown my business into the top 500 out of over 350,000 coaches, thanks to the hard work of my team!
I feel like for the past year we've been doing our best, but we haven't had a focused drive. I know that Summit was the turning point for all of us and I'm so excited to see what we can do now that we have the training and motivation to push ourselves :) Ultimately I want myself and our team to be known as leaders in the network, and it's so exciting to watch our journeys unfold as individual coaches and as a team working together.
My main take-aways from my first Coach Summit
+ I need to hold myself accountable to my goals and dreams.
+ Growth takes TIME and success takes discipline. You have to be willing to do the work!
+ Leadership means putting your team first, and being the first one to step into the unknown.
+ Recognition is critical. (Look out, challengers and coaches...)
+ You can't just flip a switch to be happy and successful. You have to intentionally program yourself to BELIEVE you can lead.
+ Don't let your fear or ego keep you from helping someone.
+ If you don't plan your time, someone else will design your life.
+ Having a vision means having a crystal clear sense of what the future looks like, with no sense of how long it will take.
I could probably write a separate blog post about every single one of those statements. Maybe I will!
Most of all, I'm realizing that I've never been happier in my entire life. I'm on the other side of fear, and now I get to guide women through the journey to discover their own version of this kind of happiness.
The happiness that isn't dependent on external circumstances, but the kind that comes when you accomplish things you never thought possible, when you follow your heart, take risks based on your intuition, find your voice, and believe in the inherent value of your dreams.
Yeah, I'm definitely high on life right now after this major rah-rah trip, but I'm also realizing that I have a choice how I feel and how I react to my experiences. I can choose to ride this wave and make it my everyday reality. I can choose to get focused, get to work, continue to put my story out there, continue to help other women, and end up creating a life of financial freedom and success I never even considered just one year ago when I was still working for a non-profit.
Last summer there was a desperate energy burning inside of me as I was hustling my brains out trying to get to the point where I could quit my job, and that energy is back but it feels different. It's not desperate or fearful anymore. It's clear and bright, because I know what I'm capable of and I'm not working for my own dreams anymore--I'm working for the dreams of my coaches and my challenge group members, and for YOU. I've already met my potential, I've danced and flirted with her, she has terrified me with her enormous power and beauty and wisdom.
Now I'm ready to rise, surrender, and let it flow. That's what coaching has given me. The opportunity to be myself.
I get to inspire joy.
xo Anna
p.s. Are you curious how you can get involved? You can join my health and fitness accountability group here, and learn more about my team Inspire Joy HERE! I'm in this for you babe, and I can't wait to hear your story.
