Navigating Your Health While Starting a Health Coaching Business with Kendra Perry

Have you ever felt like conflicted with the feeling of, I want to help someone, but I feel like I'm still trying to help myself? You know, that imposter feeling, the imposter syndrome of like, I have my own stuff to be working on and I don't want anyone to think that I am perfectly healed or got it all together. I just want to be able to help the person that was a couple steps behind me to get to where I'm at. And hopefully we all just soar. Well, this episode is definitely for you. I'm so excited to have Kendra on the show. She is a former multi-six-figure functional health coach turned business strategist for wellness coaches and health practitioners. Why I'm excited to have Kendra on the show is that we were talking about in this conversation about her journey is probably very similar to a lot of other health coaches or other people who are thinking about becoming a health coach. You might be thinking, I could totally do this. I could totally start a business. Even if you're not in the health coaching business, like, even for me, when I decided to flip into talking about and specializing in serving women with chronic illness, I'm like, who am I? I'm still doing and learning and healing and going through that path. And in this episode, you're going to learn how to deal with those imposter syndrome feelings and how to stop them from stopping you from taking the leap. And if you're a health coach and you've been struggling attracting your ideal clients and you've been using all of this very generic coaching advice out there and thinking it will apply to you, Kendra and I kind of get to the nitty-gritty of why that might not be working and how you can niche your health coaching business in the right way. And lastly, you're going to just figure out like when and who to ask for help when growing your health coaching business. And I am so excited to have Kendra on the show. I was on her show a few, a few months back. So I'll put the link to that in the show note, but we're definitely dropping gems on how you can grow a business in alignment as well as have a sustainable health coaching business without sacrificing your health or your sanity. So stay tuned for some of this goody goodies. Welcome to She's Crafted to Thrive, a globally ranked podcast for women living with chronic illness and creatives in business. I'm your host, Nikita Williams, chronic illness warrior, and for photographer turned digital marketer turned award-winning coach. I love helping chronic illness warriors and creatives to live with their chronic illness and creativity as their superpower in life and business. On the show, you will hear the very stories that helped our guests, my clients, and myself to define our dream way of making money with proven strategies and marketing and mindset, all to grow a business that thrives without sacrificing our health. So stay tuned because you'll find the inspiration tools and the resources you need to craft a life and business that thrives. I am so excited to have Kendra on the show.

We have connected over a summit a while ago that she threw for Wealthy Healthy Coaches, and I am excited to have her on the show because she has an experience about growing a business while living with chronic illness or chronic conditions. So please, you know, introduce yourself, Kendra, and tell us a little bit about where you are, what you do, and all of that jazz.

Well, thank you so much for having me, Nikita. It's been fun to hang out with you for number 3 time in like a month and a half. Very cool. Very cool. We didn't even know each other like a few months ago and now we're just hanging out all the time.

Yeah, it feels like that, right? Yeah. Yeah.

So I'm Kendra. I'm from Canada. I'm from a really small little mountain town in just southern British Columbia in Western Canada. Super into everything outdoors and a little bit of adrenaline sports. I like biking and skiing and, you know, spending all my time outdoors. And I started my business in 2014. I started as a health coach. And the reason I got into health coaching is because I was having all kinds of issues at the time. And the issues started in my early 20s. I got acne when I was in university and from taking a birth control pill that was, turns out, was recalled and it was super toxic and all of that. And so I ended up with this acne issue that I didn't want to take more birth control. I didn't want to take antibiotics. I didn't want to take Accutane. So that's what really kind of pushed me into learning a little bit more about like alternative health and wellness. And so I kind of dealt with that. And then as I came into my later 20s, I was, you know, doing some health coaching certifications and I actually ended up having a reconstructive ACL surgery on my knee because at the time I was actually trying to be a professional skier. That was like my jam. I was like, I wanna be a skier. I'd been approached from this photographer at the ski hill who was like, you're a great skier. Do you wanna be in photos and movies? I was like, yeah, yes I do.

Sounds so good.

