Surviving the Side Hustle

Balancing Tech, Health, and Adventure: Kiara's Multifaceted Journey

• Coach Rob • Season 1 • Episode 60

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Have you ever wondered how some people manage to rise above extreme adversity and achieve greatness? Join us as we welcome Kiara, a truly exceptional guest, who shares her incredible journey from overcoming a severe back injury and an eating disorder during her high school years to thriving as a college student-athlete. Kiara's path didn't stop there—her adventures took her from the fast-paced environments of Wall Street and Capitol Hill to the exhilarating and dangerous world of professional bobsledding. Despite a traumatic brain injury from a bobsled crash in Switzerland, Kiara's resilience never wavered as she pivoted to new professional ventures, including working on the Trump 2020 presidential campaign.

We discuss the vital importance of preparing for life's inevitable challenges by establishing strong routines and maintaining self-awareness. Kiara opens up about her personal strategies, such as maintaining physical health, eating nutrient-dense foods, staying hydrated, and seeking meaningful human connections. We delve into how these habits can provide a stable foundation during turbulent times, and the significance of surrounding oneself with supportive individuals. Kiara shares insights on how seemingly minor issues can often be blown out of proportion and offers practical guidance on reframing such situations to maintain perspective and composure.

Kiara's journey of self-ownership and trailblazing in both her personal and professional life is nothing short of inspiring. She reveals how she balances her full-time tech role with a side hustle in health and nutrition, navigating the complexities of corporate partnerships and staying true to her mission. By emphasizing the value of proactive problem-solving and the empowerment that comes from making one's own path, this episode encourages listeners to recognize their unique contributions to the world. Tune in to hear Kiara's uplifting story and discover how you too can embrace resilience and continuous growth in your own life.

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Rob:

What's going on, guys? Today? Super busy day but super excited because squeezing in some extra time for my friend here and I'm glad that we got you on. How are you doing today?

Kiara:

Doing great. I think we're both living that busy life, so I feel that, but doing good yeah.

Rob:

Love it, love it, love it. So why don't we just dive right into it and kind of have you share a little bit about yourself, who it is that you help, problem that you solve, what brought you here, kind of thing?

Kiara:

Yeah, great questions. So excited to be here. Thanks for having me on Really identified this massive struggle in our existence today where people are waking up to this concept that we were really never taught how to take care of ourselves just from a basic, fundamental level, whether it's mind, soul, spirit, body. So what I've really done is kind of stepped in this space because I've figured out it's really cool to become who you needed about five to 10 years ago, and so my story really has been a crazy evolution working on Wall Street and Capitol Hill, also professional bobsledder and you name it. We've done it. So have been all over and really just had a remarkable exposure to people and their stories.

Kiara:

And throughout my time, whether it was in athletics or otherwise, I've approached things very similarly. It's always ask questions, figure out how you can iterate on what you're doing and bring other people along with you, because the experience is so much richer. And so growing up I was an athlete, worked, I guess, worked out kind of. Growing up I was an athlete, worked, I guess, worked out kind of, and really just played softball, volleyball, like all the typical sports, and then broke my back my senior year in high school, quite literally Broke two vertebrae, ended up having a terrible eating disorder and gained a ton of weight like a shit ton of weight.

Kiara:

We were 250, 240 going into college and stopped playing sports because I couldn't. Fortunately I wasn't paralyzed, but it was enough that I stopped playing sports and then went to school at the University of Louisville, out in Kentucky, and ended up walking onto the women's rowing team as a novice and then making varsity and ending up in NCAA championships my senior year. So it was this wild evolution of no structure to all of a sudden structure everywhere. Being a student athlete in a D1 program is pretty intense. So trying to juggle these things and figuring out truly how to develop grit which we can't develop unless we are in a position where we have to be gritty- so, kind of sharpened my edge there and ended up moving to Poland and working at the World Games, which is the counterpart to the Olympics.

Kiara:

All the weird-ass sports that nobody knows of, like pickleball and handball and aerial sports, are in the World Games. I went out there to Wroclaw, poland, and decided I wasn't done being an athlete. I still wanted to compete, and so I googled what sports you could make it to the Olympics and not have done your whole life, because I wanted to go big. I just wanted to play big games, and so my first result on Google was bobsled, and I had no clue what the fuck bobsled was, so I watched Cool Runnings and decided it was for me, and I also found out that bobsled hosts a combine similar to the NFL.

