Finding Your Path with Risa August

Hey there Business Animals it's Kim with Be More Business and today I am here with Risa August a speaker a coach an author a appears to be a serial entrepreneur all kinds of endeavors that I didn't even know that she did and she's here to talk with us today about the search that she's been through

and the experiences she's been through to find joy in what she does every single day. So welcome to the Business Animal podcast, Risa

Kim, I am overjoyed to be here and have a conversation with you today.

Awesome. Awesome. Well, why don't you start us off today by telling us a little bit about yourself and I know we're gonna get off on some tangents because you have a rather complex story. So I'm just gonna let you tell it because I don't even know where to begin to peel back the layers. So

Yeah.

essentially destroys the body over time. I went on to have brain surgery and radiation treatment and this many years later I'm still fighting fight. I'm still trying to find a treatment that works and going with the changes of my body, know, it seems to be definitely changing over time and I'm just learning to navigate all of

Absolutely. And along the way, I have known you to get involved in a lot of different endeavors. talk a little bit about your entrepreneurial journey, because that's what we're all focused on on the podcast is what is it like to be an entrepreneur. And I'm especially interested in how your diagnosis has altered the evolution of you as an entrepreneur.

life coaching, I quit my job and started a wedding and event planning business. And I couldn't even believe I did that. I'm such a big planner and I have all my ducks in a row and all of sudden I'm like, my gosh, what am I doing?

What

a wonderful set of skills to bring to the wedding and event planning industry is somebody who has all of that great attention to detail. And by the way, everybody who's listening, I know Risa in a lot of different capacities, but I have attended events that she has had her fingers in. I mean, I won't say like the whole thing is up to you, but I can tell you everything is planned to the nth degree. And if I were going to be getting married, I would definitely like someone like you on the team helping me plan that.

you

So yeah, so that's where you started into entrepreneurship, fed up with the corporate life, moved on to wedding and event planning. So what happened from there?

Yeah. Yeah. And it's funny you say that because wedding and event planning just kind of happened by accident. I was at a friend's wedding and I just, was, I was attending it, but it was, it was a nightmare behind the scenes. So I just stepped in and started doing it and, and it went off without a hitch and people started saying, my gosh, you should do this as a, a living. And so that's kind of where that started. I I started really,

noticing, my gosh, wait a minute, I am really good at this. These are skills I have. I'm really good at details and organizing. And I think that was the first time in my life I actually started paying attention to what I was good at and knowledgeable about. fast forward about five, seven years later, I just got really burned out with wedding and event planning and it was no longer speaking to my heart.

And so I just kind of slowly dissolved that business. in the meantime, soon after closing up that business, that's when I was diagnosed with this tumor. it, you know, I'm sure a lot of people who've gone through, you know, maybe challenging diagnosis or even just adversity in their lives,

taken a moment to really reflect back on, wait a minute, am I living my best life? Am I happy? All those questions. And that's exactly what happened to me. And so I started really looking at, wait a minute, what feeds me? And I slowly started finding things like, well, I love creativity. I love being creative. And I love spreading joy. I love being able to

help other people. I didn't know what all that meant. So it sounds all very vague, you know, but I knew I was onto something. And so that's when my exploration began. I just knew this diagnosis really kind of catapulted me into, a minute, I want to do something that really matters and feels purposeful for me.

Yeah.

Great. then so along there in that evolution, you became a coach.

I became a Gestalt practitioner and I also learned a lot about myself becoming a coach and I kept evolving as well. then so the coaching from there...

I guess expanded. was like, you know what? I want to start my own company and so, or my own business. And so I started Feather and Sage coaching and it was almost another natural skill, like going back to the wedding and event planning, you know, and how I started noticing things I was good at. Like, well, I noticed that I was really good at active listening and I was very naturally inquisitive and curious.

And I had a lot of the natural skills of a good coach. And so again, I had a couple people, some of my brides even were like, you should be a coach. You're so good. You're so calming and all this stuff. And so these seeds along the way started getting planted. But I think the key here was I actually started listening to them. I started paying attention to these seeds and these like, wait a minute.

