Lori Harder: The Art of Pivoting, How to Reinvent Yourself in Business and Life | E310

0:00:05 Today’s episode is sponsored in part by Teachable, Fundrise, Mint Mobile, Working Genius, Indeed,
0:00:06 and Shopify.
0:00:11 Teachable makes it easy for creators to monetize their content with full control.
0:00:15 Head to teachable.com and use code “PROFITING” to claim your free month on their pro-paid
0:00:16 plan.
0:00:20 Grow your real estate investments in minutes with the Fundrise flagship fund.
0:00:26 Add the Fundrise flagship fund to your portfolio with as little as $10 at fundrise.com/profiting.
0:00:29 Save big on wireless with Mint Mobile.
0:00:35 Get your new three-month premium wireless plan for just $15 a month at mintmobile.com/profiting.
0:00:39 Unlock your team’s potential and boost productivity with Working Genius.
0:00:44 Get 20% off the $25 Working Genius assessment at workinggenius.com with code “PROFITING”
0:00:46 at checkout.
0:00:49 Attract interview and hire all in one place with Indeed.
0:00:53 Get a $75 sponsored job credit at indeed.com/profiting.
0:00:55 Terms and conditions apply.
0:00:59 Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you grow your business.
0:01:04 Sign up for a $1 per month trial period at Shopify.com/profiting.
0:01:08 As always, you can find all of our incredible deals in the show notes.
0:01:13 Money allows you to walk out of situations that you don’t want to be in.
0:01:16 My husband couldn’t understand why I would quit something that was making really great
0:01:17 money.
0:01:23 We went from zero to a million dollars in about 13 months.
0:01:27 I’m a wellness and fitness person, but I love wine, but I want something lighter.
0:01:30 And I was like, this is a huge opportunity.
0:01:32 And so I had started raising the $2 million for that.
0:01:34 Now we did not see COVID coming.
0:01:35 I felt like a failure.
0:01:40 I had an investor who was like, I can’t believe that I invested in this.
0:01:44 It is a leader and founders job.
0:01:48 To consistently paint the vision even when you can’t even see it.
0:02:10 Young and Peropters, welcome back to the show.
0:02:14 And today we’re really lasering in on pivoting.
0:02:18 Pivoting is something that us entrepreneurs are going to have to deal with at one point
0:02:19 or another.
0:02:24 Because entrepreneurship is never a straight line to success.
0:02:25 It’s a rocky road.
0:02:28 We might fall out of love with our business.
0:02:31 We might find another opportunity that seems more lucrative.
0:02:34 We might have a business that fails.
0:02:35 So many startups fail.
0:02:39 It’s so hard to even just launch the right idea.
0:02:42 Whatever it is, pivoting is something we’ve got to get used to and got to get used to
0:02:44 doing with grace.
0:02:48 And there’s no better person to talk to us about this than Lori Harder.
0:02:49 Lori Harder is a serial entrepreneur.
0:02:51 She’s a best-selling author, speaker.
0:02:56 She’s also the host of the super popular podcast called Earn Your Happy, which is now in my
0:03:00 Yap Media podcast network, which I’m very excited about.
0:03:03 And Lori has such an incredible story.
0:03:07 She’s been pivoting and transforming her entire life.
0:03:11 She started out as a very obese overweight child who got teased.
0:03:19 And she transformed into a fitness model, fitness influencer, and fitness three-time champion.
0:03:21 Talk about a transformation.
0:03:27 She then pivoted from the fitness world to the self-improvement and entrepreneurship world.
0:03:33 She then pivoted into podcasting, and now she’s pivoted into live events and DTC products,
0:03:39 even pivoting her first product from an alcohol brand to a skincare brand.
0:03:44 Lori has so much information to share when it comes to pivoting with grace.
0:03:46 And I can’t wait to get into it with you guys.
0:03:50 Without further delay, here’s my conversation with Lori Harder.
0:03:53 Lori, welcome to Young and Profiting Podcast.
0:03:55 I’m so excited to be here.
0:03:57 I can’t wait to chat with you.
0:03:58 Likewise.
0:04:00 I love chatting with my girlfriends.
0:04:04 And Lori, I thought I knew a lot about you, but it turns out I didn’t know much about
0:04:09 you once I started studying all your work and your life.
0:04:15 And I found out that when you were a child, you were actually pretty overweight.
0:04:20 And that was so surprising to me because I’ve always known you as somebody who’s super fit.
0:04:22 You’ve been a fitness model in the past.
0:04:26 And I just had no idea that you had this transformation.
0:04:30 So I’d love to understand what was it like for you as a kid?
0:04:33 How did that actually shape who you are as an entrepreneur today?
0:04:40 Oh, my gosh, coming from a family that it really stemmed from all of our joy came from connecting
0:04:41 over food.
0:04:48 It was just as far as I can remember back all of our extracurricular time when we were
0:04:53 sad, when we were happy, when we were bored, we connected over food.
0:05:00 And I remember having a really loving childhood as far as family and parents go.
0:05:06 But also there was a lot of pain that’s connected to when you use food as a crutch.
0:05:10 Because when I think about my mom, my sister and all of my mom’s sisters who she had four
0:05:13 sisters, there was a lot of anxiety.
0:05:15 There was a lot of depression.
0:05:17 There was a lot of health issues.
0:05:19 There was a lot of self loathing.
0:05:22 So it was kind of a mix of everything.
0:05:27 And for me, having those moments as a young kid, I remember when I was eight or nine years
0:05:28 old.
0:05:33 It was the first time I realized, oh, this is going to be a little bit painful being
0:05:35 in this body.
0:05:40 I got invited to a pool party with a bunch of friends in my church.
0:05:43 And I remember having such a massive crush on this one kid.
0:05:49 I was that kid who was so outgoing before this, even before this moment, which we’ll
0:05:50 chat about in a second.
0:05:54 But I was always, oh, my gosh, look at my dance moves.
0:05:55 Look at this dance I made up.
0:05:56 Record me.
0:05:58 Somebody put a camera on me.
0:06:00 This is who my personality was at the core.
0:06:05 And so I remember going to this pool party, and I got this new swimsuit because the love
0:06:07 of my life was going to be there.
0:06:13 And I could not wait to go up on this diving board and show it off and do this pool flip.
0:06:16 And I remember walking up one of my best friends at the time.
0:06:18 She was super skinny.
0:06:22 She was climbing up the ladder in front of me and looking at her legs going, oh my god.
0:06:26 Being that young going, oh, I wish I could be that thin.
0:06:28 And all the boys liked her.
0:06:34 And I get up on the diving board and I can hear the kids, my friends chanting something.
0:06:39 And they’re saying whale over and over and over again.
0:06:45 And I just remember standing on the edge of the diving board and having that moment of
0:06:46 I want to hide.
0:06:52 And so I went from this really outgoing, look at me, can’t wait to perform.
0:06:53 I want to sing.
0:06:54 I want to dance.
0:06:57 I want to start to start to hide because of my body.
0:07:02 And I remember being under the water though and thinking, literally, I’m not going to
0:07:03 let this happen to me.
0:07:10 And so even though I was really young, I started thinking, is there a way that I could have
0:07:13 this not be my destiny?
0:07:18 So fast forward to being about 11 or 12 years old, I was sitting at the table with all of
0:07:19 my aunts.
0:07:25 Again, a really loving family, but a lot of struggle around weight, thinking that this
0:07:27 was our genetics.
0:07:30 And we were all sitting around eating at a family get together.
0:07:34 And they had known that I started working out, just doing some exercising at home, doing
0:07:35 exercise videos.
0:07:41 And they’re like, just wait, you’ll be fat just like us, no matter what you do.
0:07:47 And in that moment, I remember rejecting it again, like, no, this can’t be, this can’t
0:07:48 be genetics.
0:07:52 Because what they’re saying to me is this is just how you are and it’s who you are.
0:07:59 And it just led me on this lifelong journey of searching for other people to learn how
0:08:01 they were being healthy and fit.
0:08:05 And as a teenager, I would beg my mom to buy me fitness magazines when we go to the grocery
0:08:06 store.
0:08:13 And those were the first times that I was able to understand that I’m reading what they
0:08:18 eat and how they live, because they would post their schedules and things in these different
0:08:19 magazines.
0:08:21 And I was like, we’re not doing that.
0:08:28 So that was the moment for me of, wow, certain ways of living get certain results.
0:08:33 And our way of living is getting one result, but it was this moment of the work is hard.
0:08:38 It’s challenging to be healthy and get the things that you want.
0:08:42 And so that was the catalyst for all of that in the fitness world.
0:08:44 It’s so amazing.
0:08:48 And I love what you’re saying in terms of the fact that when you were younger, before
0:08:54 you got this external feedback from your peers, you were who you are today.
0:08:58 An outgoing girl who loves to be on stage, who loves to shine, who loves the attention,
0:09:03 you get the external feedback and suddenly you’re like a shell of yourself.
0:09:08 So talk to us about the things that you did when you were a child that isolated you and
0:09:13 then how once you were a teen and got out of the house that you were able to pull yourself
0:09:14 out of that.