Kiara:

So I got a pair of sprint spikes had never done track or sprinted in my life and flew out to Park City, utah. And as soon as I got off the plane there was NBC Olympic coverage, because it was actually a winter Olympic cycle and they were interviewing these candidates at the combine, asking what qualified them to be there. Still out there somewhere in the universe all of these amazing athletes saying they were professional football players or former track athletes and they knew this was for them. And then it got to me and I very transparently said nothing in the world qualified me to be there at this combine. So I ended up not making it shocker.

Kiara:

However, I found the head coach for the U S bobsled team on Instagram and see university live in, and I shot him a DM and I said hey, I'll give you everything, I will move, I will give up my job, just let me be on the train with you, let me see if this is something I can do.

Kiara:

And he thought that was pretty interesting and said sure. So I moved out to the Olympic training center in Johnson city, tennessee, and trained with the most remarkable athletes and coaches in the world, ended up competing in the US, canada, europe and ultimately got a pretty traumatic brain injury in Switzerland Crashed at almost 130 kilometers an hour my head was the first thing to hit the ice. Yeah, good time. So kind of decided I'd rather remember my kids' names someday than chase this crazy ass dream. So about the same time I was working in tech and ended up actually working as a consultant for not bringing politics into this sales of sales but ended up actually securing the Trump 2020 presidential campaign as a media consultant, not actually hired internally, but as an external consultant moved to.

Kiara:

Washington DC and kind of spearheaded efforts for the company I was working for at the time. And then COVID happened and, you know, turned everything on its head, so ended up moving back to Colorado, which is where I'm from, and just deciding I wanted a hiatus. Washington DC was really gross to me on several levels. Sorry for anyone out there who's from DC. Really cool things out there, like the food, but like people by and large are not my people per se. So I moved back to Colorado and picked a spot on the map I wanted to move to with my dog and that was Bozeman, montana, and about that time met the love of my life and he is active duty military, so we were dating over distance. He was in Colorado, he got orders for Italy and so it's kind of do or die. We decided to get married, moved across the planet, moved to Italy and kind of found bodybuilding and got into Olympic weightlifting. I had done CrossFit before and just enjoyed it.

Kiara:

And then the Ukraine war kicked off and my husband was among a group that was deployed just for security purposes and I just was floundering. It was a terrible situation. I thought my husband was dead and I just wanted to come home and so I ended up packing up my dog, my poor baby, who has been around the world and back, and we moved back to Colorado two years ago and came back and just decided I want to compete in local events and kind of just see what's out there. So I ended up competing in Olympic weightlifting and placed in the state of Colorado several years in a row. Really enjoyed that Kind of dabbled in some powerlifting. And now we're doing bodybuilding and through that journey I've just realized what a staple movement was for me and overcoming a lot of our challenges. So at the end of the day, we have been married for three years, done two of them from 5,000 miles away. We have lost two children in that process.

Kiara:

I have thought my husband was dead on several occasions, just one thing after the next. And through it all I have realized that fitness was the one pillar I leaned on to start stacking momentum, to keep moving. And I think so many people don't realize that's even an option, because when shit hits the fan we sit on the couch, we reach for our comfort foods and we isolate and that's the last thing we need. So figuring out that even just going for a walk outside, getting some fricking sunshine and possible connection with other people just helps me get through those things. And through that I've really started tapping into education and different communities.

Kiara:

Where that is the MO, um, it's for me anyway and I certainly don't judge, but it's no longer going out with people and drinking and bar hopping and going out for, you know, ridiculous meals. It's how can we enjoy life together and pour into each other in a meaningful way? Um, and I've just wanted to develop a community where I can share that with other people. So my husband gets out of the military in two months. We are so close he's coming home.

Rob:

Um, I know.

Kiara:

I know we're very close.

Kiara:

So him, myself and my brother are actually building out a business, um, where we will work with some of these large tech giants and massive corporations that still have a work from home community post COVID and help them consult their employee base on how to just take care of yourself from a fundamental level.

