Embracing Authenticity and Self-Care: Life Lessons with Dana Grant

Welcome to the Amberly Lago Show, stories of true grit and grace. Thanks for tuning in to the Amberly Lago Show. Today I have someone very special. If you are ready to uplevel your life, your business, if you feel stuck, if you feel challenged, I have Dana Grant with us and she is an international master Life coach, business coach. She speaks all over the world and she helps people really lead with their intuition on making decisions. So she's gonna give us some points on how she has turned tragedy into triumph and now how she helps others do the same. She's the co-founder of Cauliflower Foods and she's been awarded so many different awards. That'll all be in the show notes. I wanna get right to this so you can learn from this amazing lady. Thank you, Dana, for being on the show.

I'm so glad to be here.

Oh my goodness, thank you. So I miss you, y'all. She was a former Mastermind member, and I used to get to see her gorgeous face every week.

Oh yes, I miss it.

And now you are doing— you're all over the place. You're getting ready to go to Chicago. You're like traveling. You flew in all the way from California to Texas just to be on the show. So thank you. Thank you for being here. And so good to see you.

You too. I'm so happy to be here.

Yeah, yeah. Well, I wanna really get into it because there's a lot of people that they are struggling. They feel like, you know, they're never gonna get out of addiction or they're never gonna get away from, you know, self-limiting beliefs or thinking they're not good enough or just hiding from the world. And you have overcome a lot and it's led you, I mean, you've coached for a long, long time, for years. But now I think it's really starting to, like, boom for you because you've gotten raw and real. And I think people connect with that. So can you tell us a little bit about what you have overcome? And you've lost 75 pounds.

Yeah.

You've really transformed. Instead of just focusing on your clients, you're like, hey, what about— I need to take care of me.

Right.

And so, what was it that was that turning point for you that allowed you to really go, okay, this is it. We got one life and I gotta live it up?

Well, you nailed it right there. We've got this one life, but we tend to think we've got all this time and we don't. You know, I just woke up one day and it was at your event in North Carolina. And we took that picture hugging on stage. And I'm like, that is not me. I did not think it was me. And I just knew at that moment I had to make the decision and I had to be consistent with that decision. But being skinny, the pendulum swung for years with health, wellness, skinny, overweight, and I just, it had to stop. So I chose something different. My intention was to be healthy the rest of my life.

Yeah.

And I did not know what that really looked like. I had to really encompass every day. So I started with one thing I could do. I could walk. So I started walking. I knew I could eat protein, I could eat water, and I started incorporating small things in, micro, not macro. If we do the macro, we're gonna— I can't even tell you how many false starts I had.

Oh yeah, yeah. And I love that you share yourself walking on your social media, or you would be on a walk and give— send me a voice memo about your walks. And now 75 pounds. Later. But you're an example for your clients that they can do the same. And others, not just your clients, but others. I mean, you lead retreats, you speak all over the place. What— when was it that you realized that you had this special ability? You were very intuitive. Yeah. Like, I want to say the word psychic.

Yeah.

Is that wrong of me?

Well, no, they say don't, you know, I was born, you know, they say it was born that way. What was that? L'Oreal says that? I was born that way, but it frightened me. It always frightened me. So I didn't believe that you could be connected to God and believe and do that. So I was in conflict. So in that conflict, I never trusted myself.

Oh.

So I would second-guess everything, which led to a lot of, I won't say bad decisions, but big learning curves. So most of my life, it was a big learning curve and a big learning curve. I just woke up one day and I said, you do know, you do know the answer. But this balancing back and forth, like, I don't know. So I just started listening to that and teaching people how to listen to that. And it's quite different than listening to your gut, which is attached to your spleen, which is all your fear. It's okay if a lion's chasing you to listen to that fear, but most of the time it's not. So our intuition feels a little bit different. It's a knowing, we know the answer. Yeah.

How do you teach somebody that?

Well, it's internal. It's never external. You know, we— but if we don't trust ourselves, we're going to go external. We're going to ask someone. And I ask people for everything. I would always need to know, and I'd always want that second opinion. And then I'd weigh it out, and it was never the right answer. So right or wrong, you will move exponentially if you make your own decision, even if it isn't the one you thought it would be. It will move you closer. And we talked about that today. I got here on East Coast Or West Coast time and East Coast. So, I was, you know, got here at the wrong time. However, it led to the right connections, the right move.