0:09:17 Well, I think there were a couple other reasons for isolating as well.
0:09:20 So I had that and then I grew up in a more restrictive religion.
0:09:24 So we weren’t allowed to associate with anyone outside of our religion.
0:09:25 So take a small town.
0:09:26 I’m from Upper Michigan.
0:09:28 I’m from Marquette, Michigan.
0:09:30 It’s a fairly small town in Upper Michigan.
0:09:32 You’re surrounded by the woods.
0:09:36 Anything close to that really resembles a city is about three hours away.
0:09:41 So taking a small town and making it smaller by only being allowed to associate with people
0:09:47 in your congregation and your religion, we had approximately around 110 people in our
0:09:48 church growing up.
0:09:52 So I wasn’t allowed to do any extracurriculars and I wasn’t allowed to do anything with anyone
0:09:55 in school or quote unquote, “worldly people.”
0:10:00 So for me, I think the hiding also started because I was going to school, an elementary
0:10:05 school and middle school, but because there wasn’t a whole lot of different kids in Upper
0:10:08 Michigan, like there wasn’t a lot of diversity up there.
0:10:14 I remember one African-American student in my entire school career.
0:10:19 And so it’s like, you’re also abnormal if you’re not celebrating holidays and you can’t
0:10:24 do the art projects in art and you can’t date and you can’t go and spend the night at people’s
0:10:27 house and you can’t go to their house after school.
0:10:31 And so I got made fun of a lot in school and I started to get panic attacks.
0:10:38 So then I labeled myself because my mom was also experiencing these things and I labeled
0:10:42 myself as someone who has panic attacks and I labeled myself as an anxious person.
0:10:50 And I just started isolating more and more and more and it became a much bigger challenge
0:10:54 for me as I was older to try to work through those things because you gain an awareness
0:11:00 that once you’re out in the real world, you’re not going to function well if you can’t connect
0:11:02 with other people.
0:11:09 And so my entire life’s work has been, how does a girl who came from a restrictive religion
0:11:13 who isn’t allowed to associate with anyone else who did not have any other network because
0:11:19 I ended up leaving that religion at 18 into a world of no friends, really.
0:11:25 I had a couple from my religion who also left, but that didn’t go well for that more us either.
0:11:29 When you’re held like a spring and you let go, it’s like we had a disastrous life for
0:11:30 a few years there.
0:11:34 It was drinking and partying and it just was not a great experience.
0:11:37 So how do you build a network?
0:11:39 How do you overcome anxiety?
0:11:44 How do you even start to dream when you’ve never seen the possibility in your social
0:11:49 circle of what is possible for you because it’s never been in your social circle?
0:11:53 And how do you create an entirely new identity outside of this woman that I used to be or
0:11:59 girl that I used to be who was very much like, “Okay, we need to make sure we just preach
0:12:05 about the Bible and if you struggle, that must be righteous.”
0:12:10 And really challenged money story and challenged with my weight and all of those different
0:12:11 things.
0:12:17 So that’s why I love what I do now because I feel like I’m a bit of like an excuse eliminator
0:12:20 because when I hear things I’m like, “Oh no, you can do this.
0:12:21 Like I did it.
0:12:22 Let me show you.”
0:12:26 It’s funny on podcasts, it’s like, “Oh, we got to go back to the beginning again.”
0:12:28 But the beginning is so important.
0:12:32 It’s so important to see where we all came from to know like you can do it too.
0:12:34 This is so possible for you.
0:12:35 Totally.
0:12:38 And now you’re on stages with 15,000 people.
0:12:40 You always have these awesome events.
0:12:42 You’ve got amazing companies.
0:12:45 So you’ve totally transformed yourself.
0:12:49 So you became a fitness influencer essentially.
0:12:50 You became a fitness model.
0:12:53 You were a three-time world champion.
0:13:00 Talk to us about the first real entrepreneurship experience that stemmed from that.
0:13:06 My very first entrepreneurship experience was because our back was up against the wall.
0:13:15 So I will say I think that life offers us the perfect challenge in order for us to use
0:13:18 it to find our gifts and to find our purpose.
0:13:21 And so I got married at a really young age.
0:13:26 I met my husband when I was at the end of 20, almost 21.
0:13:33 And we were those people who just knew fairly quickly that we were going to be together.
0:13:36 And he had the same, you know, he was a big dreamer.
0:13:37 He was into fitness too.
0:13:42 And so when I married him, we were able to go, “Okay, what are the big dreams that we
0:13:43 want?”
0:13:49 But I was more supporting him because what I also haven’t shared is that because I was
0:13:53 homeschooled through high school and there was just a whole lot going on with my parents,
0:13:54 I never graduated.
0:13:56 I have never gotten my GED.
0:14:00 I’ve gone back to try to get it when I was younger and still failed it.
0:14:03 And I just was terrible at math and testing, come to find out much later, as I just had
0:14:05 never learned how to test.
0:14:06 Yeah.
0:14:08 Crazy testing, guys.
0:14:14 So when I married my husband, he was on an amazing trajectory in his career.
0:14:19 When I met him, he was fairly successful, but when we got married and we just put fitness
0:14:25 and each other and this dream of him building this career and me supporting this dream,
0:14:26 it started to take off.
0:14:30 But his career was in mortgage and finance.
0:14:38 And in 2008, which was not long after we got married, there was a recession, which mortgage
0:14:43 and finance, that whole industry essentially got erased for a while.
0:14:47 Not just owe it struggling, like, oh, it’s going down the toilet.
0:14:52 Like, it’s literally got completely erased, which means there was no really great place
0:14:54 for him to go.
0:14:59 And so we ended up losing everything because as young kids do, when his career was taking
0:15:04 off out 24 and 26, when his career was really starting to take off, we spent it all and
0:15:06 lived way beyond our means.
0:15:10 And at the time, I wasn’t even like into the finances.
0:15:12 So it didn’t come as a total surprise.
0:15:17 But when the recession hit, it was like, oh, we’re losing our house.
0:15:18 We’re losing our cars.
0:15:21 And we are $300,000 in debt.
0:15:26 And we have to borrow money from his parents to even go and get another place.
0:15:31 And so we borrowed their retirement fund, essentially wiped out their entire retirement
0:15:37 fund, which doesn’t feel very good when you are every decision that you make, you feel
0:15:40 like someone is looking at because you owe them money.
0:15:43 And that’s not what they were saying by any means, but it’s how it feels.
0:15:46 It feels like you’ll never get out of that hole.
0:15:52 And so my first entrepreneurship experience was because my back was up against the wall.
0:15:56 And when that happened, and when Chris came to me, who’s my husband, and he’s like, we’ve
0:15:57 lost everything.
0:15:59 I don’t have anywhere to go.
0:16:01 I wasn’t the breadwinner.
0:16:05 I was working random retail jobs, making hardly anything.
0:16:11 And I had started at LA Fitness not long before this, and I had started personally training.
0:16:18 And I had heard somebody say, probably like three months prior to this, to make sure that
0:16:20 you proclaim your dreams to people.
0:16:25 So I had started as a personal trainer, talking to my clients because you end up having these
0:16:28 great relationships with a lot of your clients.
0:16:33 I told them about my dream to own a gym and be like a Jillian Michaels at the time.
0:16:38 I didn’t have an example of, what does it look like to be like a famous fitness person?
0:16:42 And there was like biggest loser stuff, and that was about it and being on covers.
0:16:45 So I told them, I want to be on covers because that’s what inspired me.
0:16:50 When I was young, I used to carry these fitness magazines around and they were dog-eared and
0:16:51 they were my icons.
0:16:54 I just followed everything that these women did.
0:16:58 And so I was telling this woman that I wanted to have my own gym and et cetera.
0:17:04 And she had said to me right after this had happened, right after we were kind of struggling,
0:17:05 not kind of struggling, really struggling.
0:17:06 Yeah.
0:17:07 She was 28.
0:17:10 I think I was 26 at the time.
0:17:14 And she said, I’m opening my own chiropractic studio.
0:17:16 How cool is that at 28 in the Midwest too?
0:17:18 I’m like, wow, that’s amazing.
0:17:24 And she said, if you want to come and train me and trade for free, train me three times
0:17:28 a week, you can work out at the lower level of this chiropractic center until you can
0:17:29 pay me.
0:17:33 And two weeks later, I literally said yes on the spot.
0:17:34 I didn’t know what that would look like.
0:17:38 I was like, I’m pretty sure I have a non-compete and your studio is two blocks away, but we’re
0:17:42 just going to work this out and lie about it.
0:17:50 And so I had said yes and also realized, which didn’t even care, the lower level to her chiropractic
0:17:53 studio was completely unfinished.
0:17:55 And I did not have the money to finish it.
0:18:00 So it was studs and wires, and there was no workout equipment down there.
0:18:01 There was no mirrors.
0:18:02 There was no nothing.
0:18:06 So I’m like, okay, how’s a girl go and figure this out?
0:18:10 And I remember my husband and I went to a Walmart and we got the flooring, the flooring
0:18:15 you put in like a toddler’s room, like the square you piece together.