Wait a minute here, I actually started tapping into those things that were popping up as opposed to like, no, I could never do that or not paying any attention to it.

So I am the most of the way through your book, which I really am adoring. And I do have to say anybody who's interested in reading it, it is The Road Unpaved, a border to border with a brain tumor named Bubba. So we may have to invite some conversation around that in a little bit. But.

Hahaha!

The thing that I'm hearing as you're talking and having being involved in reading your book, I'm seeing the evolution of you coming right alongside this. And so many of the people that I work with as entrepreneurs, they end up learning and doing in their business what it is that they need most in their life. And as I'm I'm sitting here listening to you talk about listening to other people and really hearing what they're saying. And I feel like in your book,

Hmm.

that I really have an idea in your story that that was something that was a hugely missing from your life and two was also something that you had to learn to do for yourself to like listen to your body and believe what your body said. Could you share a little bit about that experience with our listeners?

yes, about kind of my evolution or...

Yeah, about how all of this sort of came together over time. so here's another statement that I just want to make. I feel sometimes that we create the businesses in our lives that support the thing that we need the most. Have you found over time that has been the case and especially with Feather and Sage and some of the things that you're doing now with speaking and sharing and writing?

Yes, think even up to this day, I still am learning more and more how that's evolved. You said it so beautifully, we often go out and do the things that we need in our lives. When I was in it, I didn't know that, but reflecting back,

And even to this day, I ask myself those questions. I need joy in my life. I need purpose. This is what I want. I want to be heard. And I'm a good listener. I'm kind of having these epiphanies now, Kim, as you say that. it's so true. I knew when, for example,

When I went through my diagnosis, there wasn't a lot of information out there. And had I had more information, I might have made different decisions with my medical treatment. And so now I'm on this quest to get the information out there. And that was part of the purpose of writing my book and also getting on stages and speaking or podcast interviews. But also another aspect of that was joy.

my gosh, I wanted to live this big, beautiful life. And so that's why I added a lot of humor and authenticity to my story. I wanted my book to be a story, not just an educational piece, but like a good story. And then I went on to do all these other amazing things. I started signing up for classes and different dance classes and art and things I always wanted to learn or try.

And then another business evolved from this, doing hair sparkles. Later in life, I come to realize how much I love art and I went to this big art festival and there was a gal sparkling hair. It's these little silk strands that shimmer and shine and you put them in, you just tie them in a knot to one single strand of hair and they just add.

So much joy and just uplifting energy to the environment. I just noticed other women and people walking around with these sparkles just beaming. And then I got some in my hair and I was beaming. the gal who was doing my hair happened to start this company called Lucky Locks. And I said, I want in. And she said, well.

you can become a mobile partner. So that's what I did. And it became more about what it got me internally. It got me this sense of just joy and I don't know, maybe it fulfills that creative piece as well.

But all the things that I've been reflecting on that I need or want in this life also contributed to that. It wasn't just about the money or anything. was kind of beyond that, if that makes sense.

Absolutely. It totally makes sense. It totally makes sense. And that's why I always say I work with mission based businesses because the type of work that I do with gestalt, with hypnosis, with marketing, with content marketing, with all of the avenues I have for people to build their business and their life, it all has to rely upon wanting more dimension. And that's the word that comes

to mind when I think of the hair. And by the way, I cannot wait to see you in September to get my hair sparkled again. I was so sad when the last little sparkly, sparkly piece fell out a few weeks ago, which is crazy because I got those last September and they lasted almost a full year. So I do have to give a big shout out to the lucky locks folks. They definitely have a good product and you are a great practitioner in putting them in and I can't wait to have them.

Yes!

back in my hair again because I miss them because you're right. It's this thing where every time you look in the mirror and you see your hair, you feel like a fairy princess. I mean, it's just a wonderful feeling. But as you are talking, that's what I see it as a metaphor for wanting dimension, right? Nobody wants to have a flat life. there's so much and I think that's one of the reasons people get called to entrepreneurship.

