Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Sykes.
Hi Kayla, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was a new mama to six-month-old twins, working full time at a local credit union when I first started my online wellness coaching business. It was quite possibly the busiest season of life for me, but I did not care because I was done ignoring that tug on my heart to TRY. For a year and a half, I had sat back following other coaches’ journeys and admiring from afar.
I had been a part of group fitness classes at this point for a couple of years and loved cheering other people on during class! There was a day where while we were cooling off in class where I just thought “How cool would it be to have a job to simply empower others and cheer them on in their health journey?!”
To be clear, I didn’t hate what I did for a living. In fact, I loved my coworkers and had incredible leadership within my department. I had amazing benefits. I just wanted to bring in another paycheck to help pay for formula and diapers for two babies. I had no idea what I was doing when it came to running a business on social media, nor did I have a huge following.
For the first two years, I built my business alongside my full-time career. I was consistent in showing up on social media and sharing my OWN journey. Both the good and the bad. Having people reach out and express how I was inspiring them made me feel so good. It kept me going most days!
At the beginning of 2019, I kept receiving signs. Signs that were pulling me in a direction that I was fearful of taking. Since I was 16 years old I had always worked outside of the home. Although I had the dream job it got to a point where I no longer enjoyed it as much like I once used to. Coaching had given me a creative outlet, whereas my career became more mundane and I just felt stuck.
I made the decision to leave my career of nearly 12 years to pursue entrepreneurship full-time. It was scary, and exciting all in one! Truthfully, I wanted more time with my children and time freedom as a whole. I ended up leading a team of coaches to the tippy top of our company that year and became a first-time Elite Top Team. For a gal who had zero confidence in her capabilities, for the first time I had developed massive self-belief!
The personal growth and learning to be unapologetically me, have been two of the best things that coaching has brought me!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh, goodness, no. They say success isn’t linear and that is the dang truth! I hit many road bumps at the end of 2019 while pushing for the biggest goal I had set to date. Then the following year felt like we were going up, up, upon a fun rollercoaster, and everything was incredible. Goals were achieved together as a team and life felt so good. Then the second half of 2020 felt like we were speeding down the other side of the rollercoaster with no stopping in sight.
This year has been filled with many trials, but what I have learned is every obstacle is an opportunity. It serves a purpose and I always ask myself “What can be learned from this situation? How is this making me better? What can I do to improve?”
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In 2017, I partnered with Beachbody. I knew for a year or so at that point, that I wanted to become a wellness coach for a few reasons. After becoming a mother, it was important for me to continue working on my health. As someone who had always been a member of a gym or group fitness classes, I knew I was going to have to adjust to something different to make it work.
What’s funny is something I used to talk so much smack about (at home fitness), would end up becoming the thing that changed my life! Convenience is what I needed being a working mama. So being able to walk out to my garage on my own time, press play on a workout and listen to what the personal trainer told me to do was the best thing ever. It took the guesswork out of fitness for me.
I began following programs AND a nutrition program. I had always recognized that I had an unhealthy relationship with food. Looking back I needed more help with that than anything. I was an avid yo-yo dieter, and would try all of the latest fads only to be bored with them by day three!
I had always been consistent at one thing – INCONSISTENCY. I had finally become consistent in my fitness journey and developed a healthier relationship with food. I could not help but want to share that with the world and help other women discover this too!
I feel that my desire to build relationships with people sets me apart from those in my industry. As an Enneagram 7, I genuinely enjoy connecting with people and learning more about them. To me, that is crucial when expecting a person to open up and become vulnerable about the goals they have for their overall health. If you don’t take time to build a relationship with someone, you don’t have trust and without trust, it can be hard for them to move forward.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Oh yes, so many! I would start with my manager at the credit union I worked for, David Wilhelm. He worked quite a bit with me when it came to leadership development and public speaking. I learned SO much from him that I utilize to this day and I am so thankful for the time he dedicated to me. My coach, Ashlie Molstad is who first poured belief in me when it came to my coaching business. I always admired her journey and willingness to be herself on social media. I understood that she focused a lot of time over the years on personal development. That inspired me to do the same and start the journey of showing more of the REAL Kayla on my posts/stories.
My family has always been super supportive of my business and that has been so incredible to have these last four and a half years! My team, Inspire Empire, has contributed GREATLY to our success over the years. Without them, there is no me. I am insanely honored that those women chose me as their mentor in this business. Our friendships are truly something I hold near and dear to my heart!
There are many others that I could sit here and type a whole list out. What I will say is every person on that list over the years has shown love on my posts, joined me or referred me to people they know, reached out with kind messages, etc. Those things help SO much and I cannot thank them enough!
Contact Info:
- Email: kayla@kaylasykesfitness.com
- Website: www.kaylasykesfitness.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_kaylasykes_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kayla.m.sykes.1/
Image Credits
Izzy Lambert Photography