And you know, I've been a skier my whole life and always kind of was involved in the industry, whether competing or other things. So I was like, okay, this is great. I'll travel the world, live this glamorous lifestyle, get paid to ski. Like what a dream, right? And so training that winter, I just was going pretty hard, ended up jumping off this little cliff and just not landing properly and, you know, just blowing out the knee. And so, yeah, it was pretty, it was hard because I, my whole identity was tied up into being a skier. Because I've been a skier my whole life. And so I had this identity crisis. And then at the time I was working in forestry, so I would plant trees, I would fight fires. I designed logging cut blocks for big clear-cut logging operations. So a very physical job. So when I had the surgery, I was like, okay, I can't ski and I can't work, so what am I going to do? Yeah. So that was pretty rough. And then what I ultimately kind of decided through that was, well, to start this online business. And the surgery was really the big trigger for me with what the health issues that I experienced after. I know I had lots of stuff going on in my body, so I was dealing with the acne. I was a heavy partier. I did a lot of drugs. I was a good time girl, just girl dancing on the bar, like, bringing all the drinks, doing shots, like, having a great time. But obviously that's so hard on your body. And then I had a lot of— I didn't love myself. You know, just really hard on myself and a lot of self-hatred. So I think all that was really weighing on my body. Yeah. And then the surgery really just triggered something, whatever it was, because after the surgery, I just didn't feel the same again. I just had really severe fatigue. I went through chronic insomnia for 2 years where I was sleeping maybe like 2 to 3 hours a night. So pretty crazy. Pretty crazy. I definitely feel for women who have babies. Okay. I can imagine that that's what it's like.

Oh, yeah.

Crazy.

Yeah.

And so through that, I decided to pursue health coaching because I was like, I need a job, but also I need to figure out how to heal myself. So I thought it was kind of like hit two birds with one stone. And then I did that until 2019 and then transitioned to business coaching and helping health coaches build their online business.

Yeah. All of that story, I feel you, especially about the knee surgery. I mean, I've had a knee reconstruction myself. That knee is no joke. I've heard moms say that if they've had knee surgery, it's worse than being, like, giving birth. So I'm like, okay, okay. So I feel you on that. How did you kind of— what made you think that your healing could happen through health coaching? Obviously, a lot of health coaches get into health coaching for different reasons. Some, they are just so passionate about health coaching for themselves. They've always lived like a natural life, and they stayed away from the things that most of us probably should stay away from. But what be— beyond the pain, said, okay, not just the business and the money, but was there something else that was a little bit deeper connection for you for starting in the health coaching world?

Yeah.

So I, at the point where I really lost my health, like, I was taking really good care of myself. Like, I'd given up drinking. I was eating paleo. I was eating organic. I was going to bed at 8:30. I was doing all these things and I wasn't working, so I had a lot of time to commit to all of these things. And I was so sick and it didn't make sense to me. I was like, man, I've been prioritizing my health for years and I stopped drinking a couple of years ago. I was like, why am I going through this now? And so what really resonated with me was functional health coaching. And it was actually a podcast that I was listening to. And there's a program called Functional Diagnostic Nutrition. Great program. And the owner of it was— he was being interviewed and they were talking about lab testing, how you could run these labs and find out what's actually going on in your body. And at that point I was like, well, that's what I need because I'm doing all the things. Like, I've read all the books and I'm like following the diets and I'm drinking the broth and I'm taking the probiotics. Like, you know, I was doing all the things. So I really felt like I needed more insight as to what was going on with me. And so that's why it really appealed to me. And initially I actually contacted a practitioner. I'm like, oh, I'm gonna work with a practitioner. But then after kind of she quoted me a price, I was like, well, that's what she's charging. And the program at the time, it wasn't that much different, right? I was like, well, why don't I just take the program? I was already doing a diploma in holistic nutrition, so I was like, well, why don't I just take the program and learn how to do it myself? So that's really what appealed to me with it was just getting more information. And I'm very analytical. I love numbers. So I was like, show me the data.

I feel you. I find that interesting because I really enjoyed learning about functional medicine is something I didn't know anything about for the longest until I actually became an entrepreneur and started being in other spaces with other people that were like, functional medicine.

And I was like, what is this thing that you guys are talking about?

Yeah. Recently I just started working with one and it has made all the difference. It's just an interesting experience to see. Aren't doctors taking the same test to an extent? They're just not looking deep enough and not looking at the whole picture, really, and the whole person. So I appreciate you sharing that part of the story because I think for most of the women on my show, they're dealing with other challenges with their health or just feeling like they've done all— like you just said, I was doing all of the right things, but I was still not getting the results that I wanted to see. So how did you transition from working in a holistic coach place to now serving holistic coaches from a standpoint of, business? Did you build that business and then transition into this? What made this come about?

