Aimee Gallo is a Licensed Primary Sports Nutritionist and Certified Holistic Health Counselor helping people lead happier, healthier lives through nutrition, fitness, and uncovering abundant joy. She coaches in person in San Diego and nationwide by phone. Her mission is to provide unparalleled support in helping others live the best life they can imagine!  She’s our guest blogger for March, and can be reached at www.vibrancenutrition.com.   Thanks Aimee, and Happy Passioneering!

Staying Motivated to Live Your Passion

By Aimee Gallo

Living your passion can be a full-time job. Sometimes it requires significant amounts of overtime, and for most of us there is no time-and-a-half or honorary plaque to put on the wall. When the rewards for our work seem far away the motivation to continue can weaken. 

My personal ups and downs along the way have allowed me to gather a fine set of motivational tools. These re-invigorate and reinspire me when my energy and stamina are faltering:

1)      Personal Inventory: Do I need to pull the radical self-care card? Have I forgotten myself in all this? If my cup isn’t full, I cannot be the support and encouragement my clients count on. The first thing is to take a moment and self-reflect on what I am feeling and what I need. It may be as simple as extra sleep or emotional support from a friend or it may be something more monumental – like reorganizing my business to accommodate who I am as a person now versus when I started. Sometimes the answers come right away and sometimes I need to sit and allow them to percolate. But first, first we must ask the question. To assist with this, I keep a list of things that invigorate me that I can refer to when I get overwhelmed. Journaling and running also release stuck mental blocks and allow space for my creative brain to find solutions.

2)      I look to my own sources of inspiration to find the drive to continue. Who refused to give up? Abraham Lincoln, Colonel Sanders, my father, Oprah Winfrey, Mohandas Gandhi…read a biography, talk to someone in the field you admire, or consider the alternative – giving up your dreams (unthinkable!) and let this pull you up.

3)      Take a trip down memory lane: What have you already weathered? How was it worth it? How did you feel when you first began? What initially inspired you? Your own story can serve as a powerful motivator. As the author, you determine which direction the story now takes and how it unfolds. What will you choose?

4)      Watch your Mouth: How is your self-talk? When you say, “I can’t do this” or “This is too much” you do not give your infinitely creative subconscious permission to find an answer. Switch your mentality to “How can I make this work?” “What is it that inspires me?” and brainstorm with others as needed for answers.

It’s perfectly normal to have your passion and inspiration wax and wane; none of us can be 100% all the time! When you find yourself struggling, reach both internally and externally for support and motivation to continue living your dreams. It’s not how you do on any given day (or week, or month…) but how authentic and true you are over the journey of your life. May your travels be exciting, rewarding, and abundant!

Aimee Gallo is a Passioneer® inspired by forests, glitter, and how her own body functions. She coaches others on living the best life they can imagine for themselves through food, exercise, and radical self care. She loves to share stories of others’ successes as tools to motivate. To reach her, visit www.vibrancenutrition.com or call (206) 227-1231

We recently interviewed The Veggie Queen, Jill Nussinow, for our program.  

Jill Nussinow, aka The Veggie Queen™, is a cookbook author, culinary educator, Registered Dietitian, and freelance writer whose goal is to inspire people to eat more plant foods, especially vegetables. She is the author of The Veggie Queen:  Vegetables Get the Royal Treatment cookbook and stars in the DVD Pressure Cooking:  A Fresh Look, Delicious Dishes in Minutes.  You can read more about her at her website http://www.theveggiequeen.com or on her blog at http://www.theveggiequeen.blogspot.com.

When asked who she is, she replies “I wear many hats but they’re all related to great food that includes vegetables and other plant based cuisine. I’m a vegetable and plant-food cooking expert, in vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free eating. Don’t worry about me turning you into a vegetarian; you have to do that on your own time. I just want to help you get more vegetables and plant foods into your diet, no matter what other foods you choose to eat.” 

SO: What’s your definition of “passion”?  

 I am passionate about teaching people about vegetables, vegetarian, plant foods and pressure cooking, and why eating this way allows you to feel better, look better and gives you more energy.