Kiara:

So at this point I am still personal training and coaching, whether it's nutrition, lifestyle or training on a one-to-one basis. I love that because I love people. But I just realized, coming from that space that industry, big tech that there are a lot of employee benefits that cover your gym membership or whatever. Those are the same populations that don't even have basic motor control patterns down so that if they had to go in a gym they wouldn't know the first thing to do, it would feel really out of place and they don't even know how to eat to fuel that movement, um. So my focus is that group who has no fricking clue how to take care of themselves, um, and helping them just with basic fundamentals and then even more elite training if they are training for something in specific, but realizing that those are likely the parents of our next generation and the generation after that, and so teaching them how to fish and how to take care of themselves will ultimately trickle down and help kind of turn this problem around.

Kiara:

So I was long winded, but that's the story.

Rob:

No, I love it. That was great. That was like super, super exciting and you can definitely tell you're one of your drives is like adversity. You just take on different challenges and just can see that it just like fuels you would rather avoid them.

Rob:

I mean you're competitive and it sounds like you're doing a lot of things, choosing the challenges of like starting your business and a lot of other things too, like now you're into a little bit of bodybuilding and bringing on new clients, because just working in the client kind of industry, you're absorbing everybody else's challenges and struggles and things too, and you're trying to help them, guide them through those things. So that's really cool. I'm curious, where does that even come from? Where does your motivation fully come from? And you're trying to help them guide them through those things. So that's really cool. I'm curious, where does that even come from? Where does your motivation fully come from? Is it because of the back injury when you were in high school? Were you still competitive before that? Or is it just like you?

Rob:

just got a fire burning and you got to run.

Kiara:

I think it's a little bit of the latter. Most people who know me think I'm fucking psychotic, but I think it from a large part comes from my, my dad and my parents. They were business owners my entire childhood and were very successful in what they did and so really just painted this picture like life is what you make it, but you got to take it. It's never going to be handed to you. It's always going to be difficult. But on the other side of that difficult ideally are these wonderful things you can share with your community, your children, and really build the life you want. So I attribute a lot of that to them. But I think just kind of suppressing our life and comparing they're very different. No one in our family has athletic drive really, except for my brother to a degree. So I don't know. I think it's just like this weird thing I was born with and feel like I'm supposed to do something with.

Rob:

Well, I love it. It's awesome, it makes for a great story and sounds like a pretty awesome person. So, very cool, we try.

Rob:

You had mentioned something just a little while ago about how certain people kind of when they're not feeling the greatest or something goes wrong, they kind of seek comfort of sitting on the couch and chilling out. And I think that happens mostly the time because whatever they might be experiencing is so uncomfortable that they just seek whatever the closest kind of comfort is. And I'm in the same boat as you where I totally believe that you need to be pushing your comfort zone as often as you can within reason. You don't want to push too far, but you do want to expand that, because when your comfort zone is expanded you become more comfortable with other things and that levels out a lot of the emotions and just problems.

Rob:

So for me, my number one coaching principle when I'm working with different individuals, entrepreneurs at different stages and such, it's about pushing that comfort zone, accepting the challenge, seeking some of the challenge, whether it's mental or physical, to really help them start looking good and moving on and doing better things. Absolutely, really help them start looking good and moving on and doing better things. So I love that you're diving in with that there, can you? I'll go ahead.

Kiara:

No, I was going to say, and I think a lot of that work, the training for adversity, is what we have the privilege of doing when things are calm, when we don't have that adversity. So it is going out and choosing the hard stuff so that when real hard stuff shows up, you already have your baseline, you have your routine, you know the checklist for what you need to do and what makes you feel good before that ever happens. So you're ready. I love that.

Rob:

Yeah, so I love it. You just said there that you have the checklist that you can kind of like refer to and kind of move on. What is your like checklist? When you say that, what does that mean for you?

Kiara:

Yeah, so like when I'm dealing with adversity or just generally.

Rob:

Yeah, when something's not going as planned or maybe it's going the wrong way or whatever, what do you kind of? What is the checklist that you go through to yourself?