It sure did.

Yeah. My day unfolded in a beautiful way. And I couldn't imagine not having it. I got on the Jeff Creely Show. I mean, what's wrong with that? I mean, look at how it was so guided. Because, and I believe that even in the mistakes, we're guided.

Yeah. I really don't believe in coincidence. I really don't. I think that everything you're supposed to be You're exactly where you're supposed to be at the right time. And even this happens to me all the time. I don't know if it happens to you, but I can think about somebody and I'll get a text from them. That happened twice this morning.

I knew you were going to say that.

That happened twice. So we just had the in-person mastermind retreat at my house and I'm up speaking and I was talking about Coach Burt and then I started talking about Ed Mylett. And I look at my phone and Coach Burke texts me. Look at my phone again.

There's Ed.

Ed Mylett texts me. I'm like, okay, this is weird. Then I started talking about David Meltzer and I look, I went to Brian Bogert who was there at the event with us. And I said, Brian, you won't believe this. I said, now look. I said, it happened a 3rd time.

Yeah.

So maybe I should start thinking about Oprah. Then Oprah's going to call me.

Brilliant. And, you know, No, we could take it that, you know, you don't believe in coincidences. Everything is guided. And if we use universal laws and we look at, you know, people get it wrong with abundance and manifesting and quantum leaping. You have to act as if— see, you're already thinking about them and you call it in. Everything is energy, which means everything's on a frequency. So you're on that frequency and then boom, you're calling it in.

That's happened with us.

Oh, a zillion times.

Yeah.

Where I get a message or you get a message and it's like, I was just going to reach out. And that's just just a frequency, and it's a vibrational frequency. And if you notice, the people that you called in were on your same frequency. They're people that you're connecting with and that you're— we're not calling in different frequencies. You're calling in the frequency you want. So Oprah, you're on that frequency.

Yeah, I'm gonna call her in.

That's right.

Call her in. And yeah, I think you had talked about like you're doing a new book and talked about Hay House is publishing your book.

Well, I have Game Changers doing the first The second one will be a little longer, as you told me in the beginning, where I thought I could just— and you're like, Dana, write your proposal. It's going to be a little longer than a year. It's a year and a half. So, this one will come out in a few months, and then the second one will come out next year, maybe even 2026, depending. It's not a quick process.

Oh, it's not. I mean, look, I started writing my book in November last November. I'm like, oh my goodness, it's already been a year. Oh yeah, that's when I had the conversation with the publisher, actually.

Yes.

And I had my first conversation and I said, I will not be able to start writing this until after my event in like in April. And let me tell you, they were on me like, did you start? What are you going to give us? You know?

Yeah.

And then you turn it in and it's not even out until March of 2025. And about a month ago they said, we need you to go ahead and it's on Barnes Noble, go ahead and push it out. And I'm like, really?

Yeah.

Well, what do I say? It's a process, isn't it?

It's a process.

But it's so rewarding.

Yeah. Well, I can't wait for your book to come out.

I can't wait for yours. Tell me a little bit about what it is. What inspired you to write the book?

You know, I had a whole different concept of what I was going to do, and that will be Hay House. This one is going to be about what I teach and what I have personally gone through. So I'm going to tell a story. And I'm gonna— the book is entitled The Lie because most of the stories that come from our subconscious are not true. They're not even our stories. But people are programmed every day and they're sleepwalking, you know, like The Matrix.

Yeah.

And I— and we don't know what is true and what's not because we've done it so repetitiously. And I just want them to know that you have another option. There's another— there's a truth here, but it's going to require change. And that change, especially if we have any form of trauma, or a core wound is safety, we're gonna rub up against the trauma and our ego is gonna say, oh no, we don't know that, go back. But it's actually, we need to keep leaning in and keep stepping. And I say micro because macro jumps are terrifying when you think there's danger.

Yeah, yeah.

And it could be just newness is danger.

Oh yeah. And I mean, I mean, something as simple as this, okay, this is ridiculous, but Driving here, they've done so much construction.

Oh, yeah.

And, you know, I haven't lived here that long. And I get like, I'm driving like this because I'm like, oh my gosh, where's the road? And the GPS is telling me to do something different because it doesn't even know the new routes. And it gets like, oh my gosh, a little nerve-wracking, scary. But the more I do it, I'm like, oh yeah, I know that.

Yeah, more confident.