0:18:17 We put that down on the ground.
0:18:18 We found black, thankfully.
0:18:20 It wasn’t all different colors.
0:18:24 We put that down on the ground and I bought a couple sets of weights, but because they’re
0:18:29 expensive at the time for me, I bought a lot of those straps that bust and pop in your
0:18:31 face, you know, like the rubber bands.
0:18:35 So I was like, I don’t normally train with bands, but girl’s going to learn how to train
0:18:36 with bands.
0:18:41 And then I bought those mirrors that you put on the back of your door, like as a teenager,
0:18:42 the sticky mirrors.
0:18:43 And I bought three of them.
0:18:45 It’s like all I could afford.
0:18:50 And I remember this woman coming down because she had answered an ad that we had put out
0:18:53 there and she pulls up in a Range Rover.
0:18:57 And I didn’t really know what a Range Rover was at the time, but I was like, I know they’re
0:18:58 expensive.
0:19:04 And I was like, oh, shit, she’s about to walk down to this no change in the basement with
0:19:06 my janky things.
0:19:11 And so she walks down the stairs and I go, don’t mind, we’re under construction.
0:19:12 We just opened.
0:19:14 We’re going to remodel all of this.
0:19:19 So thank you so much for being one of the first clients.
0:19:20 She totally didn’t care.
0:19:24 She stayed with me for like three years into the studio that I had ended up getting the
0:19:26 year after.
0:19:30 And it was just one of the most beautiful lessons.
0:19:35 And it was one of the biggest things that shaped me is the biggest, most beautiful things
0:19:43 start really small and you’ll gain your deepest insights there for everything.
0:19:47 Let’s hold that thought and take a quick break with our sponsors.
0:19:51 Young and Profiters, I spent years slaving away and so many different jobs, trying to
0:19:57 prove myself, trying to figure out what gave me joy at work and trying to build productive
0:19:58 teams.
0:20:00 Eventually, I figured it all out.
0:20:04 But what if you could learn that stuff about yourself and your team and a fraction of the
0:20:05 time that I did?
0:20:10 The working genius model will transform your work, your team and your life by leveraging
0:20:12 your natural gifts.
0:20:16 We each possess a unique set of skills and let’s face it, you’re going to be more fulfilled
0:20:22 and successful when you lean into rather than away from your natural true talents.
0:20:27 Working genius can help you discover how to increase joy and energy at work by understanding
0:20:30 what your working geniuses really are.
0:20:35 The working genius assessment only takes 10 minutes and the results can be applied immediately.
0:20:40 I took the assessment and my two primary working geniuses are inventing and galvanizing.
0:20:45 I just love creating new things and then rallying people together to bring them to life.
0:20:49 That’s why I’ve been starting businesses and growing teams for years.
0:20:52 Your own working genius may be completely different.
0:20:56 The working genius assessment is not just a personality test, it’s a productivity tool.
0:21:01 It can help you identify your own individual talents and provide a great roadmap for creating
0:21:04 productive and satisfied teams.
0:21:09 You and your team will get more done in less time with more joy and energy.
0:21:15 To get 20% off the $25 working genius assessment, go to workinggenius.com and enter the promo
0:21:17 code profiting at checkout.
0:21:18 That’s right.
0:21:24 You can get 20% off the $25 working genius assessment at workinggenius.com using promo
0:21:25 code profiting.
0:21:31 Yapgang, I appreciate a good deal just like anyone else, but I’m not going to cross a
0:21:35 desert or walk through a bed of hot coals just to save a few bucks.
0:21:40 It needs to be straightforward, no complications, and no nonsense.
0:21:44 So when Mint Mobile said that I could get wireless service for just 15 bucks a month
0:21:47 with a three month plan, I was skeptical.
0:21:51 But it is truly that simple to secure wireless at 15 bucks a month.
0:21:54 And Mint Mobile made my transition incredibly easy.
0:21:56 The entire process was online.
0:21:59 It was easier to purchase, easy to activate, and easy to save money.
0:22:03 The only lengthy part that took up any time was waiting on hold to cancel my previous
0:22:05 provider.
0:22:08 If you want to get started, just go to mintmobile.com/profiting.
0:22:13 You’ll see right now that all the three month plans are only 15 bucks a month, including
0:22:14 the unlimited plan.
0:22:19 All plans come with high speed data and unlimited talk and text, delivered on the nation’s
0:22:21 largest 5G network.
0:22:25 And don’t worry, you can use your own phone and keep your current phone number with any
0:22:26 Mint Mobile plan.
0:22:31 Find out how easy it is to switch to Mint Mobile and get three months of premium wireless
0:22:33 for just 15 bucks a month.
0:22:37 To get this new customer offer and your new three month premium wireless plan for just
0:22:41 15 bucks a month, go to mintmobile.com/profiting.
0:22:43 That’s mintmobile.com/profiting.
0:22:49 Cut your wireless bill to just 15 bucks a month at mintmobile.com/profiting.
0:22:53 $45 upfront payment required equivalent to $15 a month.
0:22:56 New customers on first three month plan only.
0:22:59 Speed slower above 40 GB on unlimited plan.
0:23:02 Additional taxes, fees, and restrictions apply.
0:23:03 See Mint Mobile for details.
0:23:08 Hey, yeah, ma’am, launching my LinkedIn secrets masterclass was one of the best things I’ve
0:23:12 ever done for my business and I didn’t have to figure out all the nuts and bolts of creating
0:23:15 a website for my course.
0:23:16 I needed a lot of different features.
0:23:20 I needed chat capabilities in case anybody had questions.
0:23:22 I needed promo code discounts.
0:23:28 I needed a laundry list of features to enable what I was envisioning with my course.
0:23:29 But here’s the thing.
0:23:33 All I had to do was literally lift a finger to get it all done.
0:23:38 And that’s because I used Shopify.
0:23:44 Shopify is the easiest way to sell anything, to sell online or in person.
0:23:47 It’s the home of the number one checkout on the planet.
0:23:52 And Shopify is not so secret secret as Shoppay, which boosts conversions up to 50%.
0:23:58 That means way fewer cards get abandoned and way more sales get done.
0:24:02 So when students tell me that they can’t afford my course, I let them know about payment plans
0:24:03 with Shoppay.
0:24:05 It is a game changer.
0:24:09 If you’re into growing your business, your commerce platform better be ready to sell
0:24:14 wherever your customers are scrolling or strolling on the web in your store, in their feed, and
0:24:16 everywhere in between.
0:24:20 Put simply businesses that sell more sell with Shopify.
0:24:24 Upgrade your business and get the same checkout we use at YAP Media with Shopify.
0:24:30 Sign up for your $1 per month trial period at Shopify.com/profiting and that’s all lower
0:24:31 case.
0:24:35 Go to Shopify.com/profiting to upgrade your selling today.
0:24:43 That’s Shopify.com/profiting.
0:24:44 I love this story.
0:24:50 It just shows so much how you really grew it from the ground up.
0:24:51 And I love the story of you and Chris.
0:24:58 I had no idea that you guys met so young and now you guys are just this amazing power couple
0:25:02 that’s always doing these awesome events and it’s just really inspiring honestly to hear
0:25:06 the story about how you guys grew together and did this all together and how he supported
0:25:08 you and helped you.
0:25:12 So at what point did you take this and scale it online?
0:25:14 What was that like?
0:25:20 With the in-person personal training, you kind of have a realization that you are trading
0:25:25 time for money because I wanted to make more because of this number that we were in debt.
0:25:30 And so my head and my husband’s head starts doing the math on how long is this going to
0:25:31 take us.
0:25:35 And you realize you’ll be like 80 years old to pay this off.
0:25:41 So we’re like, okay, can’t just trade in-person stuff because we’ll never pay this off and
0:25:47 we’ll never be in the positive essentially the way that we want to live life at all.
0:25:53 So at that time I was starting to do fitness competitions and the woman that I had found
0:25:59 through a fitness magazine and I had gone to her camp had an online training membership.
0:26:04 But the membership was for fitness competitions if you wanted to compete.
0:26:10 So it would be the workouts, it’d be the competition diet, all of those things, group calls, group
0:26:11 recognition.
0:26:13 And I was like, wait, this is freaking amazing.
0:26:18 And I wouldn’t I do this for just the people who can’t train with me because I had slowly
0:26:24 started building a Facebook presence and I built it simply by every single day I would
0:26:28 show up and write something that I was going through or something that I was reading and
0:26:30 something that I was doing to move through it.
0:26:35 And it became like an online journal for me and somehow I didn’t even realize what I was
0:26:36 doing.
0:26:38 I was obviously growing a personal brand.
0:26:41 And so I would have people all the time because I’d talk about my workouts that day, I’d post
0:26:45 them online and I’d have people would be like, God, I wish I could train with you.
0:26:47 I wish we could do this together.
0:26:49 And so I knew that there would be some people.
0:26:51 I didn’t know how many there would be.
0:26:55 But I’m like, oh, I think I can count like five who would join this thing.
0:26:59 And so in the beginning, I gave my in-person clients who couldn’t train with me more than
0:27:00 a day.