Yeah, so it was actually a very natural transition because I did that certification through functional diagnostic nutrition. And then at the time, because forestry is a seasonal job in Canada, right? Because we have winter and we have crazy mountains and you can't just drive up a snowplowing road up a mountain, right? So it's seasonal. And that's what really appealed to me about it, was that I'd work really hard from April to October and take the winter off so I could ski. So at the time, because once you get laid off, you get put on unemployment insurance, right? So you go on like this government-assisted EI, you get to ski or whatever, it's great. But you know, I was making like, I think it was like $1,800 a month on my EI. And I was like, okay, so how am I going to start this business? Like, because once you start the business and start making your own income, you can't collect the EI, right? So I was like, how do I replace that? Because $1,800 seemed like a huge amount of money to me at the time. How do I just make $1,800 a month? And so I ended up applying for a position with Functional Diagnostic Nutrition, and I actually got hired on as a part-time course mentor, and then I eventually went on to develop and create their postgraduate, like, membership program. So I worked for them for 3 years, and during that time I was supporting other coaches and practitioners the whole time. And when I went on to the postgraduate program, there was business trainings involved in that because people needed business help, and I ended up running a lot of the trainings just because I was learning how to do this all myself. You know, I was really trying to figure it out on my own. So I was sharing a lot of what I, what I was learning and what I had found with those practitioners. And then when I stopped working for them, I did about 3 years with them, I was like, oh man, I really miss with practitioners. So I was consulting a bit on the side through the whole time. I do a little bit of business consulting here and there. And ultimately, I think because like I had a lot of chronic health issues and because I was doing the testing, I attracted a client that very complex, and I worked with a lot of really complex clients. So it became really overwhelming at some point, probably around like the 2018, about 4 years in, because I was like, still, this whole time I was dealing with chronic fatigue, chronic insomnia. Like, I just felt like an absolute bag of garbage every single day. Like, just going for a walk around the block was like sometimes too much, you know?

Yeah.

And so I was like obsessing over my own health, and I was like obsessing over my clients' health. And it's like, became a bit of overload. Like I just, it's like I needed a break. And simultaneously, this was kind of interesting. I was following this one woman and she had been a health coach and transitioned into business coaching. When she made that transition, all I felt was jealousy. I was just like, I was like angry at her. It was so weird. And I was like, why am I feeling this? And what I realized is because I actually wanted to be doing that. Cause I really loved the business coaching and I just decided I needed a break. So what I did was I transitioned, and it was a pretty easy transition because I'd already been kind of doing it, and I had a lot of colleagues and just contacts, like, within the health coach world. So it was a bit of an easy transition. And then I hired my own functional medicine coach because I was just like, I want someone to tell me what to do. Like, I, up until the point, I'd been figuring it all out on my own. And as I'm sure you know, like, when you're really close to a situation, it's really hard to see it. It was very easy for me to see what was going on with other people, But myself, I was just like, I just, I just need to step away and get someone else to tell me what to do. So that was kind of why the transition happened. And I think it was a really good choice for me.

I mean, there's so many things in that we can just unpack for just a few minutes, because I think, I think most of us feel, especially when you're in a business or even if you're working for someone and you're dealing with your own healing journey, it is a challenge to juggle it all. And what happens is we don't end up juggling it at all. Like, we start— balls flying, and they're just all over the place. And so I really appreciate you sharing that because I think what you just showed, just from that, that part of your story, is that you can still have all of the information that you need to make the change, but if you're too close to something, you're not going to ask the questions that you need to be asking yourself because you're too close to it. Like, you're just too close. And I think it's just really powerful. That's why I strongly believe in coaching in any part of your life. Honestly, having someone bounce and see something you don't see helps you get to where you need to go faster. So with your own journey with the functional medicine, did you— with your coach, did they help you? And then did you have a coach for your business, or was this kind of just a natural thing? That you grew?

Yeah.