Kiara:

Yeah. So I think in some of these amazing conversations I've had, like I just want to differentiate, like the flat tire shit which is manageable it sucks, your day is going to turn upside down, but it's manageable versus like life altering things which I think a lot of people are going through right now. I mean, you take a look left and right and people are getting laid off, going through divorce, losing children, like it's really life changing things. So for me, I really like to articulate this is a principle I use in my life. Whether it is the flat tire or it's a life altering event. I realized really quickly, like what I need. So sometimes I and this is self-awareness, I know it's a foreign concept to people now Um, I really try to check in with myself Like, do I need to add energy or do I need to chill the heck out? Like, because those are two different responses by and large. However, my routine never changes and when I show up for my routine, so the worst things that have happened to me. So one thing I skipped over I was sexually assaulted in DC. I, like I said, lost two children. Like all of these terrible things, I have showed up to the gym every day, the day after it happened, whatever it was. Is that always the right answer? Looking back at some of the medical things, I don't know. Probably not. However, whether it was sitting on the ground and crying or getting through a half-assed workout, that was the first win. I needed to start stacking momentum, and so it's checking in with just the little things to take care of ourselves, even when they're not pleasant.

Kiara:

So, when you are going through hell and you want comfort, so you reach for that food that really just makes you feel good, even though you know it's not good for you. But you're going through something, so it's okay. Like. What we don't realize is that we are stressed to the max when something happens. Our cortisol is shot through the roof. Our body is inflamed, it's not absorbing nutrients. If you're shaking, if you feel that buzzing of stress, do not put something in your mouth. It's more sitting and letting your body calm down and then putting in those nutrient dense foods, because we fix and we heal ourselves from the gut out, and so if your gut, if your body's in a good place, you're moving, you're getting your sunshine, you're drinking your water, you're eating your food, first off, you feel like an empowered badass because you have your stuff in check and you're taking control of the situation. Second, you're actually fueling and giving yourself what you need to get through this as the person you need to be. Like we fog ourselves when we're eating these inflammatory foods and not drinking water, not getting outside, like we just get this mental fog on top of all the stress that's already there.

Kiara:

So for me it's just checking off those basic lifestyle principles that I live by and then trying to expose myself to something or someone that I need. So I really believe in connection, human connection. I have my people, I have my tribe that when I'm going through something and can't remember who I am, they're the ones to remind me. Like you need those people in your life. So like true connection. And then books, documentaries, like whatever I know. Like it's a big thing right now for people to watch murder mysteries and whatever else, but like truly inspiration is something that starts in the soul. So like if you can expose yourself to literature or movies or something that is going to lift your mood, not further compile the shit, then you're you're setting yourself up for success. So those are the things that I lean on.

Rob:

Yeah, you just gave me a ton. I've like wrote down a bunch of notes here and trying to uh, I'm also trying to decide on where to go with our conversation here, because I want to bring this in a couple of different directions, um, but I I guess I want to go back to, uh, cause you mentioned self-awareness and you talked about the flat tire situation versus the life altering situations. Yeah, and this might not be for everybody, but I know for myself certain individuals that I come in contact with and I'm totally a victim or at fault for this too, blowing certain things out of proportion. So what do you say, or how do you handle or how do you help or teach somebody who might be looking at flat tire situations as life-altering situations? How do you reframe that or how do you help them shine the light on that?

Kiara:

Yeah. So I think that that is like a half step back, removed from the situation. When you're in that situation and trying to sort everything out in your mind, it's a little late for you to change your perception about your life. For me, it starts with removing the victim mentality. Life is not happening to you. It is happening for you. Is a flat tire, a blessing? No, but maybe there's something in it that's going to help you. So that's the first thing for me take control of your life and realize you're not a victim Like you're going to be fine and you are in control of the situation. Second is realizing your problem is not an isolated problem, whatever it is Like, if it is life altering or if it's your flat tire. Someone has gone through this before and you know what. They've been okay, so is it inconvenient? Sure. However, look at your track record. Like you're sitting here today, I'm sitting here today. There has not been a single circumstance I haven't overcome, and same for you.

Kiara:

So it's reminding yourself like all right, here's my track record. Like this is nothing. Like I went through X, y, z, we can figure this, the fuck out.