SO: What are your biggest passions for serving others, and how are you expressing them (also include hobbies and volunteering)?  

I pride myself on being a role model for others. I shop at the farmer’s market, I share recipes on the spot (in person), I blog, I volunteer for the Vegetarian Nutrition Practice group of The American Dietetic Association and for SOMA Mushrooms (Sonoma County Mycological Association) and do yoga on a regular basis, which keeps me grounded. I also support local farmers in a variety of ways. I find teaching moments outside of the classroom whenever possible. My goal is to teach people individually or in groups who will pass that knowledge on, in the “teach a man to fish” model.

SO: Your biggest challenge(s) in leaping into your passions for serving others, and how you have addressed them?  

I want to do “it all” and often that is too much for me to do.  I have learned to say no more often, especially if someone else can do what I don’t feel that I can. It’s like pruning a rose bush – the more I get into it, the clearer it becomes what I need to cut away or say no to.

SO: Your experience of “prosperity,” as you define it, in making the leap? 

I believe that doing what you love attracts people to you but if you don’t have business skills you aren’t always able to attract the money to go with it. You have to also realize that what you do is valuable and that charging for your skills and experience is what business people do. There’s nothing wrong with that. So, I have built my abundance-ness counsciousness over time.

SO: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in making the leap?

Clearly define your goals. One of mine is that what I do must be fun for me or feed me in some way. If it doesn’t, then the money isn’t usually worth doing the task. And the more that I’ve said no to the things that don’t work for me allows the more joyous and often lucrative events into my life. And also, you must persevere (and not burn bridges) because events don’t always happen on the timeline that you have in mind.

SO: What’s your support system look like; how did you create it?

I have an assistant who helps me at my classes and she is invaluable. I didn’t create it – she asked if she could help me and I gladly said yes. I could have more support but have not yet found the ideal virtual assistant.

SO:  What are your biggest keys to your success?

The ability to be resilient along with talent, experience, skills and probably most of all humor. I love having fun and the enthusiasm to share it with others. I am also grateful for everything that I have in my life and encourage others to find their passion and become inspiring people.

SO: What wisdom do you have for someone who’s scared/discouraged about their own leap?

Think about the worst that could happen if you don’t move ahead, and what’s the best thing that could happen if you do move ahead. What feels better? Hopefully it’s the best thing and if not, then you need to figure out why you don’t want to be more successful. Just do it, keep your eyes open for learning opportunities and get others who can encourage and support you.

SO: What’s your next big milestone?

I am having my website redesigned and working on my next book. I am also developing my speaking platform in a more serious way and hope to reach more people with my message about how eating affects your life.

 Thanks and Happy Passioneering!

Joanna Dolgoff, M.D. is a pediatrician and child obesity expert. She is the creator of Dr. Dolgoff’s Weigh: Child and Adolescent Weight Management Program.  She has been featured as a child obesity expert on WNBC News, WABC News, Fox 5 Morning Show with Mike and Juliet, My9 News and WPIX News.   She shared her Passioneering interview with us in mid-December 2009:

SO: What’s your definition of “passion”?  

A passion is an enthusiastic interest in anything.  Somebody who follows their passion is able to spend their days doing what they love most.

SO: What are your biggest passions for serving others, and how are you expressing them (also include hobbies and volunteering)?  

I am passionate about helping overweight children and families.  I practiced general pediatrics for a number of years, feeling unable to truly help all of my overweight patients.  In order to make ends meet, pediatricians have to see more and more patients in a limited amount of time.  Generally, pediatricians spend about 4-7 minutes with each patient, during which time we have to cover all of his/her healthcare needs.  Clearly, there was not enough time for nutrition counseling.  I finally couldn’t take it anymore.  I had to do something to help the increasing number of overweight and obese children.  In our country, one out of every three kids is now overweight or obese and at risk of medical illness due to weight.  So, eighteen months ago, I invented a child weight loss program, abruptly quit my stable job and set out to open a practice devoted solely to child weight issues.  Everybody thought I was crazy but I was determined.  As it had always been an interest of mine, I had been researching the topic for a number of years.  I spent a few months fine-tuning my plans and then opened up shop!