So I do have a coach for my business. I really am a strong believer in coaching. I will always have a coach. I'm pretty sure I did right from the beginning. I think I started having a coach when I was still on my health coaching journey. So I think having a coach is really important. And working with the functional medicine doctor, he is very much an expert in chronic fatigue. Shout out to Evan Hersh. He's amazing. Loved him. Love him. And yeah, he was really able to help me with some of the things that I knew a little bit less about because what What we ended up uncovering is some undiagnosed Lyme disease, probably some Lyme co-infections, and then just a lot of heavy metal toxicity and that sort of thing.

Yeah, I think it's so important that we normalize having other people support us in our healing journey. Did you have any fear with giving that away? Or it's not even to me giving that away, but asking for the help.

You know, I think I had that fear earlier on. I think I was really stubborn. And I think that's where I got caught up a lot with imposter syndrome because I was like, well, I can't figure out my own health. And yes, I'd seen improvements. I knew I was improving. It was slow, but that was a bit of a struggle because I'm just like, I almost felt like some shame around it. And I had a hard time talking to people in my life about it because they're like, oh, you're so healthy. Because I was like, out of everyone I knew, I'm the one who's like eating the good food. And anytime I brought it up, people would be like, oh, well, that doesn't make sense. You're so healthy. And I just wanted to punch them in the face.

I'm like, you don't get it. Yeah, no, it's me. No, it's me. Most of us do that. That's the saying. Everyone's like, oh, but you look so— you're so young and you look so healthy. And you're like, yeah, but you don't know. I'm like, dying inside. I'm eating all of the things, but I'm still dying inside. So yeah, wow. So for you, what has helped you in your business? Like, I feel— and we talked about this in our episode— like, I feel like the chronic illness journey and the entrepreneurship journey is so parallel, it's like crazy. What has going through that part of your personal health healing journey helped you and served you in growing your business to where it is today?

Yeah. So I think one of the biggest things is I've never really been able to like hustle, you know? And I think, you know, I'm not completely against hustle. I think there's periods of hustle, you know, we kind of go through that, especially in a new business. Like you kind of have to, you know, a little bit more on the hustling, but I always had to listen to my body, right? Like I could never take it that far. And that probably served me well because I'm someone who definitely has workaholic tendencies. Like I can just get locked in on a project and I'm like, whoa, 6 hours just went by. Like what?

Where am I?

Am I? Yeah.

Because I really love what I do and I love, you know, certain things I do in my business. But, you know, it really forced me to be okay with like, okay, I'm just going to like take a day off or I'm going to cancel my appointments or I'm going to literally work from my bed. And that is cool. Right. And so I really had to figure out what worked for me in my business and only really do things that kind of supported my health. You know, like I remember having my first group coaching program and one of the calls was to just have like a group call where everyone was on video and we're all talking. And I quickly learned that I didn't have the bandwidth for that. And so I was like, okay, I can't do that right now. So I moved to just kind of like webinar style because I was just like, that's just, it's way too much, you know?

Yeah.

Yeah. And the thing that I always think about is like anything can work, right? Like anything can work. I think we just sometimes get so much in our head about the other things, like the people, their thoughts, we get into their head versus, you know, about just accepting our own reality of what the situation is. How has it helped you actually grow even faster by honoring your pace, like honoring where you are, how your body's working, and how you run your business?

Yeah, it's a great question. I think it mostly comes down to just the concept of slowing down, like very simple, because I love to rush. I can definitely get into the habit of like, just gotta check things off the list, just gotta get it done. But you know, as an entrepreneur, the to-do list doesn't end. So then you're just like, say it again, say it again.

Like, it doesn't end.

Your to-do list never ends, ever, ever, ever.

Yeah, yeah.

And so I think, like, and I think a lot of entrepreneurs struggle with that because we're used to having jobs where it's like, this is what you need to do, and then you kind of finish it off, and then you're done for the day, and you're not thinking about it, and, or whatever. And it's just different when you're an entrepreneur. So I think slowing down has allowed me to just be a bit more strategic, right? Because it's not about necessarily going fast. And sometimes when you're rushing through things too quickly, you miss things or you miss really key points or you miss how you could kind of transition something in a different direction. So I think that's— slowing down has actually helped me quicken my growth, if that makes sense.