More confident. That's something simple. It's the same thing with stepping on a stage. I remember, you know, the first time I was super nervous, almost throwing up nervous. I still get nervous, but I turn it into excitement. And the more you do it, you're like, yes, I'm gonna— I'm not gonna worry about it. I know that I can do it. And it starts to build your confidence.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Different, different, same adrenaline, different side of a coin. You can flip it like that. I love that you said that. But you need that adrenaline to get up there and deliver and to do what you need to do. But turning it into excitement and you can feel it. It's palpable. Your last keynote was palpable.

Well, yours. Okay, so Dana, not only she was in the mastermind, she took the stage and you crushed it. It was—

Thank you.

Unbelievable. You were so amazing. You really opened up.

Yeah.

For the first time, I think, in public, like on a stage.

Oh, absolutely.

About your Your truth. Like, and it was powerful. I got goosebumps just now talking about it because it was like, you let people see the real you. And people, I think, are just craving that authenticity.

Well, yeah. And we're so blasted, Amberly. We're so blasted every day with everything looking the same and sounding the same. And I just couldn't tolerate it anymore. I just thought, I'm getting too old to not show up and just own, take ownership and accountability for this life. And if it's going to transform into what I want, it has to be all in. I have to be all in.

Yeah.

And that's what the book is about. I'm all in. There's nothing— like I told you today, nothing is off the table. And you know this, we have to meet ourselves there and then we can pay that forward. If not, and you always said, There's just something. There's just something.

You would, you would, you would, we would go over your keynote and you would start to share. And I'm like, nope, nope, nope. That's, that's not it. We need to get, no, no, we need to get really into what's going on. And I think something, I can't wait for people to read this in a book. And it's, I mean, it's going to be something that's needed year after year after year. It'll, it'll always People will want to read that book over and over.

Yeah.

But we took a boat ride. Yeah.

Boy, did we take a boat ride. That was a boat ride.

You know what? That was— it was powerful.

Well, I didn't abandon myself. Normally, I say, you know, when you're telling stories, you're out of your integrity, you're out of the boat, you've abandoned yourself again. I stayed in the boat.

Yeah.

Figuratively. And well, there were alligators there too, weren't there?

Well, Ruby went with us and she was telling everybody, oh, there's big catfish. There's actually alligators here. There's, you know, but it was just such a— there's something I think that's just magical about the water.

Yes.

And then the group of ladies and—

Yes.

And just knowing that you're in a safe place. You shared something that you hadn't shared with the other ladies. Can you share that with us today?

Yeah, I had never shared that before. And, you know, it was— we were so— you're right, where there's flow, there's nurture. And I knew I was in a nurturing space. Yeah. And it was an opportunity to share what I'd been through and to show my legs, which are— I've lost a lot of muscle. Because I had 17 forms of staph and they're very scarred. And that isn't something that I had ever talked about before. In fact, people intimate to me don't know. You know, good friends don't know. I don't show them. But that day I did. I pulled up that little flowy jumpsuit. That day was pivoting in so many ways. I mean, that was the transition to where I am now a year later.

Wow.

I mean, it's about a year.

Yeah.

A little over—

was it 8,000? Yeah, it's a little over a year.

Yeah.

I was just thinking of that because—

It was like now or never.

A memory popped up, and I think it was like in November or something. I don't know.

It was—

yeah, a little over a year. And you shared the story of your legs and how you used to always cover them up.

Always. Always. Well, not only cover them, How do you share something like that without telling the story? And I told the story that day. So I think it was that crack that let the light in. And there was so much love and acceptance. And I think that anyone that's out there that feels shame or they can't— they're hiding, you know, needs to be in a group like that of safe women.

Yeah.

You're a collector of safe women. You're a collector. You're an attraction for women. And you hold space beautifully.

Well, thank you.

Thank you. That's so kind. Well, you held the space for me and you led by example. I mean, look what you've been through. Look at what you— it gave me permission when you did. I said, what are you waiting for?

Yeah, 'cause I get on the boat in shorts with my leg all scarred up.

But you look beautiful. And when you—

And I was just like, oh well, 'cause I just am ready to have fun.

Yeah, and you jumped off the top when, you know.

Yeah, jumped off the top of the boat. I did that again, by the way. I was the only one who did that.

This time?

Yes, I was the only one who got on the slide too.

No kidding?

Yeah.