Rob:

Yeah, oh yeah, love that. That was great, awesome it's.

Kiara:

One of my favorite movies is that Silver Lining playbook, but that just kind of like showed me that you're always looking for the silver lining in different things and situations Like honestly, you never know who you're going to meet in that interaction too, and for me I try to remember this is super conceited sounding. But like what if that person who comes to help me need something from me or needs me today, and so I show up as the best version of myself as often as I can, because you truly never know? Like yeah, my flat tire maybe is an issue for me, but maybe this person stopping to help me or AAA rep is going through hell and their life is upside down and all they need is a positive interaction today because everyone else has been an asshole to them. So it's like just remembering like life is bigger than you in this one situation.

Rob:

Yeah, oh yeah. So good Love that you had mentioned that you pretty much stick to your routine no matter what, and I really love routines. I'm all through it morning routine, really, really powerful stuff. But recently a good friend and mentor of mine, brett Bartholomew he told me that he because was talking about how, like I do my gratitude practice, I do my Spanish in the morning, I do this and then all of a sudden I'm waking up at like because I gotta get up.

Rob:

Yeah, like like before that, even when I was like training for things, I'm like, oh, I gotta get my workout in before everything. So I'm getting up at like 2, 30 ish and I'm like this is insane. And then if I don't get something done in that routine, if something were to throw me off, it's almost like if I was traveling for a workshop or something like that. Everything's gone to chaos and then nothing gets done. And Brett was just like dude, you got to have the things that you want to do, but you can't be a slave to your routine. What?

Rob:

do you want to say about that though. Yeah, I'm gonna say about that though, because I'm big into the routines. But what I'm working through now for my personal life is it's okay to not have to hit every single thing to have a good day still absolutely so, like the way.

Kiara:

So my days are chaos right now. I don't typically wake up this early, but like right now, with the schedule, I have waking up about 4 or four, 30, somewhere in there. I also go to bed at eight, so it's not like I'm not sleeping. What I do is look at the buckets of my life. I have ultimate priority on so my marriage, always first and foremost, no matter how busy it is. I will carve out time, because all I get with my husband is about an hour of FaceTime a day. So I need to be intentional with that time and make the most of it and show up in the way I need to for him and vice versa. Two is my business. So I know it is my side hustle right now, but it is a priority to me and I'm not ashamed to claim that. So my morning routines that support that and feed into me showing up as the best wife I can and furthering my business mission, those are always going to take precedence. Outside of that, like the fluff and like the other things, like whether it's your meditation, whether it's this, whether it's that, those are all really nice to have and they should be your baseline. But just like I preach to nutrition clients, when you hop off the wagon, when you stop with whatever we're used to, what our baseline is, you don't throw in the towel and just throw everything out with the kitchen sink. You get back on and you show up the best you can. Because when we throw everything else away because we're missing this one thing or we mess up this other thing, it is like getting a flat tire and slashing your other three. There's no reason like just get back on it and maybe if you need to get up earlier the next day, do that, or if you need to at night, do that.

Kiara:

But much like training, nutrition, whatever, like lifestyle principles. We are human and life is going to happen. We're going to have to travel, we're going to have massive loss, we're going to have complications, good or bad, that are going to throw us out of the swing. So you just recognize what do I need to get in on a daily basis, no matter what. You have your non-negotiables. For me that's movement, water and most of the time my menu like. Sometimes I can be flexible, figure out solutions, but like water, movement, ideally sunshine. Sunshine does a lot. So like have your non-negotiables. Everything else is super nice to have, could be your day to day, but just be flexible when life happens.

Rob:

Love that. Yeah, some great input there. Great value too. Yeah, you were talking a little bit about before how the importance of human connection for you and you mentioned how you know who your tribe is. So with my clients, my number five principle is social support and making sure that you know who your team triangle is. So if you'd be open to it, would you mind kind of running me through your team triangle? I'll explain that for you. So team triangle, you kind of think of it, at the very top there is the coaches. So who are some coaches or mentors or role models that you currently are looking up to? That you might be reflecting your life or your business after.