0:27:04 I gave it to them for free to start to give me feedback.
0:27:09 And one of the women who I gave it to, mind you, your girl didn’t graduate.
0:27:13 So it was this typed out horrible PDF version.
0:27:17 It looked fine, but it certainly didn’t look great.
0:27:22 So one of the women that I gave it to, she’s like an editor for this big company that she
0:27:23 works for.
0:27:24 And she loved me and I loved her.
0:27:30 And she was like, Lori, I love that you’re doing this, but I’m going to help you format
0:27:34 all of this for free because you’re giving it to me for free.
0:27:36 And so that was my first experience.
0:27:41 She helped me level up my brand and also this experience of go look and trade.
0:27:45 If you’re great with the workouts, but you’re not great with this, go and try to find people
0:27:47 that you can barter with or trade with.
0:27:51 And so that’s really how I started doing a lot of different things.
0:27:56 I had that moment of, wait, if this is working for this, why couldn’t I go barter for this
0:28:00 or barter for that for now until we can really get this thing off the ground.
0:28:03 And so that’s how the online fitness membership started.
0:28:05 We had that for like nine years.
0:28:07 We did challenges to get people in there.
0:28:09 First it started with a 30 day challenge.
0:28:14 Then as people’s attention started to deplete, we did a 14 day challenge, then a seven day
0:28:18 challenge ultimately was our challenge that really, really crushed, that just did really
0:28:19 well and brought a lot of people in.
0:28:26 So we always hovered from like 1,000 to 2,500 members paying around $89 a month.
0:28:33 And it was a great, great membership that I loved until I decided to pivot.
0:28:36 And I remember when I made that decision, because we were doing some other things too,
0:28:39 we had really gotten into business and entrepreneurship.
0:28:43 And my husband couldn’t understand why I would quit something that was making really
0:28:44 great money.
0:28:49 That is a whole other conversation, but when you grow into something after nine years,
0:28:55 so different, and I was so thoroughly enjoying the entrepreneurship world and events and
0:28:58 being in that energy and helping those people, it’s weird.
0:29:01 It’s like your soul can’t even do the other thing anymore.
0:29:04 I wasn’t identifying as a fitness person anymore.
0:29:08 I was identifying as me being a person who loved fitness, but I wasn’t identifying with
0:29:13 me wanting to help people necessarily on their fitness journey.
0:29:19 I really wanted to do a full pivot into helping people with their business and money in big
0:29:20 dream journey.
0:29:26 Well, that makes sense because I feel like the easiest way to start as an entrepreneur
0:29:29 is to scale something out that you’re really good at, right?
0:29:33 So you were really good at fitness.
0:29:36 You didn’t dream about becoming a fitness teacher.
0:29:41 That wasn’t your ultimate dream, but that was what you could when you had no money away
0:29:43 for you to make a lot of money, right?
0:29:45 It reminds me of starting my social agency.
0:29:49 I never wanted to have a social agency, but I was really good at it.
0:29:50 So it was my first business.
0:29:51 And so I just did that.
0:29:54 Now I’m passionate about my network.
0:29:58 My agency is doing great, but that’s not really my passion.
0:30:01 I always wanted to have a podcast network, right?
0:30:07 So it’s so cool that you were able to realize that for everybody out there right now who
0:30:14 wants to be an entrepreneur, often I say, think about who you needed back when you weren’t
0:30:15 an entrepreneur.
0:30:16 And I feel like that’s the business you created.
0:30:21 You created a business for the little girl that grew up overweight.
0:30:26 Can you talk to us about what you saw in the community that you built in terms of the
0:30:30 women’s that you served and how that made you feel in terms of your purpose and everything
0:30:31 like that?
0:30:41 Looking back, I think that people’s first, almost like spiritual cracking open or first
0:30:51 experience with, oh, there’s more or I’m here for a reason can happen through fitness.
0:30:58 And I think that that is because when you find wellness or fitness, maybe you’re not
0:30:59 sleeping well.
0:31:01 Maybe you’re not treating your body very good.
0:31:02 Maybe you’re not eating very well.
0:31:03 You’re not moving.
0:31:08 And I think that in order to be the vessel, which is what I believe we’re here to do is
0:31:14 be the vessel in which we get to live out our dreams and our purpose.
0:31:18 And in order to get those messages, you have to be fairly healthy.
0:31:19 You need to move your body.
0:31:20 You need to eat well.
0:31:22 You need to be sleeping.
0:31:25 And then later on, you learn that there’s levels to these cracking open.
0:31:30 I’m just going to use those words of, oh, your next level, so on and so forth.
0:31:34 And your next level after fitness is going to require community.
0:31:38 And your next level after that is going to require a community that stretches you or
0:31:40 some big challenges.
0:31:45 So what I noticed in the fitness world is that women would come thinking they wanted
0:31:50 the abs and what would end up happening is that they would realize that it was never
0:31:51 about that.
0:31:53 It was about a bigger purpose.
0:31:58 And the more that they would eat better and move better and feel better, the more they
0:32:01 would go, oh my God, I think there’s more for me.
0:32:08 And then not just more, they also wanted to make money because money allows you to walk
0:32:11 out of situations that you don’t want to be in.
0:32:13 That is what I noticed.
0:32:16 And that is where my heart started to be so pulled.
0:32:21 I realized I was training a whole lot of women who were in situations that were not necessarily
0:32:23 chosen, but they felt trapped.
0:32:27 And I’m not even talking about necessarily just marriages or relationships, but that
0:32:28 would come up a lot.
0:32:34 But jobs, jobs, family dynamics, like very interesting things that they felt they were
0:32:38 stuck in due to financial situations and circumstances.
0:32:43 Did you actually just shut down the fitness business?
0:32:50 One of the things I had left out is that along there, when we were rebuilding and I had that
0:32:57 studio, the gym in the chiropractic center, I got a client who had worked with my husband
0:32:59 in the mortgage industry.
0:33:02 And she was like, hey, Chris, does your wife still train?
0:33:03 Can I train with her?
0:33:05 I want to lose 100 pounds.
0:33:08 So I was super excited because I’d met her a couple of times and I really liked her.
0:33:12 And I started training with her and she would always talk about these supplements she was
0:33:13 taking.
0:33:16 And at the time, because I was in the fitness world and working with a coach who was like
0:33:20 an all natural, not like drugs or anything, but food only.
0:33:21 She didn’t want shakes.
0:33:23 She didn’t want supplements.
0:33:28 She was like, get your nutrition through food, really, really clean coach.
0:33:32 And because I was working with her, when someone would talk about shakes and supplements, I
0:33:33 was like, no, no, you should do food.
0:33:36 And she’s like, I’m a busy woman.
0:33:40 I can’t be cooking these five meals that you’re telling me because at the time I’m young.
0:33:42 I’m not thinking of people with kids or busy lives.
0:33:46 I’m like, no, you need to make five meals a day.
0:33:47 I learned later.
0:33:49 I’m like, wow, is that crazy to ask that of women?
0:33:50 Okay, got it.
0:33:53 So she’s telling me about these things that she’s taking.
0:33:54 I’m like, blah, blah, blah.
0:33:55 Don’t take them.
0:33:59 You need to just eat these five meals I’m giving you this meal plan.
0:34:05 And so fast forward six months, she loses almost 100 pounds.
0:34:10 And as great of a trainer as I was, I was not getting those results with other people.
0:34:13 So I was like, what on earth are you doing now?
0:34:17 She had entered a challenge and she was obviously sticking really closely to it and working
0:34:18 out or whatever.
0:34:21 But she felt great every day.
0:34:23 This girl was in the best mood.
0:34:27 She started lifting heavier than me, which was just a moment of, wait a minute, you’re
0:34:33 like lifting heavier weights while you’re losing weight, which is normally really counter-intuitive.
0:34:35 And you’re like really tired.
0:34:38 You can lose muscle when you’re losing all that weight.
0:34:45 And so I was like, bring me that shake that you’re on six months in and I had said, no,
0:34:47 for that long because it was network marketing.
0:34:51 And so that was my breakdown moment is I was struggling with my diet and I was competing
0:34:53 and I was not feeling good.
0:34:58 I was feeling kind of depressed because the food was just like, blah, and I wasn’t eating
0:34:59 great.
0:35:00 And that was it for me.
0:35:03 I was like, okay, let me try this.
0:35:04 And I tried it two weeks later.
0:35:05 I had never felt better.
0:35:12 I actually ended up two months after going in competing and sweeping two national titles
0:35:18 that have never, ever been swept in the same year, ever, still has never happened because
0:35:21 I just had never felt so good in my life.
0:35:28 And so I got into network marketing and we went from zero to a million dollars in about
0:35:30 13 months.
0:35:31 Wow.
0:35:32 Because I was so passionate.
0:35:34 My back was up against the wall.
0:35:36 I needed to pay off my in-laws.
0:35:37 That was hovering over my head.
0:35:43 I felt like I couldn’t buy anything without feeling awful and I had gone bankrupt as a
0:35:44 teenager.
0:35:45 Well, I hadn’t, but my parents hadn’t.