Well, this time I would have been on the slide too. Yeah, I'm not sure I would have fit on the slide before.

Well, I'm just blown— you look so gorgeous. And—

Oh, thank you.

75 pounds. And isn't it freeing for you to go, you know what, I'm owning it, this is my story?

It's, it's hard to conceptualize that. And, and there's a piece of me that wants to say, oh, don't share that, it's so shameful. Well, I'm not done yet, so it's going to be 85 pounds when I'm done. That's a human being. I'm more concerned with what got me there.

What did get you there?

You know, I would say unhealed trauma. I focused on work. Work was great. Work's always great. But body, mind, soul, spirit, it has to be aligned, and I was out of alignment. And I was healing. It— I think it was the last component of that pendulum always swinging. I just had an eating disorder for years. I was underweight, and then the minute that stopped, I was overweight. And this time it had to be different. I said, I cannot do this anymore. That was probably the highest I'd ever been. And I look at the pictures and I don't recognize myself, but I recognize the pain.

Yeah.

I look at it and I see someone who's in deep Pain and suffering.

Or even as a way of— do you think of it as a way of protecting yourself?

Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Because what went with that was it took me off stages. It took me out of the room. I would avoid a lot of things. I still showed up. People would say, you still showed up? You still— yeah, I did. But I was selective. And now I'm not selective. I show up because I had the energy to do it. And on my retreat in Italy last year, I tripped 3 times because I was, I was just not— my body was not in balance. And I said, if I do retreats, international retreats, I've got to be healthier from this point forward.

I remember, I remember that. Yeah.

Well, I think I talked to you while I was in Italy and I said, yeah, I— this— I'm changing. This has to change now.

Yeah. Well, what would you suggest someone do who is like, well, that's great for her. She had that realization and she did the, you know, what is the first step that somebody can do? Hmm. You know, to make a change and whether that's weight loss or whether that is, whether that's recovering from addiction, whether that is—

Which I've done it all. Let's face it, the book They're gonna— I always say, don't hire a life coach unless you've seen their life, you've seen how they've overcome it, and how are they now? What are they doing? Are they in practice with it? But I would say the first thing is, and you know this one, accountability. I had to be honest with myself. Yeah, I can't be honest with the world completely, or if I— but it was that—

It's out of integrity. And I think people feel that.

Oh, absolutely. And I was out of integrity in This is what I teach. Even though I'm holding myself accountable for it, I wasn't being honest about what I could do about it. And I think we have to have that different conversation with ourselves. Yeah. You know, that hard—

it's tough. It's hard.

Yeah.

It's the hardest thing is to be in acceptance and take accountability, but it's life-changing.

Well, and how many women— I mean, I coach so many women that are on Adderall for ADHD or And they're overdoing it, or pain medicine, and they're hiding, and they're lying. And they unpack it here, but they're not even honest with themselves. It's their first step to share it. But I shared it too, but nothing stopped when we're still defending our actions because we need it, or this, or we're making excuses.

Making excuses. Yeah. Yeah, I know, because I mean, I got Yeah. And for a long time, I thought, you know, I don't know how I can get through this pain on a daily basis without taking a drink. I did not know how I could do it. And you're exactly right. I had to get radically honest with myself, take accountability, and reach out for help. I needed help.

Yeah. It's life-changing when we meet ourselves there. Like, on your stage, I said, I stood there and I was gonna die if I took that medicine. And I ripped it up. And I did not know what I was gonna do with the pain because the pain was real.

Yeah.

And it was a process that—

But do you think it gets to be a loop to where— because I know for me, it was like this excruciating pain. So, I would have a drink to try to numb it out. I was self-medicating.

Oh, yeah.

Then I'd wake up and it'd be even worse. And it just became this loop. And it's almost like your body, you're teaching your body that you need the pain because you need that drink.

Well, and it's scientifically proven. It works.

Oh, see, I didn't even know that.

Yeah, our neural pathways. So the more I took a narcotic, my neural pathways, the more the pain were running, was like, it was like an ice freeway, you know, boom, this is what it needs. It's not like, you know, like a bumpy road. Think of the— I like to visualize a dirt road and you're bouncing around and you're like, I'm just gonna stop and go back. That's what it normally is. But you wear down those neural pathways and it goes, vroom, this is what you need. And then you seek it. And I always say, no matter what we're doing, whether it be alcohol or narcotics or Adderall, methamphetamine, we wanna vibrate somewhere. And people will choose a medication where they want to vibrate.