Kiara:

Yeah, so I have like the, the touchable people like they're, they're close enough to touch, like I know them on a personal basis. That would be my bodybuilding coach, hamza Sayyed, that would be my posing coach, who's also a mindset coach. And then there are a couple people in my circle who I just think are the most badass killers out there, maybe in a different arena or similar ones. Either way, I like their approach, I like how they know me as a person and how they will hold me to a high standard. So I know that those are my people at the top that I can touch. Outside of that, I look up to Dana Lynn Bailey, who is first Miss Olympia. She made it really okay for women to have muscles in early 2000s and took a lot of heat for it. I look up to Joe Dis dispenza in the mindset space and, like some of those people who really have philosophy I ascribe to and try to adopt for myself. So that's probably my top of the triangle cool.

Rob:

Um, yeah, usually when I do this as a quick exercise, it's usually like one or two people at the top got it. So that's for coaches. I mean, that's perfect how you went with it, but just for Got it anytime you need anything. Yeah, great question.

Kiara:

I have a couple of friends who are very similar mindset, hold a very high standard in their life and we kind of go back and forth Like you're not always the one leaning, Sometimes you're the one getting leaned on. So like those are the people that I know are on the same mental wavelength as me, they're on the same standard of life that I am. It includes my husband really to a degree, my brother to a degree, and then my close girlfriends who are in very similar niches both professionally and athletically.

Rob:

Awesome, love that. And then the bottom tier, or bottom, not bottom tier, but the next level down in the team triangle I like to go with, like the crowd. So who's there cheering you on? But a little bit from a distance, they're not right there on the field with you. Uh, this is, I guess, where do you spend most of your time? I'm guessing at the gym. But other than the gym, where else do you find yourself in, like social settings?

Kiara:

Yeah, so a lot of it's the gym right now. Um, I do travel for work, so I will travel out to California and New York and all over Germany all that fun stuff. So like I'll be out there for that. By and large, that isn't necessarily an audience that's totally exposed to my like true self, like my side hustle self. They see me in a tech role, so it's a little different, but they're still cheering me on and those are the same people that will come and ask for advice and input on health and nutrition. So they are client peers. But outside of that, the remainder of my family, I think they really admire my path, but they don't totally get it. They're still there cheering. And then, to a degree, I've really invested in my brand on social and have developed amazing relationships with people who I may not know super well but man, they are so faithful to show up to cheer me on, to engage with content and I'd like to think that's because I provide value, but they're just awesome people. So that's that level.

Rob:

Oh, I love that. That's awesome. So talk to me a little bit about the business, because you are mentioning that it's currently just in like the side hustle stage, which, by the way, side hustle is not a dirty word. I think it's awesome. Multiple projects at once, it's great, yeah, but tell me, where are you at currently with your business?

Kiara:

Yeah, so we are in early stages. I've spent a lot of time in the last few months just getting really clear. Personal training seems like a really low hanging fruit, so kind of starting there. But just from a business case standpoint, really high manual labor input, very time, expensive and really low return. And that's not the game I typically like to play. I typically like to play, so kind of just took a look and really realized a lot of these corporations, like I said, are offering this health benefit which is $30 a month for a gym membership.

Kiara:

Talking to people that I work with, nobody uses it because no one goes to a gym and so it's really developing this concept to bring to market around end of the year. This year I just want to be really strategic about what our tiered offerings are, what our service offerings are, looking at strategic partnerships and kind of trying to navigate do I want to partner with someone in open as a subsidiary of theirs, or do I want a separate entity, full control but also full risk exposure, which would mean developing like backend UI for an app to have differentiated by organization, so we can start building those communities actually within the organization itself. So really in this kind of testing, conversation, prospecting, research phase. Yeah, so we're. We're still early.

Kiara:

However, conversations are going really quickly and I think that there are several people out there who have kind of thought of this concept but don't know how to speak both languages, between personal training, health and nutrition, and the corporate space. So I just partnered up with first form, um and and like working with them on personal training side but trying to explore because they have some initiatives too for corporate wellness training, but it's also being really strategic there. So, more behind the curtain, strategy wise, like they completely align with my brand, my values, where I stand, my approach to grit and tenacity, like everything aligns with me. What I'm trying to determine is do I want to open something in conjunction with them, knowing that they have a public figure speaking out on one end of the political spectrum which I align with? However, knowing big tech, that is not the political affiliation of the lion's share of that industry. So, like just a lot of these conversations around like, okay, how do we strategically move forward in the most efficient and effective way possible?