Mm

is to add dimension to who we are. And you know me well enough to know that I'm the queen of I want to do all the things, right?

Yes.

have way more in my life than probably most people should and I can tell you over the years and I don't know if you've heard this from other people for in your world but I've been advised many many times by very intelligent people that I trust would you just pick one thing pick one thing and concentrate on that one thing and I'm like no I can't because that would not be fair to me

It might be the better choice, but it would not be fair to me. And I see so much about what you do and reading your story in the book. And by the way, I think you more than accomplished the task of making this a story. So how it's woven together, the parts and the pieces definitely make it into a story that is actually very riveting. mean, I have had a hard time. been I had a lot of distractions over the last few days while I've been trying to read it.

And I'm like, I keep getting torn away and I'm like, no, I want to know what's happening next. But that dimension, you need that to be fair to you. Does that resonate?

my gosh, Kim, yes, I've had so many different coaches or other people I've networked with or maybe gotten consults with and they're all like, well, you have to pick one thing. You have to be this one thing and you have to sell this one thing. And I looked at your website and it's beautiful, but what's the thing? And I'm like.

But Risa August isn't just the thing. She's not just one thing. Like I, you know, create my voice and story sticks and I'm a hair sparkler and I'm a Gestalt practitioner and I'm a speaker and an author and I want all of that. That's all a part of me. And so I've been very resistant to being the one thing.

Absolutely. And I'll tell you that in my experience, putting up the resistance drains your energy for all the things. And when I stopped and said, listen, I

Mm.

I understand you mean well. I also understand this is good advice because when people do come to me to ask me as a marketing consultant about their messaging and their branding, in general, I try to get them to hone it under one umbrella at least. And I've spent a good many of years of my own life working towards that in my own business and in my own messaging. But at the end of the day, it doesn't work.

Mm -hmm.

it doesn't work for me and it likely isn't going to work for you. And I have to believe in a universe and a world and an entrepreneurship activity that is expansive enough to hold that.

And so I give you kudos for not giving in to the pressure, the peer pressure of do the one thing. And I'm immensely glad you're doing the hair sparkles and that you're doing the author and the speaking and the coaching piece of things. So when we talked a little bit earlier, one of the things I like to discuss is that usually when people start a business, they have a vision of what an entrepreneur is like. Do you remember back

Hahaha

even when you left that job and started your event planning business, what did you think being an entrepreneur would be like?

Gosh, let me think back here.

There's, part of me thought I would just like launch my website and voila, I'd have all these clients coming to me. And it's funny when I'm coaching new clients who are in that phase of starting their own business and they're like, well, I launched my website, but I haven't seen, know, I haven't gotten any clients. And that's what I thought at first. I just thought, my gosh, I'm out in the world now. Everyone's seeing me.

And I'm gonna just have all these brides knocking at my door. Not the case at all. Even with my coaching practice and my speaking practice and being an author today, I like constantly am out contacting people, networking, know, emailing people, signing up for things. Even if it's not quite the thing I'm gonna do, I just feel like knowledge is power. The more I learn.

the more I learn, right? And so I think I thought initially it would just happen, voila. But it's not, it's a lot of hard work. And I think I was telling you earlier, when I started my wedding and event planning company, I started doing weddings for military couples for free. I was donating free wedding coordination. And that's where I started. And...

Yeah.

I went through all the feelings of comparing to other, what looked like successful planners and coordinators. And I had to go through a business change because apparently I was infringing on a business name for company in California, which I thought I wasn't.

The name change actually ended up being way better and I loved it, but still it was a really hard process to kind of start all that over. And there were a lot of moments of sitting at wedding expos and just feeling like, my God, what am I doing? You know, what am I doing? And so it was a lot of hard work. eventually, and I think it took me a solid

three years till I was fully in, like full -fledged, being paid really well for my work and my skills and being sought after. I connected with a few venues that loved me, so I was constantly getting referrals, things like that. But it took a solid three years of not just...

three years of letting it happen naturally, three years of working my butt off, till it started finally happening naturally. Like, you know.

Well, and I always I always envision it like this that push and I think three years is a pretty good average I I would say three to five some people it'll be a little longer some people win the golden goose of getting it done really really quickly in a year or year and a half but for most of us it's three years and it feels like you're pushing a rock up a really steep hill and it's harder and harder and actually the closer to the the precipice that you get the harder you have

to work and then there's at some point you reach this magic place at the top of the hill where all of the sudden the rock goes on over and it's headed down the hill and then the the crazy thing that we think is my goodness okay it's all so easy from there but the the reality is is now you've got to control the rock because you don't want it running over everyone and also at the bottom of every valley

Yeah.

there's another hill that you have to get up on the other side. So that evolution of businesses always fascinates me because it does, it evolved. And as you evolve as a human being, so does the business right alongside you. So it's a natural evolution that you would have moved out of that, what you were doing and now into what sparks joy. And when we just had a very brief pre -conversation before we hit the record button,

So the thing that sparked joy for you now is speaking and writing. Was that two or just speaking? What are the things that bring you joy in this current evolution of your business?

I mean, ultimately...

Me evolving as a human is what feeds me. so, and I know that's a depthful conversation for another day, but, and so what contributes to that is, you know, right now speaking, getting my message out feels very, it's what's calling to me. I'm in the process of writing my second manuscript.

And I don't know that I'm quite ready to go all in with it, but I think it's like personal evolution is what's really calling to me. But speaking is the thing right now. And I'll always have my other things on the sides that I really love. I still do coaching. I still sparkle hair, which is just kind of a highlight of my...

know, day when I get to do that. And then writing will always be there for me when I'm ready to go all in again. So, and like you said, it's this constant evolution of, yeah, of my business, I guess.

Yeah, because you have to keep moving forward and you keep growing and expanding. And I love that those things are the things that are bringing you joy and are sparking you to want to move on. So I would love do you have a message that you really want to convey in your speaking that you would like to share with listeners?

Sure, yes. So what I'd like to say is don't limit yourself. Obstacles aren't there to block you. They're simply something to navigate. And oftentimes they end up, these obstacles are these, they force us to pivot in the direction that we're actually meant to go. And I have this image of me

you know, in my book where, you know, I'm riding down the Pacific coast, but I have a photo that someone took of me on that ride and I was heading into a fog, like a complete fog. You could only see the road right underneath me. You couldn't see the road ahead. And I had to just trust. I had to just keep pedaling and trust. And so that's really how I'm going through life now is it...

It's not always smooth or easy and I don't always know where I'm going, but the more I'm just present and I keep pedaling and moving forward like you said, the more I allow for opportunity and possibility to come my way. So stay open and don't limit yourself.

I love that because you're Risa unleashed, right? So unlimited unleashed. And for those who aren't familiar with Risa, Risa and I kind of share a language here because we know each other a little bit. But her book is about her diagnosis and the process that she went through after that diagnosis. And then how long after your diagnosis did you do the bike ride from Canada to you went from Canada to Mexico?

I'm Risa Unleashed, yes.

Yes, I rode from Canada and Mexico down the Pacific coast. think it was about, I think, like just over a year I had to heal and get back on my bike.

So from ICU to going on an 1 ,845, am I right on that? 1 ,845 mile bike ride down the Pacific coast through all kinds of weather, through all kinds of obstacles and things that happen along the way. And it's a beautifully woven in story with understanding the ride and RIS's personal

You are.

becoming unleashed process. So I absolutely adore that and highly recommend available on Amazon. You can get it as an ebook or did you read the audiobook? I didn't do the audiobook. So awesome. I love it. I love it. So she narrated the audiobook. Okay, before I get into my last standard two questions for this podcast, I want to ask you one that was that is kind of completely off the script.

Yes.