0:35:47 And I was like, I am not repeating this story.
0:35:50 We were listening to Secrets of the Millionaire Mind.
0:35:54 We had started in network marketing, which that company in particular that we were in,
0:35:56 it was called Isagenix.
0:36:01 We’re actually still in it, but it was more of a personal development company than even
0:36:02 a network marketing company.
0:36:08 So we had gotten so deep into money mindset, learning about being abundant and all of
0:36:09 those different things.
0:36:12 So the reason I’m telling you that is because when you said, what did you do with the gym?
0:36:17 That was doing so well along with the membership that I actually gifted it to one of my best
0:36:19 friends and she took it over for a year.
0:36:24 So I just handed her the keys with all of the equipment, all of the clients.
0:36:25 And I said, here you go.
0:36:27 I knew that she wanted to start a business.
0:36:33 She had just left her husband and had an amazing business for a year and got to take all of
0:36:36 my clients, which was a gift to me because I didn’t want to give them to someone I didn’t
0:36:37 trust.
0:36:42 And so that was my first big, oh my God, this is what money can do.
0:36:43 That’s exciting.
0:36:44 So awesome.
0:36:50 So you have a huge podcast, which has just recently joined our Yap Media Network, which
0:36:52 I’m so excited about.
0:36:53 I love it.
0:36:57 And Laurie, you’re a legendary business female podcaster.
0:37:02 I remember when I thought of Laurie Harder, I thought podcast first.
0:37:05 I don’t know if it’s just because I’m biased, I’m in the podcast industry, but I always
0:37:09 knew you as a podcaster and a big podcaster.
0:37:12 So at one point where you’re like, all right, I’m starting this podcast.
0:37:13 Oh man.
0:37:14 Okay.
0:37:16 I had listened to podcasts.
0:37:18 That’s where it all started from, number one.
0:37:21 I was such a podcast junkie.
0:37:28 I was a huge Lewis Howes podcast fan, and then I joined his mastermind because I would
0:37:32 listen to podcasts and I had messaged him.
0:37:36 I would tag him and message him and just give takeaways from the podcast.
0:37:37 I’m like, thank you so much.
0:37:38 Oh my God.
0:37:39 Because I was a big runner.
0:37:45 So when I would run three to four times a week, I was doing six miles each time.
0:37:46 That’s a full podcast.
0:37:48 That’s like an hour podcast.
0:37:52 And so I was just consuming these podcasts while in state.
0:37:56 When you’re running and you’re working out or you’re walking, walking is huge.
0:38:00 You’re just in a state where you’re going to absorb, you’re going to crack open, you’re
0:38:02 going to get more ideas.
0:38:04 So podcasts completely changed my life.
0:38:07 They were my running and walking mentors.
0:38:09 They would change my mindset.
0:38:12 They would help with my anxiety.
0:38:13 It was everything for me.
0:38:17 And so when I joined Lewis Howes mastermind after messaging, like he had talked about
0:38:20 it on his podcast, I would have never found it if it wasn’t for that.
0:38:22 So I messaged and he was like, you should join it.
0:38:25 And I was like, me, I should join this.
0:38:27 That feels really scary and crazy.
0:38:29 And it was a big price tag.
0:38:31 And I brought it home to my husband and he’s like, we should join this.
0:38:33 And so we joined it.
0:38:39 And I think being in that and really just hearing he made it more accessible, like impossible.
0:38:42 And so I just decided, okay, I’m going to start this.
0:38:49 And I also was feeling that I wanted a way to deeply connect with my audience more.
0:38:56 I was feeling like the captions or just the little bit that you get to post on social
0:38:57 does not tell the story.
0:39:00 And I’m like, I’ve got a story to tell.
0:39:03 It’s very different to feel like you have a story to tell than to put yourself in a
0:39:08 room for the first time, turn on a mic and go, what the hell do I have to say?
0:39:10 I’m a big dummy.
0:39:13 That’s how that can feel in the beginning.
0:39:15 Oh, here’s a tip.
0:39:19 If you want to start a podcast, please go back to your favorite podcasters, pick three
0:39:22 to five of them, go back to their first three episodes.
0:39:25 And I promise you, you’ll feel so empowered to start.
0:39:26 You’ll have no problem.
0:39:31 I listened to mine and I’m like, oh my God, it’s so bad.
0:39:33 And I’m so proud of that girl.
0:39:37 Like I’m so proud of the people who start because it’s not easy.
0:39:40 But that’s how the podcast started is.
0:39:43 I was like, there’s such deeper stories to tell.
0:39:45 It was like fitness, fitness transform my life.
0:39:47 I want to teach it, podcasting, transform my life.
0:39:48 I want to do it.
0:39:52 Yeah, it seems like our type of person who just loves to give back once you level up,
0:39:56 you’re like, okay, how do I teach this to other people now that I’ve learned it?
0:39:57 It’s partly selfish too.
0:40:04 Like I want people hearing like, yes, I love giving back more than I can possibly tell you.
0:40:07 But the love of giving back has grown for me through the years.
0:40:13 But it started as teaching just felt really good, but teaching helps me learn.
0:40:19 They say that if you really want to learn, you’ll start to teach on the subject that
0:40:21 you love even in fitness.
0:40:28 A crazy story is outside of finding the network marketing company and then winning those national
0:40:29 titles that year.
0:40:34 What had changed for me before those competitions because I had been competing for almost five
0:40:40 years at that point without winning the first, but what changed for me that year is that
0:40:44 was the year that I really dove into teaching people how to be on stage and stage presence.
0:40:50 So I had started camps in person on the weekends where every Sunday, and it was based off of
0:40:55 that woman’s training, that membership I was a part of, but I became an ambassador.
0:40:58 And so every Sunday I was teaching women how to pose, how to walk.
0:41:02 I was helping them with their fitness routines, all the run-throughs they’d practice at my
0:41:08 studio, and it was the observation of others and getting so granular to the point of wanting
0:41:11 to improve them so much that you improve.
0:41:16 And so that was the year that I can tell you everything changed for me because I was so
0:41:18 in the teaching, you embody it.
0:41:24 We’ll be right back after a quick break from our sponsors.
0:41:27 Young Improfitors buy low, sell high.
0:41:29 It’s easy to say, but it’s hard to do.
0:41:33 For example, high interest rates are crushing the real estate market right now.
0:41:37 Demand is dropping and prices are falling, even for many of the best assets.
0:41:41 It’s no wonder the Fundrise flagship fund plans to go on a buying spree, expanding its
0:41:45 billion-dollar real estate portfolio over the next few months.
0:41:50 You can add the Fundrise flagship fund to your portfolio in just minutes, with as little
0:41:59 as $10, by visiting fundrise.com/profiting, that’s F-U-N-D-R-I-S-E dot com slash profiting.
0:42:03 And you can diversify your portfolio with the Fundrise flagship fund at fundrise.com/profiting,
0:42:09 that’s F-U-N-D-R-I-S-E dot com slash profiting.
0:42:14 Carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses of the Fundrise
0:42:16 flagship fund before investing.
0:42:22 This and other information can be found in the fund’s prospectus at fundrise.com/flagship.
0:42:23 This is a paid advertisement.
0:42:25 Yeah, fam.
0:42:28 If you’re anything like me, you didn’t start your business to spend all your time managing
0:42:32 finances – budgeting, invoicing, and tax prep?
0:42:35 Not exactly the fun part of entrepreneurship.
0:42:40 My CEO, Jason, on the other hand, is great at finances, but even he doesn’t want to
0:42:45 switch between five different apps for banking, expense tracking, and contractor payments.
0:42:48 We wanted a tool that could just do it all.
0:42:49 And guess what?
0:42:50 We found one.
0:42:52 And yes, it’s called Found.
0:42:57 Found is an all-in-one financial tool made for entrepreneurs and solopreneurs.
0:43:02 Found handles everything – business banking, bookkeeping, invoicing, vendor payments,
0:43:03 and even tax planning.
0:43:05 No more juggling multiple apps.
0:43:08 Found does it all in one place.
0:43:13 With smart features like automatic expense tracking, virtual cards for specific budgets,
0:43:19 and no hidden fees or minimum balances, Found helps us stay organized and save time.
0:43:23 Plus, signing up is quick and easy – no paperwork or credit checks required.
0:43:27 Join the 500,000 small business owners who trust Found.
0:43:29 Start your business banking working for you.
0:43:33 Try Found for free at found.com/profiting.
0:43:39 Stop getting lost in countless finance apps and try Found for free at found.com/profiting.
0:43:44 Sign up for Found for free at found.com/profiting.
0:43:46 Found is a financial technology company, not a bank.
0:43:50 Banking services are provided by Piermont Bank, member FDIC.
0:43:51 Found’s core features are free.
0:43:56 They also offer an optional paid product, Found Plus.
0:43:59 Coming in Profiters, chances are, if you’re listening to this show, you’ve got an expertise
0:44:01 that you can teach other people.
0:44:06 Chances are you can make passive income by creating your first course.
0:44:10 If you’ve been on the fence about creating a course, what are you waiting for?