Oh yeah.

And I wanted to vibrate out of pain.

Yeah.

Out of emotional pain.

Yeah.

I had the physical pain, but when I stopped, it's amazing, that loop. I got the physical pain under control because then I had the time and the wherewithal. I wasn't medicated all the time going through this cycle.

Yeah.

Where I could actually address and do the modalities that I needed. Biofeedback, breathing, something very similar. You know, now when I feel dysregulated, I do birthday breathing, which is just blow out candles. Boom, you're right back in your body. You're right back.

I love that. Breathing helps so much. Do you know when I can't sleep at night, I use the Calm app? Yeah, not affiliated with the Calm app, but I think you should sponsor the show, by the way. Yeah, anyway.

I love that.

There we go. But I use it. I use that app, and there is a simple meditation that starts with breathing. And I'll actually— I know you're supposed to meditate and actually be there, but it allows me to shut my mind off from thinking about, oh, I gotta do this tomorrow and this, and I didn't do that and this, like this loop of just nonstop thinking. That breathing just puts— you're right, puts you right back in your body so you can just relax.

Right. And if we think about it, worry, doubt, fear, keeps you in the bind. It keeps you in the struggle. If you want out of the struggle, you want to be in nurture and flow, which is breathwork, waking up being grateful. Just, you know, I used to wake up 3, 4 in the morning vomiting from migraines. They were real. I was terrified to go to sleep at night. But now I wake up and—

Because you knew you were going to wake up sick.

80% chance of the time. And the more narcotics I took, the more pain medicine, the refractory headaches filled in where I didn't have the actual migraine, I would have a refractory headache, which is equally as bad. And so, you know, the way out of that— now I wake up and I open my eyes. I am so blessed. People say, how do you get up so early? This morning was 2 AM California time, but it was 5 here. And I'm like, oh, I got to sleep in. I'm like, wait a minute, I'm up at 2 AM. But I get up that early because I'm so grateful to be here.

Yeah.

I didn't die. And I used to sign away at the hospital that I wasn't going to survive the amount of narcotics they were giving me. 200,000 milligrams a month at home, 10 times that much in the hospital. They were giving it every hour for 10 days.

That's unbelievable that they would send you home with that much.

Oh, well, yeah, I could get more if I had wanted. They said, we can't help you. We can make you comfortable, but we can't help you. And the thing of it is, I was terrified. This isn't— I'd never drank. I'd never done a drug. This— I was a virgin to this process. And I was—

And it happened like that though, didn't it?

Like that. I woke up one day, I'm working, and all of a sudden I can't get on airplanes. I'm getting stuck in cities. I'm vomiting on planes. And they're like, you need— this is not good for anyone on the plane because there's a hyperemesis I was on. Not to get too graphic, but I was sick. And I went on that pilgrimage where I started seeking out Really? I would, you know, to tell you the truth, I'm gonna have a moment here. I started seeking out holistic clinics. I had no intention on doing that. I did that so I can keep taking the medicine because I wasn't willing to give it up because I did not believe anything was going to help.

Mm-hmm.

I did not believe. I mean, I spent so much money going to England, Paris, and I'm like, it's not gonna work. It's not gonna work. Victoria Candidate, 10 days. Now I use those modalities now, but when I left there, no.

Mm-hmm.

I went right back to the medicine. In fact, at a holistic clinic, they got me the medicine because I couldn't even participate because I was so sick. They're like, we're gonna— first time we've ever had to break the rules. I'm really that first-time rule breaker because I was so convincing. And I, I look at it now and I think, wow, now use that for good. Don't use it to manipulate on what you needed. And that's when you know addiction is present. Because I absolutely would look at that and think, hmm, I'm sure that's going to help a lot of people. Well, biofeedback thingy thingy.

And you know what though? They say that addicts make really good entrepreneurs because they are like, this is what I want and this is what I have to do to get it.

Yeah.