Yeah. Yeah. I love that you said that because we hear the opposite often, right? Like we hear like, just go and throw everything at the wall, which which there are times for that. I do definitely think there are seasons for trying to discover your thing. But I think this idea of always on the go, the gas is always going, actually slows us down in seeing our results ultimately, right? It's like a challenge to see what's actually working when you're just going to the next thing, going to the next thing and not tweaking. Like doing those different kind of things. So for you, what mindset have you had to cultivate or overcome to like grow your very successful business? Like what has been the thing for you?

I think one of the biggest things is just shifting what I believe to be possible in terms of like what I can achieve, because I think entrepreneurship is really just a journey of of shifting what you believe to be possible, right? Someone who makes, say, you know, 8 figures a year, like they have a multiple, you know, 7-figure business, like they've really shifted what they believe to be possible. And, you know, when you're starting out, you're like, okay, I'm paying myself $40 an hour, and that feels pretty good. That's like double what I was making in my corporate job, like sweet, you know? And then like you realize that you're like, oh, like this is, this is not enough. And so I think it's like not only in terms of money, but in terms of impact and in terms of opportunities. Like, I would never think that I would be able to be on a podcast and be comfortable like this and just have a conversation. Because first podcast I was ever on, like, almost pooped my pants, you know what I mean? Like, and you just think, like, I can't do that, and I can't just show up and be able to talk and have that confidence. And so, you know, it's not just a monetary thing, but it's also confidence, and then your ability to impact people and your ability to build legacy.. And I think it's— that's also ongoing. I think we're always kind of shifting and, you know, believing more and more about what's actually possible for us.

I love that you said that. I know I keep saying that, but the possibilities things is something that I talk to my clients about often, which is like seeing what could be is just as powerful because our brain doesn't really know the difference between real and imagined in a lot of instances. So if we kind of vision ourselves in that place. Like, what if you did charge $150 an hour when you thought you could only charge $50? Yeah, like, what would that look like? How would that change the way you run your business? So if someone's just starting and they're doing that transition, living with chronic illness, living with chronic pain, fatigue, and they're feeling like they're juggling the balls and things aren't moving, right? I don't know about you if you've had experience where you at some point in your business where things felt like they were plateaued or stuck. What did you do and what advice would you give?

Yeah, so I think, like, I mean, first off, I mean, if you're dealing with like a chronic illness and you're starting a business, like, you absolutely can do it. There's a lot of people out there, and I think a really great place to look is like the health coaching world, right? Most health coaches have had chronic health conditions and that's why they're in that position. So it's totally possible. But I think like when you're when you're plateauing and when you're stuck, it's kind of the same way that I felt with my health when it was plateauing and it was stuck. It's like, get help, right? Reach out, ask for support. We don't have to do it all on our own. A lot of us really struggle to ask for help. I know I did. Now I have no problem. I'm like, you help me, you help me. Everyone, let's help me. I have 2 counselors. I have my functional medicine coach. I have all this— I have this whole team of people to help me be my best self. There's nothing wrong with reaching out for help. And I think that's what can really help you when you feel like you're juggling because like really in the beginning of a business, like no one, most people are not getting education in this, especially people in like who are healers, like health and wellness, like typically they're really focused on health coaching or spirituality or whatever it is on that side.

Right.

And they don't really understand like this whole online business thing. It's this whole different beast. And you can waste so much of your time just trying to figure out what to do. But if you get help and sure, yeah, it's going to be a bit of an investment. But if someone can lay out a path for you, then you just need to execute and that can actually save you a ton of time and help you feel like you're juggling less balls. So I think mentorship is just for me is just such an important value. And I think it's really important for people to pursue even when they're early on in their business.

Yeah, I really agree with you on the point of asking for help becomes easier. I think, I think we all kind of get stuck in like, well, I should be able to do this. I, I look, I use these things online, like I use Instagram, I use Facebook, so I can easily, you know, grow my business on those platforms or TikTok or wherever. And I have noticed for myself personally, as I've grown in my business, I definitely— I actually came from the marketing background in the first place, and as I shifted more into mindset coaching, it's almost like you're— you cannot be focused focused on two places. Like, you cannot do it. And so if your focus is to become like a better health coach in this specific niche, how much bandwidth do you actually have to learn all the marketing things? Like, you just don't really have it. And you can work with someone else to help you, support you in that, so you're not sitting there, like you said, spinning your wheels and feeling like, I'm not doing enough. That's a common thing I hear from clients, is like, well, I'm doing this and I'm doing all of these things, but maybe I'm just not doing enough in my marketing and that's why it's not working. What could be some other symptoms for someone who is growing, like working to grow their business and they're not seeing results? What could be the symptom that they need to pay attention to that says, actually, I just need help?