0:44:15 It is so easy to launch a course these days because Teachable has got your back.
0:44:17 Teachable is the number one course platform.
0:44:22 It is simply the best platform for content creators to start or grow an online business
0:44:23 authentically.
0:44:27 That’s because Teachable offers more product options to create and sell than any other
0:44:33 platform with online courses, digital downloads, coaching services, memberships, and communities.
0:44:37 You can engage your online audience on a deeper level, and you can get selling fast with easy
0:44:42 to use content and website builders plus a variety of AI tools.
0:44:44 They have an AI curriculum generator.
0:44:47 They have automatic subtitles and translations.
0:44:52 They’ve really figured out how to use AI to optimize our course creation and make it
0:44:53 much faster.
0:44:57 They also have a top rated mobile app that allows your customers to enjoy your products
0:44:58 on the go.
0:45:02 On Teachable, creators also get more power and ownership over monetizing their content.
0:45:07 Your content shouldn’t get lost in the algorithm, and you shouldn’t have to rely on other companies
0:45:08 to pay you.
0:45:12 Now is the perfect time to join Teachable because you get an exclusive deal with our
0:45:14 partner code, Profiting.
0:45:18 Go to Teachable.com and use code Profiting to unlock a free month on their pro plan.
0:45:23 You’ll get all their marketing, product creation features to build out your offerings, and
0:45:26 there’s no limitations on this trial, so you definitely don’t want to miss this.
0:45:28 Again, it’s Teachable.com.
0:45:31 You can use code Profiting for an entire free month on Teachable.
0:45:36 Be a part of the 100,000 plus creators who are already using Teachable to turn their
0:45:42 expertise into a thriving online business.
0:45:44 That is such a life hack.
0:45:46 I totally agree with that.
0:45:51 Every time I’m putting out a new course or some sort of new training, I end up doubling
0:45:55 my expertise on the topic because it makes you think about, “Well, I don’t know about
0:45:58 this,” or, “I need to learn more about that.”
0:46:02 You learn it, and you relearn everything you already learned, and suddenly you’re a better
0:46:03 expert than you were.
0:46:09 That is such a life hack to teach other people to become a better expert.
0:46:12 A really cool story that I heard that’s very different from us.
0:46:14 I’ve bootstrapped my company.
0:46:20 I’ve never raised money, and I heard that you got a lot of your investors for your
0:46:24 first company, Light Pink, from your podcast.
0:46:29 I think that’s really cool to go into because a lot of people think that podcasts can only
0:46:36 be an opportunity to make money via sponsorships, but you can get clients for your business,
0:46:40 and something I never really thought about is you can get investors for your business.
0:46:45 Talk to us about moving into your product business and how you decided to start raising
0:46:47 money and how you got your investors.
0:46:49 Oh, my gosh.
0:46:51 People are like, “How do you get investors from a podcast?”
0:46:57 Well, a podcast is such an intimate way to connect, and you won’t necessarily connect
0:46:58 with everyone in that way.
0:47:03 I’ve absolutely had podcasts, hundreds of them at this point where I get off, and I’m
0:47:05 like, “Okay, no connection, but thank you.”
0:47:06 See you later.
0:47:07 See you later.
0:47:08 See you later.
0:47:19 That was a rough one, but then you have these podcasts where it’s like right now.
0:47:20 We’re laughing.
0:47:21 We’re understanding each other.
0:47:25 We’re like, “Oh, my God,” or there’s a similarity there, or you just can really
0:47:31 drop in and you’re enjoying the conversation, and it creates a relationship.
0:47:35 When you’re raising money, it’s all about who’s in your network and who you have a relationship
0:47:36 with.
0:47:41 A podcast may not be like, “Oh, I’m going to ask this person to invest immediately,”
0:47:44 but what it does is it creates a relationship that came from the podcast.
0:47:50 Now, I did have one experience like that, actually, where we did one podcast.
0:47:55 She was referred to me by someone, so already there was some mutual trust there.
0:48:00 She had a book that was coming out all about business and going for it.
0:48:05 In the middle of the podcast, I knew that I wanted this woman not only as I would love
0:48:09 to be able to just have her in my network, I’m like, “Oh, to be able to bounce one or
0:48:14 two questions off her once in a while would be huge for me,” so I strategically in the
0:48:19 middle knew that because I had read her book, I was like, “I’m going to tell her about my
0:48:24 company and what I’m doing, what I’m launching,” and so in the middle of it, there was an opportunity
0:48:26 to be like, “Oh, this is amazing.
0:48:30 I can understand the struggle because right now I’m trying to raise money and blah, blah,
0:48:34 blah,” and I’d mentioned it and I’d mentioned a little bit about the company.
0:48:39 Then afterward, I had said to her, “This is huge, huge key.”
0:48:42 I had said to her, “What else can I do for you?
0:48:44 How can I get this book out more?
0:48:48 What’s the biggest thing that would help you that I could do for my audience?”
0:48:51 She tells me and I’m like, “Great, I’m going to do it.
0:48:54 What happens is people want to reciprocate.”
0:48:56 Now, did she have to reciprocate?
0:49:00 Absolutely not, but people want to, and so she was like, “Hey, is there anything I can
0:49:01 do for you?”
0:49:04 She was like, “I would love for you to just look at this deck if you want to give me
0:49:09 any critiques, if you know anyone who I could talk to about investing.”
0:49:16 The next day, she was like, “I’m going to invest and I’m sending this to 15 other women
0:49:21 and I’m letting them know about it,” and then one of the people she sent it to also invested,
0:49:22 who was a celebrity.
0:49:28 She sent a list of celebrities and copied me on it, and I was like, “Oh my God.
0:49:31 I’m so glad I asked,” because I almost didn’t.
0:49:38 I was so intimidated and I almost didn’t ask, so that’s crazy.
0:49:39 That’s amazing.
0:49:42 You ended up getting sponsors for this light pink brand.
0:49:46 Can you tell us a bit about this brand and we’ll talk about how you transitioned and
0:49:47 everything?
0:49:54 This was 2019-2020, just turned 2020, but 2019 was the initial idea that’s when I was
0:49:58 getting the deck together and the idea and doing all the things, formulation and all
0:49:59 that stuff.
0:50:04 It was a non-alcoholic rosé and a light rosé wine spritz.
0:50:10 At the time, this is when Gary Vee had just launched his wine and then canned wine, empathy
0:50:14 wines, and then also white claw had just come out.
0:50:19 Sprits were taking over and I was like, “Wait, this industry is huge.
0:50:23 I’m a wellness and fitness person, but I love wine, but I want something lighter and I also
0:50:26 want something for non-alcoholic days and they don’t have anything that’s good right
0:50:27 now.”
0:50:30 It was like, “Oh, here’s your sparkling water.”
0:50:32 There wasn’t really anything good.
0:50:36 Now it’s like freaking loaded with non-alcoholic options.
0:50:40 Direct to Consumer had started to go bananas in this world and I was like, “This is a huge
0:50:42 opportunity.”
0:50:45 I had started raising the $2 million for that.
0:50:49 Now, we did not see COVID coming.
0:50:55 What happened is it had stalled so many of what we were trying to do because the manufacturers,
0:51:01 co-packers, warehouses, nobody wanted to take on a new person because all the new people
0:51:04 were tanking because they didn’t have the runway.
0:51:05 We didn’t have the money.
0:51:10 There were so many other reasons, but they were like, “No, we’re not taking anyone new.”
0:51:14 On top of legal fees, which for alcohol, which by the way, please, if you’re going to start
0:51:19 a business, I would highly recommend looking at what has the most red tape.
0:51:21 That’s going to be the most expensive legally.
0:51:25 Just ran through so much money with legal fees and formulation and trying to hang on
0:51:30 and get out there, but had half the money left and decided a year and a half later when
0:51:33 we just could not get this thing to the finish line.
0:51:37 I had a girlfriend be like, “This happens all the time to men,” because she was in
0:51:38 that world.
0:51:41 She goes, “Why don’t you just pivot?
0:51:43 You have so many other things you could do.”
0:51:47 I had already had another idea for an upsell because I was like, “Oh man, we’re going to
0:51:52 make more money than this because I don’t know how we’re going to go out in the market
0:51:54 and get the money that we need.”
0:51:57 I started thinking of, “Oh, I love hydration.
0:52:02 I love hydration packets, but I don’t love what’s in them and I wish they did more.”
0:52:05 That was already in the back of my mind as an upsell.
0:52:10 When this happened and she gave me full permission, this was a girlfriend who literally just so
0:52:12 insanely successful.
0:52:16 It was such freedom, her going, “Just do this.
0:52:17 This is not abnormal.
0:52:20 Let me show you all the companies who have done this.”
0:52:24 Most companies that you see right now never started as the company that you see.
0:52:29 In that moment, it was such freedom because what I was feeling before that was the worst
0:52:30 anxiety of my life.
0:52:31 I felt like a failure.
0:52:35 I felt like I can’t believe I have to go into all these investors that we used all this
0:52:38 money and we still don’t have this idea that’s going to get out.
0:52:41 I feel like such an absolute failure loser.