Rob:

Yeah, yeah, cause it's tough. You don't want to cause in a certain way. You do want like a little bit of friction so you can kind of get rolling, but you don't want friction where it kind of like prevents and slows a lot of things down, and you want to be able to, kind of like still have a great reach and connect with individuals and obviously provide a great service for these individuals too.

Kiara:

Right and I think for me, just coming from a very quick moving sales background, like my mind operates like what is our quickest MVP? Like how can we get dollars in the door? Now? My husband and my brother are a little bit more analytical, so they're like all right, well, yeah, but let's figure this out first.

Kiara:

So we're like managing this crazy dynamic and I think it's really healthy to have that friction internally where you have voices representing different approaches. But it is a lot of figuring out. And if you were asked me, like we could go sell a contract next week and looking at the value for some of these, just based off of what allotment these companies are giving for gym memberships, like we could start generating a lot of cashflow very quickly, but is it going to provide the most impact to that group? Which is my why, and I think a lot of us get lost on the why because we are thinking about cashflow, we are thinking about risk, exposure and partnerships, but always funneling it back to that why, which, for me, is educating people how to take care of themselves and instilling these principles, and I don't think I could do that in an effective way unless I have the groundwork laid.

Rob:

Yeah, so you said something interesting there about always making sure that you direct it back to your why and, like you said, it is pretty easy to kind of lose sight of that. So how do you continue to remind yourself of the why? Do you have like a certain check-in with brother and your husband where you're like, okay, hey, this is the meeting where we're like, hey, are we focusing, are we on track with what we want to be doing, or is there something more personal that you're doing?

Kiara:

Yeah. So a little bit of both, kind of going back to self-awareness, which is a rare commodity. I don't know if you're religious or not. I pray a lot and my biggest prayer through all of this is do not let my ego get in the way of my mission here. And so I have had people reach out for photo shoots and this and that, and my ego loves it. It's like hell, yeah, let's go. Same with cashflow next week. Like let's go, I can prove it to you, like I can do this. But then it's like this check, and I'm assuming you probably get this. Some people may or may not.

Kiara:

We have a brain here and we have one in our gut and typically things align for us, things flow. We're in that flow state. Things just magically happen for us when we are operating from that gut, like when we are following our true core value and what we feel like we're supposed to do. When we operate from this brain or the ego, it's definitely weird friction. It doesn't really totally feel right, like you're kind of just trying to force this thing to happen because you want it to happen.

Kiara:

So that's been something that we've actually overcome on multiple occasions. I had a photographer reach out and want to do like a branding shoot. That turned into like a Playboy shoot and I was like, wait a second, like yeah, this would be cool, but it's like I want everything that I do to be something I could show a little girl and that does not pass that filter for me, or go no and like, do I need a photo shoot for branding content on that level? No, and so it's making these decisions from a very core, aligned place and then having people who check you on your shit. So my husband does that, my brother does that and we typically try to just steer back to that core mission in that core. Why?

Rob:

yeah, yeah, I love that. I, um, I, uh. I try to use the. I created an acronym for flag and I like flying your pirates flag and I do this often to just make sure that I'm dialed back in. I use F as like the foundational value.

Rob:

So like what do I hold most important to myself? And making sure that I'm when I do a reflection process, am I aligned with those values? L is my like lifestyle traits. So what makes me unique? Favorite color things like that clothes, food, like the fun things, like TV shows are like? Are these the like that clothes, food, like the fun things, like TV shows are like? Are these the things that are continuing to stay true to me? Is that still what I enjoy listening to? And stuff like that?