So, they replace the drug or the alcohol or—

Doesn't that make sense? With no shame, it makes sense because they're so ingenious and intuitive and they know what they want and they know how to get it. Because if there's anyone that's ever been in pain and needed— I mean, you're going to sit in an emergency room 5 hours and you're going to do what you need to do because you have an end result of what you're going to get. I don't know if I ever didn't get it. And that's, um, I look back and I think, wow, if you can channel that kind of energy into your business, which is what I did, um, it's hard to believe that I went through that. But it was the first time that I'm actually— I think it went— this conversation here is the first time I was aware, like consciously aware, that I had no intention. All that money, all that time, those I just knew it wasn't gonna work. And I was in such fear. It wasn't like I was trying to dupe anybody. I was in so much fear. I was never willing to let go of what was working. I'm like, yeah, uh-huh, maybe someday. But right now, there's no way. And I would spin stories because that kept me safe. And when you have a safety wound and your fear in the world is you're not safe, you're gonna do anything to be safe. And that's what I did.

Well, it takes a strong person to let go.

Yeah.

You know, and I think that there's a gift in desperation. And I know for me, I was to the point where I was so desperate.

Yeah.

That I was willing to do anything to stay sober. And so if my sponsor said, do 50 jumping jacks and go run around the block chanting, I would've been like, okay, you got, you know, yep. And so I think, I mean, you are such a beautiful example of what recovery in every way looks like with your transformation physically.

But it would keep shifting. It'll keep shifting from food to this to— and I wasn't aware of that, that it would shift like that.

Yeah.

Because I'd never had real problems there. But I thought, oh, I see. I see there's some shadow work still going. There's still some things that need my attention.

And I think it's always a— I believe that we're always healing because there are times—

Amen. I mean, it just— that was my big wake-up call. Like, oh, shizzle, this isn't gonna stop. This is a for-life job. I'm always gonna have to surrender, give up, because, you know, entrepreneurs also like control.

Yeah.

And I'm like, okay, surrender, surrender, and navigate. And navigate with what we— and learn. I metabolize very quickly these days. It's like, oh, okay, left, the other left. And I let go very easily where I didn't let go before. There was always something that I needed to fix and do. I don't fix anything anymore. It's like, oh, hands off.

Well, I wanna go back to your book.

Yeah, The Lie.

Because I wanna know, has it been like— it wasn't as hard for me to write my new book. But when I started reading it, yeah, I was like, oh my gosh, I feel like I'm standing naked in the street because I'm getting raw and real. Do you feel that way?

Well, you know, as this book is unfolding, I have 2 editors that are reading it back to me, what I'm saying, and I'm like, ooh, should we put that in there? You know, it's hard to believe I've been where I've been. It's been a big life. And people tend to look at the success and the—

They see you on social media, they see you on stage, and they're like, oh, there's no way that she was ever that person. She's like— they can't imagine it.

No, they can't. And frankly, my whole life was full of chaos and dysfunction. I was deregulated. And I come out of a home of an alcoholic, and that actually was my safer parent. So, when you get get catapulted in the world and you're not ready, you're going to cling to safety anywhere you can find it. So it was disaster after disaster. And any success I had, I was gonna sabotage it because my level— we can only go as high as the worthiness we feel. And I didn't think I could—

So true.

Maintain it. I'm like, well, yeah, I— who did that? Did I set those? I set records with the Federal Chamber that have never been broken. And I think, how did I do that? How did I do that? I thought everyone else was working as hard as me. I didn't think I had any talent. I didn't think I was smart enough. And I was certainly gonna sabotage it to prove it. And that's what we're gonna do. So now I'm out to prove everything that I did was a lie and everything that I am, I'm embracing.

Yeah. Oh, I love that. I can't wait to read it. Well, I had a whole list of questions here for you and—

Did we get there? Did we answer any of them?

We didn't get to any of them. Yes, 'cause you know what, and we're almost out of time, and we get together and we can just talk.

I know.

Well—

What's one thing you wanna know?

Anything, anything you wanna know. Well, okay, life and wellbeing, we've talked a lot about that. How do you maintain now between your professional life and your personal wellbeing? What would you suggest for somebody who struggles with that, who is a, High-achieving entrepreneur?

You know, I think that it has to go on our calendar. And I have found we can't just think that joy is going to fall out of the sky or happiness or exercise. We're going to find time for it. And it kind of creeps up on you. Even now, I find myself 10, 15 hours at that. You know, I'm going around the time clock on the world with clients. And now, I do my— we have to build it in. It's got to go on your calendar.

Yeah.

And it cannot— it has to be important. Is it even more important than your money? Even more important than flying to Dallas? I know that I have to take care of myself. I know that when I get a break, I've got to walk. I know what I need to do to stay healthy. And that is a non-negotiable. You don't negotiate with it.