0:52:45 Something that I had worked up to right now has just been halted.
0:52:46 I went through it.
0:52:49 I had an investor who was like, “Oh my gosh.
0:52:51 I can’t believe that I invested in this.
0:52:54 This is essentially a stupid idea.”
0:52:58 You conned me into it and I’m like, “Oh no.”
0:53:07 It was not a great experience and time for me, but I also am so clear that my soul called
0:53:13 in all of that so that I could learn and understand and be able to have this conversation literally
0:53:18 right now for someone who’s listening because they’re going through it too.
0:53:23 I just think podcasting and storytelling is the most important thing that we will ever
0:53:28 do for people to help them reach their dreams and know what it really looks like because
0:53:30 how would I have known that this is normal?
0:53:34 How would I have known that even commentary like that from people was totally normal in
0:53:39 a part of the journey because you don’t know until you talk to people who have gone through
0:53:41 what you’ve gone through.
0:53:43 Totally.
0:53:48 Service-based business is so natural and organic because you’re basically just scaling yourself.
0:53:52 When you have a product, there’s a whole slew of different issues.
0:53:56 No wonder you had to bootstrap because it’s very expensive to launch a product.
0:53:59 What were some of the things that you had to think through and what were some of the bigger
0:54:04 challenges for anybody who’s interested in launching DTC products?
0:54:08 The first one, like I said, is go find someone who’s done it before and map out the pricing
0:54:10 of everything.
0:54:13 Where could we really lose our rear ends on this?
0:54:14 Where could this go wrong?
0:54:17 What do I need to plan for?
0:54:19 Oh, okay, that’s interesting.
0:54:23 You could lose a whole lot of product in the beginning, especially if you don’t really
0:54:25 know your co-packer yet.
0:54:30 You need to understand what insurances you need because let’s say you just bought hundreds
0:54:35 of thousands of product and it’s at the warehouse and you didn’t ask about who pays for the
0:54:38 product if something goes wrong and you signed the wrong paperwork so that it’s on you and
0:54:42 now you have no money to make up that product and you can’t sell it.
0:54:47 There are so many little things that can go wrong when you’re doing a product because
0:54:55 unlike a service-based business or a digital product, it’s usually tech that can go massively
0:54:57 wrong but can be fixed.
0:55:01 If you have a launch and your tech doesn’t work, that really sucks but you can still
0:55:05 fairly recover without a ton of overhead cost.
0:55:09 In the product world, there’s a shipping company that can go wrong.
0:55:11 They can get all your packages messed up.
0:55:13 There is a co-packer that could go wrong.
0:55:15 They can completely mess up your formulation.
0:55:17 There is packaging that can go wrong.
0:55:20 They can mess up all your boxes.
0:55:24 There’s so many touch points that are not in your control.
0:55:32 You have to have a very high tolerance for risk and you also have to have a lot of grace
0:55:38 and you also have to have a backbone to be able to hold people accountable.
0:55:41 That’s been one of the hardest things is holding people accountable when something truly is
0:55:46 someone’s fault because it’s very easy for people to dance around things or say it was
0:55:50 this or it was that and they’re good people but you’re running a business at the end of
0:55:51 the day.
0:55:56 So it’s been the biggest learning lessons for me and the biggest challenge but I love
0:55:58 it so much.
0:56:01 I am obsessed with physical products now.
0:56:02 I love it.
0:56:05 Well, what is a skincare brand called and what does it do?
0:56:07 It’s a skin routine you can drink.
0:56:14 It’s called Glossy Skin and Gut and it’s a daily beauty supplement and it is all about
0:56:20 glowing from the inside out because without good gut health and good digestion, you can’t
0:56:24 have great skin because really what you’re seeing on the outside is what’s happening
0:56:28 on the inside and what you’re feeding yourself especially as we get older that starts to
0:56:32 show like what you’ve been eating through the years or how you’ve been digesting.
0:56:36 So it really is about de-blow and glow and those were the two things that I’m like, if
0:56:42 I could solve two things, I’d want to solve feeling light.
0:56:43 I want to feel light in my body.
0:56:45 I don’t want to feel bloated.
0:56:46 I want to feel really good.
0:56:51 I want to have good digestion and I want to have great skin.
0:56:56 I want to feel like I’m doing something really great for my skin especially as I get older.
0:57:02 So that’s why this product was formulated is because no matter what, if you just drink
0:57:05 water, you’re doing something good for yourself.
0:57:10 And so the fact that this is helping you drink water was what it was all about.
0:57:13 It’s like, okay, if you’re like me and you’re a toddler and you want something flavored,
0:57:18 you want to know it’s doing something really good for you.
0:57:23 Our probiotic has 30 clinical studies on it and I wanted to make sure that the ingredients
0:57:26 in there we’re going to do the thing that we wanted them to do.
0:57:30 So that’s why we went with number one, the probiotic that has studies on it and then
0:57:36 number two, having the amounts that are going to help you get the results that you want.
0:57:39 It obviously sounds like a great idea.
0:57:40 I want to try it.
0:57:42 I love skincare.
0:57:48 I’m super, super passionate about what was it like having to convince your investors
0:57:52 and externally communicate the pivot?
0:57:54 What was that like for you?
0:57:57 How did you go about doing it in an empowered way?
0:58:04 I had a moment with my husband where I had had one of the investors who was like, I want
0:58:05 out.
0:58:09 Number one, in the particular way they invested, once you invest, you can’t get out of investment.
0:58:12 That’s why investments are what they are.
0:58:13 That’s why you can win big in investments.
0:58:16 That’s why you lose big in investments.
0:58:19 So I was like, oh my gosh, what do I do?
0:58:21 It was just making me feel even worse.
0:58:29 And he’s like, um, be a leader and go tell her why she needs to be on board for this
0:58:33 next company because it’s going to take off and she’s not going to want to miss it.
0:58:35 And I was like, he is right.
0:58:38 It is my job to always paint the vision.
0:58:45 It is a leader and founders job to consistently paint the vision, even when you can’t even
0:58:47 see it.
0:58:51 And by painting that vision, I promise you it will paint it for yourself.
0:58:56 And so it was a really powerful moment for me where I really wanted to tell this person
0:58:58 off like, oh, so fun.
0:59:02 You want to ride the train when it’s doing well, but when it’s not and I need advocacy,
0:59:04 it was a painful experience.
0:59:07 And I’m so grateful for this human and that this happened because I think it was one of
0:59:10 the biggest lessons that I’ve ever experienced, ever.
0:59:13 And it reminded me, number one, they weren’t wrong.
0:59:15 Of course they’re going to feel that way.
0:59:18 Of course they’re going to feel like, was this smart?
0:59:19 Oh my gosh.
0:59:20 It was exciting.
0:59:22 And I think I was just in on the excitement.
0:59:24 Yes, that’s what it is.
0:59:29 And also repainting, hey, this is actually a better fit for you.
0:59:30 I know who you are.
0:59:32 I know who your audience is.
0:59:37 This 100% is not just a better fit for you and your audience, but for you.
0:59:39 Like it’s so much more in alignment with who you are.
0:59:43 It’s way more in alignment with where the world is, where our community is.
0:59:46 This is something that, you know, it’s at the beginning of the market.
0:59:48 People are starting to trend this way.
0:59:51 It’s getting really exciting and we can be some of the first and we can be an amazing
0:59:55 product that doesn’t have fillers in it.
1:00:00 And at the end of the call, we were both just in such a beautiful, amazing state and she
1:00:01 was excited.
1:00:10 And I was like, she was so sent to me to remind me of why I’m doing it, to rebuild my belief
1:00:15 because we don’t get to really build our belief muscle until it’s tested.
1:00:17 And that tested me with her saying those things.
1:00:19 I was like, are these true?
1:00:21 Are these things true?
1:00:25 And so in that moment, it was you get to show up as a leader even though you want to cry
1:00:27 or say something else.
1:00:31 And then it was the greatest gift that I could have ever gotten.
1:00:36 And as you’re telling me stories, it’s so obvious that so many people have helped you
1:00:42 along the way and you’ve also helped other people on your journey.
1:00:46 And I know you have a book that is called A Tribe Called Bliss.
1:00:50 Can you talk to us about what a bliss tribe is?
1:00:52 At the time, I was doing an event called The Bliss Project.
1:00:58 It was a three-day event about empowering yourself and just creating a life that you
1:00:59 love.
1:01:05 And essentially in the book, I define bliss as more of a place that you create for yourself.
1:01:08 It’s not external, it’s all internal.
1:01:12 It’s what you decide in your life you can experience bliss right now.
1:01:15 And in order to create and build a life that you want even more, I’m not saying you shouldn’t
1:01:21 have the things or have it all because I do believe you should, but you have to find that
1:01:22 place within yourself.
1:01:26 And so the book was based off of the event because I put a lot of the exercises that
1:01:30 we did in the event into the book.
1:01:36 And the book is about breaking through superficial relationships and finding your purpose.
1:01:39 And that’s what the event essentially was about too because we broke everyone out.