Rob:

A is my aspiration, so that's checking in with my goals, reminding myself like, hey, is that really where I want to go or has that changed? Do I want to set new targets or whatever it may be? And then G is my growth opportunity. So doing like a little mini SWOT analysis what are my strengths and weaknesses and kind of figuring things out for that, because then that helps me delegate certain things that I am not necessarily the best at or maybe don't have the time for, and since implementing that little framework as a reflection process for myself, recently I hired a small team of virtual assistants. That really helped me out with a lot of the tech and stuff that I can't like, I don't have time to kind of do for social media and things like that.

Kiara:

Are you naturally like a good delegator? Is that hard for you?

Rob:

or is that hard for you? I mean, I don't know, I think I'm still pretty new to it. So I think I don't have a problem with delegating a lot of things. It's just I might almost get caught up on making sure that I'm clear enough with what I'm trying to express. So sometimes if it's difficult for me to communicate what I'm trying to say, then I almost just kind of like, okay, I'll just grunt it out and do this myself.

Kiara:

Nevermind.

Rob:

Yeah, I'll just. I'm over here, I'm just like bang, bang, bang, bang on the keyboard trying to do it myself, and then once I once I realized like hey, I just say what I'm trying to say, that might help out.

Kiara:

Yep, delegation is a very difficult one for me. Like I think I am, to a degree, like a perfectionist or I want things to come across a certain way. So when I hand off responsibility, it's like okay, what if they don't do it right? And one of the biggest things learning curve wise for me and juggling all of the things on my plate right now is like it's not an option, like I have to offload some of these. But the coolest thing for me is learning that, like bringing people along with you and giving them a role in this mission is actually a gift to people, um, if they want to come along. Like not forcing people, but like my brother and my husband, like my husband and I have a completely different dynamic. That is really cool right now because we are a team. Like it is not him watching me do all of this, it's him figuring out how to help and taking things off the plate.

Rob:

So, like delegation is one I'm working on and it's hard yeah, process, but like anything, you just kind of work at it a little bit more and you can kind of get a little bit better. At least that's what I'm telling myself with this. Yeah, yeah. So I do want to be courteous of our time here. You said you've got your social following. How do other people get in touch and how do they find you and stay up to date with what you've got going on?

Kiara:

Yeah, instagram is actually the best route right now. We're launching our website here by end of the month, so we'll be up soon. It'll be kiaracom. But as far as just staying in touch, getting your daily nutrition, health, lifestyle tips, I try to put as much value out there as I can, because I know not everyone can afford a coach. So follow me on Instagram and stay tuned for website launch.

Rob:

And what's your Instagram handle again?

Kiara:

It is at KikiaraLoo, so K-I-K-I-A-R-A underscore L-O-U.

Rob:

Perfect, awesome and hey, I know it's got these busy lives a lot of things going on, juggling a lot of projects but I'm really appreciated that you were able to take some time today and kind of sit down and chat with me a bit here, wrote down a ton of things here, I got a couple of people that I want to try to introduce to you and I feel like this was really valuable and great and I hope the listeners got a lot out of it as much as I did or half as much as I did.

Kiara:

Well, thank you, I stole your flag, so I'm going to take this.

Rob:

Yeah, yeah, go. Oh well, thank you, I stole your flag, so I'm going to take this. Yeah, yeah, go for it. It's cool. But before I let you roll, though, I got to ask you if you were to boil everything down, because I know we talked a little bit about self-awareness. We talked about kind of pushing the boundaries on the comfort zone. We talked about your social setting and people around you. Take it all, take it all out and boil it down to one piece of advice. What would that one piece of advice you'd give somebody to help them survive the side hustle?

Kiara:

Yeah, recognize that you're a gift to people. I think a lot of us will see our side hustle as selfish or our pursuits in athletics as selfish. But no, look around, there's nobody trailblazing on anything right now. Like, yes, there are, like hey brother, like, look at us, go. But as far as the general population, there are so few examples of what it looks like to take ownership of your life, to create the life you want, to pursue, things that excite you and challenge you. So be that person and, um, just realize you got to take it. You got to make it yourself.

Rob:

Boom Love that. That was awesome. Thank you so much for that and again, thank you so much for taking the time today. It really means a lot to me.

Kiara:

Oh, vice versa. What a fun conversation. Thanks for having me on, rob.

Rob:

All right, we'll have to have you all back sometime soon, and that's it for us guys. Peace, peace.