I think it's important to know your non-negotiables and then stick to it. And I write everything in my calendar, my paper calendar, with a highlighter on what's What's for me, what's clients, what's events, what's interviews. And so, if I didn't, we were just talking before we started recording, I was like, if I didn't write stuff down, I wouldn't even remember. So, I have to write everything down.

I tell my team that my calendar is my Bible. I mean, I look at that and everything that's written in there, I believe. And today it was a little off, but guess what? It all worked out. Yeah, the universe believed that, oh, we're going to do this and we're going to give her a little few What do you want your legacy to be? Ah, I want my children to heal because— yeah, that's a big one. Heal from what I put them through because I see different versions of myself. Woo! Woo! I see different versions of myself that I can see that they have to cope with. And if I could show them a better way and stop generational trauma— I mean, that's overused, generational, but stop the cycle.

You're doing it.

Yeah.

You are doing it.

I'm doing it. I'm living it.

Yeah.

Yeah. You're living it.

Yeah. Oh, that just touched me so much. Well, on a lighter note, do you have any upcoming events or exciting things? I know you have a Birthday coming up.

I do. I do. Let's see. I have Chicago. I launched— and you know what? It came out of coming here and I was so inspired. I thought, you know what? Let's go to Chicago and do VIP days. And I put it out there. It sold out in 48 hours. So, I have clients flying in and I'm doing extraordinary VIP days that I built out for each one of them for a week. And then on the 8th, I'm going to celebrate. I'm going to celebrate my birthday.

Yeah.

Yeah.

It's a big one.

It's a big one.

Every one is a big one, though. Every one is a year worth celebrating. But I'm to the point where I'm like, wait, how old am I? I forget. I'm like, yeah, how old? Oh my gosh.

How did it— It just goes by so fast, Amberly.

It sneaks up.

Yeah, it goes by so fast. Well, where do you envision your work kind of evolving over the next Interesting you say that because I feel, and we talked about this earlier, it's already evolving. It's already moving and shifting and forming. And you know what? I interviewed Craig Siegel the other day and he goes, you know, Dana, be married to the process, divorce the outcome. And I liked that. I like that too. I liked that. And I thought, and you mentioned the other day, and I think I spoke out on stage that God doesn't waste pain. He didn't waste this.

Mm-hmm.

And this evolution is exactly the way it needs to be. And if we accept that, we stay out of the shame and we keep moving forward. So I'm not— I don't see the outcome, but I have goals. But mainly, I just want to stay the course.

Yeah.

And that just means trusting that every door that opens is for me, every door that shuts is not, without any angst. It doesn't mean that I'm not sad for a day. But I move very quickly these days. It's like, teach me something. What do I need to know? And that's my favorite line. What do I need to know? What do I need to know so I can move faster but slower?

Yeah. Yeah. My friend Rachel Luna just did a post about that today. I don't know. And I was like—

Divinely guided. Yeah.

Yeah. She really is. Well, tell everybody where they can find you. The best place to find out about your coaching. Where they'll be able to find your book soon? And where do you hang out most on social media?

Oh, gosh, probably so. I love, I love the Gram. My daughters say, don't call it the IG or Instagram. It's the Gram. So—

Oh, wow. Yeah, it's something new every day.

Yeah, the Gram. And yeah, I like, I like, I like to answer my own messages. I like to leave people messages. I like to inspire out there. And if they leave me a message, it's going to be me that gives that message back. They can find me at dandigrand.com. If they want to go to Italy next year, I'm planning an Italy retreat. I don't know. I'm thinking of another one. I'm thinking of walking the Camino. I've got some big things that are churning right now. But this year, they can, yeah, find me online. Find me.

Well, thank you so much for being on the show.

Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you.

Amberly, I love you.

Oh, I love you.

Thank you. I'm so happy to be here.

So glad you're here, and thank y'all so much for tuning in this week. Make sure to like and subscribe, and you know what? If you found value in this, take a screenshot and share it on your on the gram, not Instagram, on the gram, and you can tag me at Amberly Lago Motivation and Dana. Tell them your handle.

Oh, the real Dana Grant, just like the real house. Housewives, The Real Dana Grant.

The Real Dana Grant. Yeah, tag me. When I see that, I always share back. So thank you for tuning in, and we will see you next week.