Yeah, well, I would say like a lot of people are like, I don't even know where to spend my time. So that would be a big one because is if you have like a roadmap, then you know exactly where to spend your time. And I think a lot of time gets wasted, you know, like, okay, I'm like sitting down, got my coffee, I'm at my computer, and then I'm like, okay, okay, so what should I work on, you know, versus like having a plan and sitting down and knowing what you need to actually be working on. So I think that is helpful. I think another one is, I don't know what content to create. I don't even know what content to create. Because what that tells me is you haven't defined like a nation ideal client, a clear and concise message. Because when you know that stuff, then it's easy. It's much easier to create content because you're creating content for a specific person. And so the niche— and I'm sure I call it niche drama. I'm sure you've encountered this, but that's a big block. That's a big mindset block. It's also really hard to conceptualize and understand, especially for people in health and wellness and personal development who are just like, I just want to help everyone and heal the world with intuitive eating and all these things. And it just you know, from a messaging and communication standpoint doesn't really work. So I think you could use a lot of help with that too, because I know personally it took me a lot of years to really be able to grasp like the concept of, you know, ideal client, niche, message, brand, like all those things that define you online.

Yeah. And I was actually talking to someone in my DMs earlier this week and she was saying something She's a health coach, a gut coach. And so she was— and I sent her your page, of course.

She DM'd me.

Thank you. Yeah, we were talking about this. We were talking about other coaches that are just talking about business coaching, which is more monetary, that aren't necessarily linked to health coaches. Right. And she was looking at other coaches that were not necessarily only serving health coaches, and she's like it's completely different. It's a completely different game. You are working with a coach who understands marketing as a health coach. Like, even that is a huge difference than someone who's like, I'm offering services and my service-based company messaging, all of the weird things, like all of the different things that's out there. So what makes someone know what type of coach when it comes to their business they need? Because there are generalized business coaches out there, and then there are sales and marketing coaches out there. What should someone like the person we— I'm talking about, like, what should be look— what should she be looking for?

I always think that you should invest in a mentor who has built the kind of business that you want to build. I think that is really helpful. And so I agree with you, health and wellness is very different. And, um, you know, even down to some of like the basic things around messaging and niching, If you're working with a general business coach as like a health and wellness coach, you're going to say something like, oh, I want a niche in helping people with their blood sugar. And then they're going to be like, oh yeah, that's super specific and that works. But like, I know that that's a root cause and regular people don't have the awareness of blood sugar. They want to lose weight. Right.

Right.

And so this is where health coaches go way off the rails, is they're niching in like the root cause. And that's not like— their human doesn't, hasn't really achieved that level of consciousness yet. Most people are focused on superficial issues just because they don't have the education. They didn't go to health coaching school. They probably don't even care about health and wellness. They just have this problem and they're looking for a solution. Right. So I think when it comes to health and wellness, personal development, like the whole kind of healer space, I think the person should have experience in that industry because I get people coming to me all the time. Where they were working with kind of more of a general. And it's not to say those people aren't good. I think they can still be helpful, and especially maybe later on in your business journey where you really understand online marketing, because then you can kind of get that more targeted approach. But you're totally right. In health and well, it is so different, and you're dealing with a very sensitive topic. It's not just selling business coaching. It's not just selling online products, right? It's people's health and wellness, which is personal, which is sensitive, and it is really confusing.

And I think it's really important. I think what you're saying is so important for us to remember that 9 times out of 10, I honestly believe this in most places, people aren't really aware of any of the root causes for anything that they're experiencing. They are just consumed, just like we have been. I always think about this when I started working with my health coach. The things that she's taught me, it was like, it's not that they're like so boom out of the window, like amazing. It's just like I had no awareness to know that that's something I should even look at. Like I had no clue. And I think it's the same kind of concept I have learned in my own business as well as growing is just realizing that, you know what, there are things in my business that I do not even know to look at. Yeah. Right? And if you are working with other people that are in the place that you want to be, obviously they figured it out. Obviously they figured it out. So for you, if you were to give like some high top tips mindset-wise, like one tip mindset someone would want to start working on or cultivating in their business as they're transitioning with chronic illness— and I say transitioning, as they're growing a business with chronic illness— what is the action steps that they need to embrace that this is a journey and not like a destination that's gonna happen tomorrow.

Yeah. Well, I would just say that everyone experiences mindset blocks at every stage of business. So I think one of the most important things that I find helpful for me and that I think can be helpful for anyone is just to learn how to feel it. Feel it.

Mm-hmm.

Because what we do is we distract, we suppress, like, and, and then like it keeps coming up and and it's not comfortable to feel your emotion. And maybe, yeah, you're feeling a lot of fear, like, can I do this? Or you're like imposter syndrome, like, who am I to help people? Because like, what do I know? Or whatever it is that you're experiencing. A lot of times we just want to avoid that, distract ourselves and not deal with it. But you will deal with it a lot faster and it will pass a lot faster if you just allow it to be there. And I know you mentioned on the podcast episode that we recorded about breathwork. I'm a big fan of breathwork. And just, you know, when I'm feeling those feelings, it's just like, okay, Okay, stop, lie down, sit down, go into the body. Where am I feeling this? Where is it? Where does it live? Sitting with it, feeling with it, and just allowing it to be. And that might take 5 or 10 minutes or even longer to just allow it to kind of do its thing. And then once I've kind of, you know, found it and allowed it, it's like at that point I might move into some meditation or some breathwork with it and start breathing into that space. But it's not comfortable. But I think that also serves you. If we can learn to sit with the discomfort of our emotions, then we can do the uncomfortable things in our business, because getting on a live video in a way is less scary than sitting with your anxiety.

For real. For real. For real. I totally 100% agree. Like, even if you haven't learned the, like, the scale of what that feels like being in your body, even if you think about it, if you're working with, like, a therapist and you have to get with your feelings, that is a lot harder. To do than to jump on a live on Instagram.

I'm straight up.

Totally.

It's completely a lot harder. I love that you just said that.

It is so true. And then it's like you survive that and you're like, oh, suddenly these other things don't seem so scary because I just got through that. And I think it's a big problem in our society, right? We're not given the tools and it's like, oh, you're feeling anxious? Go for a run. I'm like, well, okay, but like, sure, that's going to give you that runner's high and it'll make you feel good and it'll make you forget about it. But What if you just sat with it?

Yeah, you know. Yeah, yeah. So I love that you shared that. I have one— well, two more questions. Just one more question. So my one question is, do you think that running your business and living your life have to be separate?

No, because they're not. I don't know about this work-life balance thing. I haven't quite figured it out, you know. I feel like it just kind of— it's like this teeter-totter and it kind of just shifts, you know? And it's like, right now I'm a bit more work-focused. Now I'm a little bit more life-focused or whatever it is. And like, I just feel like I live a more rich life because of my business, because of the freedom and the flexibility that it gives me to do what I want when I want. And yeah, if I have a day where I'm tired, I just take the day off.

Yeah, yeah, we take it. We take the day and like just do what you need to do for yourself. Like, totally.

Exactly, exactly.

So what's the one thing that lights up in your business?

The one thing that lights me up is honestly just supporting my students. I love it. I love being on like live coaching calls and helping them work through things and answering questions like that to me is really fun.

Awesome.

Yeah.

Yeah. I think that's for most coaches. That's the thing that we love the most. And we could do that all day, every day. We would be happy. But then there's all this other stuff we gotta do. There's all this other stuff.

Yeah.

Anybody wants to connect with you, how can they find you? Hang out with you?

So Instagram is where I typically hang out. My handle is @KendraPerryInc. It's my handle across pretty much all social media platforms. I also have a podcast, The Wealthy Coach Podcast, which Nikita Williams was a guest on. So definitely check that out. And my website is KendraPerry.net.

Well, thank you so much for being on the show, Kendra, and I'm sure we're going to talk at another time.

Of course. Of course.

All right, y'all, that's a wrap. Thank you for listening, and I hope this conversation inspired you. Be sure to visit the website at craftedtothrive.com to check out the show notes and grab all the goodies that I or the guests mentioned in the show.

Join us for our next one.

In the meantime, remember, you are crafted to thrive.