When it comes to building a personal brand do you ever think to yourself, “How will I ever stand out in this crowded marketplace?”
Maybe you started doing something because you were passionate about it and now you realize you have to create a personal brand.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Fitness Icon, Kim Lyons, and she is the absolute perfect example of taking your passion and turning it into not only a business but a successful, well- known personal brand. She shares her experiences from being chosen as a trainer on hit show, The Biggest Loser (it’s not all that it’s cracked up to be), to gracing fitness covers, over-coming injuries and competing on some tough stages. Her words of guidance and insight are guaranteed to not only inspire you, but will lead you in your own journey to becoming an icon in your industry.
The fitness industry is a billion dollar industry with tons of competition-it takes personality, courage, and stamina to stay at the top! Believe it or not, at the beginning of her journey, Kim was on the path to become an airline pilot. It didn’t take long for her to realize that this was not her passion and, therefore, not her path. Shortly thereafter, Kim was working the desk at her local gym, when she started training with one of the trainers at the gym, alongside another woman who was training for a fitness competition. After weeks of training and comparing the results of her training partners to her own results, she knew that the nutrition aspect of training was something that she wanted to become more educated in. This was the beginning of Kim’s lifelong passion for fitness and nutrition.
In the following years, she became a fitness competitor, nutrition expert, began writing for fitness magazines, became a trainer on “The Biggest Loser”, and eventually opened her own fitness studio and created her own line of training gear that is seen in major retailers across the country.
One of the most important things that Kim shared during our interview, was that it doesn’t happen overnight!
It takes years of hard work, missteps, failures, networking, and hard work to navigate to the top of your industry.
As scary as it can be, failure is part of the game when it comes to creating your personal brand.
You can’t fear failure. Failure isn’t the end, it’s the start. If you don’t fail, then you aren’t pushing yourself as far as you can.
In Kim’s journey, there were many projects that failed to come to fruition after years of hard work and planning. Instead of letting these failures bring her down, she recognizes that without these other projects not going as planned, she would have never created her own line or opened her own studio.
This is such a powerful lesson in trusting the process, trusting that everything happens for a reason, and knowing that every “failure” is actually the universe setting you up for something far greater than you ever imagined!
Sitting down with Kim and hearing her story first hand was such an honor and an inspiring opportunity for me. I encourage you to watch her full interview below, as well as check out her website and line of fitness gear.
If you are feeling inspired and encouraged to build your brand and be who you want to be in this world, or if you had an “Aha!” moment watching this interview, please leave your thoughts and comments below!
Until next time Dream it. Live it. BE it!