I did, I did narrate the audiobook, yes.

So I believe you're an introvert, is that correct? Okay, so a pretty high introvert if I'm not mistaken.

Yes.

And here you are out in the world, speaking, putting your message out there, really getting in front of people and building your business and your life and all the little parts and pieces that go with that. What advice do you have for introverts listening to this going, my gosh, I would love to do that. I would love to speak. I would love to write, but I am an introvert and that terrifies me.

Yes. my gosh, what advice. Well, I still feel like I'm awkward and I'm floundering my way through it all. But I think embracing that, embracing that part of me and, you know, practicing my extrovert, you know, as you and I both know Kim, like being an introvert doesn't mean you can't be extroverted.

And so I've just practiced that a lot. And then I make sure I get my solo time wherever I can and however I can and really kind of refresh my introvert after all the extrovertedness.

I totally get that. And that's generally as a nine E. So I don't have a lot of introvert in me, but I will generally give the advice to my introvert clients to make sure they plan for a lot of good self care, particularly after they've had to do something incredibly extroverted, like go to a networking event or speak.

So you and I know each other in the context of gestalt and touched by a horse. And as you know, I partner with animals in my business. And many of our listeners out there have businesses that directly involve the animals. And if not directly involving animals where they serve somebody in the animal industry, they're almost as always an animal in the background. Somebody who's important to those individuals and important to the process of

their evolution and their experience in life. So I ask everybody to share a story. So what is your animal story you would like to share?

my gosh, so.

my animal story. Well, I had two dogs, a golden retriever and a Jack Russell terrier and the golden retriever has passed on. But my Jack Russell, is, gosh, 16 years old now, he's been such a joy to have in my life. And he really

When I got this dog, everyone would say, he's a lot like you. He's just has this attitude and is very rebellious and a little resistant to being told what to do and a bit fearless and maybe a little nervous on the inside, but on the outside, like fearless. And I remember one time he was in...

the yard playing and there was probably four or five deer around and they were so curious about him. And I would throw the ball and he would run after it and the deer would chase him and he would get the ball and bring it back and I'd throw it back and he'd go get it and the deer would chase him. And he was just like, don't mess with me and you're not getting this ball, it's mine. And he just had this attitude or if I threw a ball into a

like three feet of snow, he would go in after it and he'd disappear and then pop out somewhere else under the snow. And he just really had this attitude of living life fully, know, going all in and having a bit of attitude as well. And so I think he really kind of, he and I were similar in that way. it really, he's just, again, he's just brought.

so much joy. And when I had my surgery, he stayed at the foot of my bed three weeks of my healing, three to six weeks of my healing process, and he just didn't leave my side. so that's my animal story, and his name is Coda. Yeah.

I love it. So that's great. And so much of that Jack Russell energy is what takes to get through life, right that tenacity and I am not going to give up ever. That is a Jack Russell to the core. have had a Jack Russell friend in my life and I can tell you that was her motto in life. Whatever she wanted, she was going to go after it till she got it. So I appreciate that. So

you

Yes.

I love it.

Risa, if somebody is interested in you speaking at their event or where can they get in touch with you for that? Because I know that's primarily what you would like out of life. So if anybody out there knows of an event that could use a good speaker for keynote, Risa I'm sure is available. So how would they find you?

You could go to my website risaaugust .com and it's R -I -S -A August, just like the month, dot com. You can learn about my speaking availability. You can listen to many of the podcasts I've been on. You could learn about my hair sparkle business. I was actually featured in

Women's World Magazine for my hair sparkle business. And you can learn about also my art, my voice and story art that got me through my healing process and some of the classes and workshops I hope to hold around those. But risaaugust .com is where it's all at. it's all there, Kim. It's all under the one umbrella.

I love it. It's all you in all your infinite unleashed wisdom. Thank you so much, Barisa, for being with us today. And thank you guys out there for listening. Don't forget to hit that like and subscribe and follow button depending on what you're listening to this on. Thank you, guys, and we'll see you next week.