SO: Your biggest challenge(s) in leaping into your passions for serving others, and how you have addressed them?  

My biggest challenge was getting up the courage to leave a stable job and enter a new field.  There are very few (if any) doctors in the country who solely specialize in child obesity.  I wasn’t sure if I would be able to make a living or if parents would be willing to acknowledge their children’s weight issues.  But I felt so strongly about the need for a child obesity pediatric office that I decided to ignore my fears and move forward.  Within weeks, I had a thriving practice!

SO: Your experience of “prosperity,” as you define it, in making the leap? 

The greatest part of my success is the success of my patients.  Over 90% of my patients have lost weight.  Even better, they have decreased their risk of medical illness due to their weight and have significantly increased their self-confidence.  There is nothing better than the look on a child’s face when he realizes that he is in control of his health.

Since I started my new career, my child weight loss program (http://www.DrWeigh.com) and I have been featured on WABC News, WNBC News, Fox 5 Morning Show, My9 News, and WPIX News.  I have also filmed segments with the Today Show, NightLine, and Extra and I am a featured blogger for the Huffington Post.  My book, Red Light, Green Light, Eat Right, will be published by Rodale in December, 2009.  Children from 44 different states are losing weight with my online weight loss program (http://www.DrWeigh.com) and I have since opened a second practice in Manhattan, NY.

SO: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in making the leap?

That you should be sure to follow your passions.  If you love what you do, the money will follow.  Regardless, you need to be happy every day of your life and the only way to accomplish that is by doing what you love.  Nothing else matters!

SO: What’s your support system look like; how did you create it?

I am very lucky to have a fabulous support system.  My grandfather first gave me the idea to leave my pediatrics practice and start a child weight loss program.  My parents and my husband supported the idea from the very beginning.  Everybody knew that this was something I was truly born to do and that it was something the country really needed. 

SO: What wisdom do you have for someone who’s scared/discouraged about their own leap?

I kept telling myself that in the worst case scenario, I could always go back to what I had been doing previously.  But if I didn’t take the chance, I would regret it for the rest of my life.  You don’t want to look back on your life and regret not trying to follow your dreams.  Particularly if those dreams help other people. 

SO: What’s your next big milestone?

My book will be released in a few weeks!  I am excited to see how that does.  And then I plan to open Dr. Dolgoff’s Weigh practices all over the country! 

Thanks Joanna and Happy Passioneering!

SO: What’s your definition of “passion”?  

That which you believe in to your toes whose pursuit gives your life purpose, meaning and fulfillment; something, that once you find it, to live without it, would be to not live at all.

SO: What are your biggest passions for serving others, and how are you expressing them (also include hobbies and volunteering)?  

I love inspiring others into believing in themselves and in their own abilities to affect change in their lives. For me, it was about informing others and inspiring them to make changes in their health and the health of their families. Allowing them to accept that “good” is great! And to not make “the perfect” the enemy of “the good”. To embrace an 80/20 rule, where you do an awesome job 80% of the time, and allow yourself the grace of the everyday world the other 20% of the time. In a world that very much feels like it has been thrown into a cuisinart, there are so many opportunities to be part of the solution. And it is so important to believe in our ability to inspire change.

SO: Your biggest challenge(s) in leaping into your passions for serving others, and how you have addressed them?  

The biggest challenge was believing in my own ability to overcome challenges and to affect remarkable change – in a world that constantly messages otherwise. It is a challenge to silence the noise and the headlines that are constantly pushing the status quo and to hear the internal dialogue in your heart. It therefore requires tremendous discipline, strength, courage and tenacity to silence the cultural “noise” in order that you may hear the message that is inspiring you from within. As a result, I try to take time to exercise everyday as it gives me clarity and focus – and the ability to process the everyday “noise” so that I may better hear the internal dialogue. I also had to “de-friend” those around me with negative messages, the “naysayers” and choose to surround myself with positive people and positive energy, as it helped provide positive “fuel” for & to nourish my passion!

SO: Your experience of “prosperity,” as you define it, in making the leap? 