1:01:45 It was so many group exercises and I was just for watching these women transform, finding
1:01:49 and connecting to these other groups of like-minded women.
1:01:53 And so the book essentially is the Four Agreements book that I absolutely love.
1:01:56 That’s the Four Agreements to Having a Great Life.
1:02:01 I think that there’s agreements to having great relationships and I think your relationships
1:02:02 are your life.
1:02:06 You can’t only have a great life without great relationships because even if you’re doing
1:02:11 okay alone, you eventually feel so lonely and isolated that it’s painful.
1:02:15 And we know that now loneliness, all the studies is worse than smoking.
1:02:17 It’ll kill you faster than smoking.
1:02:18 We need relationships.
1:02:21 I think our lives are defined by relationships, but I also think that there’s agreements
1:02:22 to relationships.
1:02:28 So in the book, it goes over the seven agreements of relationships and it’s essentially really
1:02:33 self-work that you can do within other relationships as well.
1:02:38 And being an entrepreneur is one of the loneliest career journeys that you can have and entrepreneurs
1:02:43 really experience a lot of loneliness and depression because of that loneliness.
1:02:46 And you’re somebody who often brings entrepreneurs together.
1:02:53 I would say another superpower that you have is you’re like the queen of live events, especially
1:02:55 in this female entrepreneurship space.
1:02:59 I’d love for you to talk to us about why you love putting on these events and also what
1:03:02 is the business opportunity here?
1:03:07 What’s the business model of events for people who are interested in starting that?
1:03:11 You really want to know why you’re doing events because they can be lucrative, but they’re
1:03:17 typically barely expensive if you’re just looking at this event, right?
1:03:20 You have to know your intention of the event.
1:03:23 I love live events because my life changed at them.
1:03:26 I told you I listen to podcasts and then when my life really changed, it was when I joined
1:03:27 a mastermind.
1:03:34 I initially had gone to an event called Landmark Forum that was my very, very, very first event
1:03:35 ever that changed my life.
1:03:37 Then I went to personal development events.
1:03:40 Then I went to Tony Robbins events multiple times.
1:03:45 Then I joined Jack Canfield events for huge commitments, like events that were like three
1:03:51 weeks spread throughout the year, very intensive events.
1:03:54 I think that they are the quickest way to change your life and to build your network.
1:03:56 Your network has all of your answers.
1:03:59 Like I said, the friend who was like, “Hey, why don’t you just pivot?”
1:04:04 That was by way of someone else who was a part of my network.
1:04:10 We get these big life-changing answers or the investor who felt challenging to me.
1:04:14 That was a life-changing event that really turned me into someone who can handle a lot.
1:04:19 These are all people that came by way of events or networks or someone else.
1:04:23 I believe in them more than I can possibly tell you because I see it.
1:04:25 We put them on.
1:04:29 I get to hear the crazy transformations that happen even if it’s not right away.
1:04:30 It’s two years down the road.
1:04:35 Oh my God, this person that I met at the event, they just became an investor or a business
1:04:36 partner.
1:04:37 It’s crazy.
1:04:39 It’s the long game.
1:04:40 That’s why I’m passionate about events.
1:04:46 The event model is typically either massive brand awareness because you’re not going to
1:04:50 make a whole lot of money off of an event unless you’re really bare bonesing it.
1:04:55 Then that’s tough because people don’t love a bare bones event necessarily, but it’s going
1:05:01 to be selling off the back end or making sure that you, if that’s going to be your top of
1:05:09 funnel brand awareness, that you are utilizing that content from the event or you’re utilizing
1:05:12 something from there to sell something else.
1:05:13 That makes a lot of sense.
1:05:17 Then maybe getting sponsors for your event if it’s big enough.
1:05:24 Sponsors for sure can be a great way for events, but even with sponsors, I find you can make
1:05:28 money from it, but it’s not going to be life changing money compared to what it costs to
1:05:29 run an event.
1:05:30 Got it.
1:05:33 You’re doing it a lot for just awareness, for content.
1:05:34 That’s so interesting.
1:05:35 It depends.
1:05:38 If it’s like a mastermind event, that’s very different.
1:05:41 That’s a great event to monetize.
1:05:44 Got it because that’s a lot more like high ticket, less people.
1:05:48 That makes a lot of sense, but still very valuable for the people that are in it.
1:05:52 I’m actually considering to join some entrepreneurship masterminds.
1:05:58 I’m going to your girlfriends in business event in September, which I’m so excited about.
1:06:01 Is that something that people can sign up for or how does it work?
1:06:03 I think we have like three tickets left.
1:06:04 Okay.
1:06:05 Nevermind.
1:06:06 Sorry.
1:06:07 I mean, maybe it’ll still be there.
1:06:08 You never know.
1:06:11 It’s girlfriendsandbusiness.com, but you can check it out at the website.
1:06:12 Amazing.
1:06:13 Yeah.
1:06:14 Maybe the next time, guys, if you didn’t get to make it.
1:06:15 Lori, this was such an awesome conversation.
1:06:20 I really wanted to just dig deep on your personal story and get all the lessons that we could
1:06:23 learn from you creating all these different businesses and communities.
1:06:24 Thank you so much for sharing.
1:06:28 I end my show with two questions that I ask all my guests.
1:06:32 What is one actionable thing our young and profitors can do today to become more profitable
1:06:34 tomorrow?
1:06:37 Join something where people are a bit ahead of you.
1:06:44 So I love that quote about get in the rooms where your dreams are people’s realities.
1:06:46 That’s been the thing that has changed the most for me.
1:06:49 You can listen to all the podcasts, they’re going to change your life, but when you’re
1:06:53 ready to take the leap and really accelerate, get in a room with those people.
1:06:54 So good.
1:06:56 And what is your secret to profiting in life?
1:06:58 This is such a good question.
1:07:06 My secret to profiting in life is to really work on yourself, because, again, everything
1:07:12 is going to come through relationships and it takes an extreme level of awareness and
1:07:17 grace and forgiveness in order to work through all of the relationships that you are going
1:07:21 to have on your way to your goals in business.
1:07:22 I love that.
1:07:24 Lori, where can everybody find you and everything that you do?
1:07:30 Well, the main thing for me right now is Glossy, and that is the skin routine you can drink.
1:07:36 And you can go to getglossy, G-E-T-G-L-O-C-I dot com, and you can go and check it out
1:07:37 there.
1:07:38 Amazing.
1:07:39 We’ll put that link in the show notes.
1:07:42 Lori, thank you so much for joining us on Young and Profiting Podcast.
1:07:43 Thank you for having me.
1:07:48 This was so much fun.
1:07:52 I was so thrilled to talk with Lori and hear more about her story.
1:07:55 There are so many lessons to draw from her experiences.
1:08:00 First, as I’ve said before, I think the easiest way to launch yourself as an entrepreneur is
1:08:02 to scale something you’re already good at.
1:08:07 Lori started in fitness, and she came to know that world inside and out.
1:08:11 And because she knew that community so well, she saw exactly where she could go next.
1:08:16 Lori knew that the people she was training really wanted more from life, and from her.
1:08:18 Then just better apps.
1:08:19 They wanted higher purpose.
1:08:24 Many felt trapped in their lives and relationships, and Lori found that she could help them.
1:08:28 And then after a while, Lori no longer identified as a trainer who helped people with their
1:08:33 fitness journey, but rather as a coach helping others with their larger life journeys.
1:08:36 And pretty soon, she could scale that into a huge business as well.
1:08:41 I also enjoyed what Lori had to say about the process of becoming a true expert.
1:08:45 Because simply, there’s no better teacher than becoming a teacher yourself.
1:08:49 As Lori took her clients step by step through their fitness routines and journeys, observing
1:08:53 everything at a granular level, she too improved.
1:08:57 I know I’ve experienced that same transformation from the courses that I’ve taught over
1:08:58 the years.
1:09:03 Finally, I loved that last quote that Lori shared, “Get in the rooms where your dreams
1:09:05 are other people’s realities.
1:09:08 That’s so true that hits so hard.”
1:09:11 If you haven’t already, get out and join a community where others are already living
1:09:13 your dream.
1:09:16 Get in that room.
1:09:18 Thanks for listening to this episode of Young and Profiting.
1:09:21 I hope you enjoyed being in this room with me and Lori Harder.
1:09:25 And if you listened, learned, and profited from this conversation, please share this
1:09:28 episode with your friends and family.
1:09:31 And if you did enjoy this show and you learned something, then drop us a five star review
1:09:36 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
1:09:39 If you’d like to watch your podcast as videos, you can find us on YouTube.
1:09:43 You can also find me on Instagram @yappithala, or LinkedIn by searching my name.
1:09:44 It’s @halataha.
1:09:48 I also got to say thank you so much to my incredible YAP team.
1:09:49 You guys are awesome.
1:09:53 This is your host, @halataha, aka the podcast princess, signing off.
1:09:57 [MUSIC PLAYING]
1:10:01 Thanks for listening to this episode of Young and Profiting.
1:10:05 I hope you enjoyed being in this room with me and Lori Harder.
1:10:09 I hope you enjoyed being in this room with me and Lori Harder.