The complete fulfillment that comes in knowing that you are doing what you are here to do. Realizing that your life and every stage in it has prepared you for this work – every accomplishment and every setback, a lesson to be learned, making you a better “passioneer” as you evolve in your role of advocating your passion and message.

SO: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in making the leap?

That it will scare people that are close to you which can pose perhaps the biggest risk of all. Those around you may feel threatened by the energy and emotion that you feel towards your life’s work, having not found that same energy themselves. They may feel threatened or displaced by your newfound “love affair”, as jealous as if you’d betrayed them with a newfound love. The risk then becomes that rather than risk alienating those that are close, you choose to forgo your passion and risk alienating your heart’s work. As a result, I have found that it is very important to share with others that your passion makes you more complete, more of a person, more “whole” – which in turn gives you more to share with those you care about. There is nothing special about me, I simply found something that I was so passionate about, that I cared for so deeply that to live without it would have been to cease living, and then I had to shelter myself from a world that told me that I couldn’t make a difference, that my work wouldn’t matter, and take active steps to shield my passion and my heart’s work from those with condescending and destructive words and messages.

SO: What’s your support system look like; how did you create it?

I had to distance myself from the ‘naysayers’ (which was incredibly difficult at times, as it sometimes included close family members) and surround myself with positive energy in order to have the strength, endurance and courage to pursue work that can be so consuming. As a result, I spend less time with those that are negative (including family) and have also learned to avoid the topic with these people, and I spend more time with those who share passionate work. I find absolutely joy in being with other ‘passioneers’ as there is an energy and life to the work that provides constant nourishment. I also take time to nourish myself, not only through good relationships, but also with nourishing, healthy food and nourishing exercise, which gives me the fuel for my passionate journey!

SO: What wisdom do you have for someone who’s scared/discouraged about their own leap?

Hope is the knowledge that change is possible, even when it seems hard to imagine. And while the world favors the status quo and conformity, there is so much fun to be had in the experience of living what you are here to do. It won’t be without challenges and growing pains, but it is those very challenges and your ability to overcome them that will give you such a tremendous sense of LIFE. As you weigh the pros and cons of whether or not to take this leap, ask yourself “What do I have to lose?” Perhaps you’d lose “face”. Then ask yourself “What do I have to gain?” A sense of purpose, of being, of fulfillment, of energy….that will inspire your life and the lives of those around you in such a way that you have made the mark on the world that you are truly here to make! And it’s so important when taking the ‘leap’ to not make “the perfect” the enemy of “the good”. To embrace an 80/20 rule, where you do an awesome job 80% of the time, and allow yourself the grace of the everyday world the other 20% of the time.

SO: What’s your next big milestone?

I continue to learn from my readers and invite them to be part of the journey to change our country’s health!  While we can’t change the beginning, we have an incredible ability to change the end.  So I am engaging many with whom I work in new projects going forward: we are working on films, online forums and other tools that “we the people” can use to help create a healthier home, and I am so humbled and constantly inspired by the remarkable stories that readers have shared and look forward to highlighting them in my future work!

 Thanks Robyn and Happy Passioneering!

Jasmine Graham is the Founder and President of Pace For Success Inc. She is a certified coach with the Road runners Club of America and an American Council of Exercise certified Fitness instructor. Pace For Success creates F.I.N.E. HUMAN BEINGS through Fitness, Involvement, Nutrition & Empowerment. Jasmine is currently running a very successful Health and wellness company. She offers Bootcamp Fitness sessions, Running programs and Nutrition programs. Her scope of service is not just limited to fitness and nutrition. Her newest endeavor is her talk show FINE WOMEN that will cover issues related to Fitness, Involvement , Nutrition and Empowerment in every show. She also wants to showcase ordinary people doing extraordinary things in every episode. She decided to create this show because she wanted to empower and effect people in a positive way on a larger scale. The pilot is completed and will be shopped to various networks. She has also been interviewed on various cable programs where she discussed how she changed careers and the importance of a healthy lifestyle. Her life’s passion is to help people be the best that they can be and she is accomplishing that. She can be reached at www.pace4success.com.

Below is her interview with us on Blog Talk Radio, October 2, 2009: