Amberly Lago is a former professional dancer and athlete and a leading expert in the field of resilience, transformation, and health and wellness. She is a motivational speaker and the best-selling author of “True Grit and Grace.” She empowers people around the world by sharing her story how she turned a tragedy into triumph.

Amberly has most recently been featured on NBC’s The Today Show, contributed to magazines such as Shape, Fit Pregnancy, Health, and Disability Magazine.

• CEO Hack: (1) Running (2) Willingness to reach set goals
• CEO Nugget: Follow your guts, listen to your heart, everything we need is within us
• CEO Defined: A leader, someone who represents, listens, is of service and willing.

Website: http://amberlylago.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amberlylagomotivation
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmberlyLagoSpeaker/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amberlylago/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/amberlylago

FULL INTERVIEW

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Transcription:

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Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview?

If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of.

This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:29

Hello, hello, hello. This is Gresh from the I AM CEO Podcast and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Amberly Lago of AmberlyLago.com.

Amberly, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Amberly Lago 0:39

Oh, I'm so happy to be here. Thanks for having me on.

Gresham Harkless 0:42

No problem, super excited to have you on. And what I wanted to do is just read a little bit more about Amberly. So you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. And Amberly is a former professional dancer and athlete and a leading expert in the field of resilience, transformation, and health and wellness. She is a motivational speaker and the best-selling author of “True Grit and Grace.”

She empowers people around the world by sharing her story of how she turned a tragedy into triumph. Amberly has most recently been featured on NBC’s The Today Show and contributed to magazines such as Shape, Fit Pregnancy, Health, and Disability Magazine. Amberly. Are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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Amberly Lago 1:20

I am

Gresham Harkless 1:21

Awesome. Let's do it. So the first question I had was to hear more about what I call your CEO story. And what led you to start your business?

Amberly Lago 1:27

Well, you know, I really think sometimes you don't know why things happen. But it leads you down a path to where you really discover your purpose. And I have worn I still wear a lot of hats. But my I had a horrible motorcycle accident, and I had to have 34 surgeries to save my leg from amputation. And I was nationally recognized as a fitness coach.

And now here I was bedridden, it took a lot of digging a lot of healing to get to where I am now. And it led me down a path of really discovering the tools to become resilient. And I am passionate about inspiring those tools to others. And so I still do some fitness training. But I mostly work with people on a one-on-one basis doing coaching and speaking to a large audience about really how to tap into your tools of resilience.

And so I think being a CEO is more than just you know, being the face of a company, I think it is being of service to me, it's really important to listen to your community and know what they want, know what their needs are. And also have a good team with you that works alongside you.

Gresham Harkless 2:46

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And obviously sorry to hear you know about the injury, you said 34 surgeries?

Amberly Lago 2:52

34 surgeries, but you know what, they were going to amputate my leg and I had a 1% chance of saving it. And people ask me, you know, do you wish you could take it all back? And I really don't because it has made me into the person that I am today. And that pain, all the pain that I went through and actually still go through. It has taught me the greatest lessons. And it has led me down this path of really connecting with the community and empowering others.

Gresham Harkless 3:25

Yeah, absolutely. And I can't help but that, you know, that, you know, unfortunately, had to happen, but you've been able to get through it yourself. But also being able to kind of help out others, you know, is definitely phenomenal. So I know you've touched on it a little bit, but I wanted to hear some of the things you're doing to support these clients with the one on ones and how people how you can help people tap into their resilience.

Amberly Lago 3:44

Well, I'm glad you asked because I came up with something called Pacer. And actually, I owe this to my husband because one night we were sitting at the dinner table and he was like you really need to pace yourself. And you know, if you're a type A personality, you're like on full throttle. And I'm like, This is my pace, man. I got one pace and that's full throttle.

And I really stopped and kind of thought about it. And I sat and started writing on a dinner napkin everything that I did throughout the day to pace myself so I could be resilient. And Pacer is something that I use with my clients and I use on a daily basis. And P stands for perspective. A is for acceptance. C is for community E is for endurance, and R is for rest.

And let me tell you that R part is so hard because it's I have a hard time resting because for me resting meant quitting and I didn't want to be a quitter. But I apply these daily things into my life and I have taught this to my clients and whether I'm dealing with pain, any kind of pain, whether it's emotional or physical or I'm dealing with anxiety or fear, or even depression, I use this Pacer. And now it's gotten to the point where I was feeling a lot of fear.

And I had a friend reach out and say, How are you doing? And I was freaking out. And she texted me back one word, and she said Pacer. And I thought, wow, I need to like practice what I preach. And I went down the list, and I shifted my perspective. And now my husband will look at me and say, You're forgetting the R Amberly, you're forgetting.

So I, it's my hope that you know, I can, you know, we can apply, because I think so many of us, we have these traumas, or we have these challenges. And we need tools to get through those. And I think a lot of people aren't talking about, really the struggle day to day what your struggles are. And I think it's something that I really want to share with others to help them really tap into the resilient.

Gresham Harkless 5:55

Yeah, absolutely. And I think that especially like when you're starting anything, or running a business or doing whatever, or anything, really, that's new, there's a level of fear, there's discomfort, there's, you know, sometimes doubting yourself, and there's sometimes just things that you want to deal with. So being able to kind of tap into a tool like Pacer, to understand that it's part of the process and make sure that you're mining all of those different letters and those different aspects of it.

Amberly Lago 6:19

Yeah, cuz they're there some days I'm like, Oh, my gosh, why am I I feel stuck, why? Or why am I feeling doubting myself or getting all up in my head? And then I'm like, Okay, stay in my heart, focus on my why. And I go down the list of what can I do to shift my perspective. And sometimes that means, like, really forcing myself to find the good in a situation? Or what am I learning from the situation that I'm in? And sometimes I have to look at how far I've come and how worse it could be.

And that's all I need to kind of shift my perspective. And let me tell you when I can shift my perspective, it has changed my life because it turns really, makes me circle back around to gratitude and gratitude is my medicine, Man, it turns what we can't do and do what we can do. And it turns what we don't have into what we do have. And so it's something that I use on a daily basis.

Gresham Harkless 7:22

That makes perfect sense. Yeah, being able to kind of tap into that, because, you know, hard times always are around the corner, and you know, making sure that you're able to kind of combat that. And, I was going to ask you for your secret sauce. And it sounds like you might have already touched on this. But correct me if I'm wrong is that gratitude, which you feel kind of makes you unique and kind of gives you that edge?

Amberly Lago 7:39

I think so I think really, gratitude is my medicine. And I start every day, except for today, I have to admit something. So today I woke up a little bit late. And every day I wake up and I have this morning ritual where I get up and before my feet hit the ground, I say a little prayer, I think of something that I'm grateful for. And then I do some journaling of short meditation.

And I read from some, you know, I'll pick something from one of the many books that I'll read out of. And this morning, I've got so much on my plate right now. And I was like, screw the morning routine. I just, I gotta just go. And as soon as that thought came into my head, I seriously I fell trying to sit on the toilet. That was like, okay, the universe has a funny sense of humor, I'm going to stick to the gratitudes stick to my morning routine and take it from there.

And because it sets the tone for your day, and if I can start my day with gratitude, and if I end my day with gratitude, I am in so I'm in such a better place. And I'm not rushing around and falling, just trying to sit on the toilets. I thought I would share that with you.

Gresham Harkless 8:52

I guess I feel like that should be a t-shirt, practice your morning routine or sit on the toilet. So definitely make sure that you're doing that. But no, I love that. And I love the fact too that it sounds like you're really dialed into yourself and understanding when things are going according to plan and not. Because a lot of times people might sit on the toilet and like, oh, man, it's something else. But understanding that you do this on a regular everyday basis in the one time you didn't do it, then all of a sudden, things like that start to manifest themselves.

Amberly Lago 9:18

Yeah, you know, I think that I don't know, I think if you're anything like me, I always have this big plan this grand plan of how I think my life should be like I have everything planned on when where and how everything's gonna happen. And most of the time, it doesn't happen like that.

And so if we have some good tools in our toolbox, and we have that foundation of those things that we can reach for when things don't go as planned. We can find and have a life of joy no matter what comes our way we can choose joy. And you know for me, I was told so many things I was told that you know by a doctor, you know you will be permanently disabled You will you need to go back and get in your wheelchair, you're gonna be in the wheelchair the rest of your life, and I hike mountains.

And it's not because I'm it's not because I'm different or not because I'm better than anybody else. It's because I have some tools that I use on a daily basis, and it gets me over those little hurdles. And that's what I really love to share with others that you know, taking it one day at a time, one step at a time, sometimes one minute at a time. And really applying those tools and having a strong foundation allows you to overcome so much mentally, physically, and spiritually.

Gresham Harkless 10:39

Yeah, absolutely. And that's definitely a great reminder because I know you touched a little bit upon the resiliency tools. And some people might be looking, searching for their toolbox, let alone the resiliency tool, saying I don't even have one of those. But it's great to hear that you say that not only have you been able to you know, leverage those, and find those, but we all have those within us.

Amberly Lago 10:57

We all do. We all have that resilience within us. And you know, at one time for me, when I first had my motorcycle accident, I realized when I was stuck in the hospital that I really had one tool, and that was to run, if I was sad, I'd go for a run, if I was happy, I'd go for a run if I was anxious, I would go for a run. And when that was all stripped away, I had nothing I didn't know what to do.

And I really went into a dark place. And so over time there, you know, there was something inside me. And it's not just me, it's inside all of us. And it's really a never-ending resource of a wealth of information and, and resilience that we have inside of us. And it's really about fine-tuning how we tap into that and really continue to rise.

Despite sometimes not feeling like I can even take a step forward, there were days when I seriously was ready to throw in the towel. And thank goodness, there was that little bit of light or resilience left in me and I was able to climb out of that dark spot. I don't ever want to go back there. And I want to help others that might be in a situation where they're feeling stuck, or they're feeling heavy-hearted. Because we all can thrive. We all have that ability to thrive and choose joy.

Gresham Harkless 12:22

Absolutely, absolutely. And I wanted to switch gears a little bit. And you might have already touched on this with the running. Were there any other what I call CEO hacks or things that you do to be effective and efficient that you can share with us?

Amberly Lago 12:33

I think that really, it takes focus. And it's building your habit, you know, it's doing something on a daily basis, like anything, and that's something that I've done since I was a kid, if you want to get better at something, then you have to do it on a daily basis. It's something that I used and still use with my fitness training clients, you can't go to the gym one time a week and expect to see results. It's on a daily basis. It's a way of living, and it really takes doing something every day, I think there's one thing that you have to do that will get you there.

And that is the key to being successful, is being willing. And if you are willing, then there you go, you're gonna you're going to reach your goals. Because if you are willing, you are going to be able to do anything you can and do your best every single day you're going to find that grit to keep going.

And like my grandfather always says that I always think about this, my grandfather used to always tell me, you've got a shovel in your hand, you can either lean on it and pray for a hole or you can start digging. And I'm like, Okay, I'm gonna pray. But I need to start digging, it takes action. So always think about what these little things My grandfather used to say.

Gresham Harkless 13:55

Yeah, it's funny how you know, those things start to make manifest themselves in life. And you remember those and can kind of tap into those. So that's why we make sure to save them. So like I say, I will over-skill all the time. Now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice. Or if you can happen to be a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

Amberly Lago 14:14

I would probably I think I would tell myself to listen to my gut and follow my heart, the answer that we the answers that we mean, are within us. Sometimes I think that we look outside and we're trying to search for everything. And if we just are still for long enough and really listen to our heart, everything that we need is within us.

Gresham Harkless 14:39

Absolutely. No, that's a phenomenal reminder. And I know you touched on this as well. But I wanted to ask you if you had anything additional for the definition of what it means to be a CEO and we're hoping to have different quote-unquote CEOs on the show. So Amberly, what does being a CEO mean to you a CEO?

Amberly Lago 14:53

I think a CEO for me means a leader someone of service One who represents someone who is a good listener, someone who is really authentic and willing.

Gresham Harkless 15:09

Absolutely. I love that definition and that perspective, because those things are all important to being you know, excelling at your craft, whatever that might be. So Amberly I truly appreciate your time. What I wanted to do is pass you the mic so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional, you can let our readers and our listeners know and then how best they can get a hold of you and of course, get a copy of your book.

Amberly Lago 15:26

Oh, that'd be awesome. Yeah, I would love it if people reached out to me, you can connect with me at amberlylago.com. And for little nuggets of inspiration. You can follow me on Instagram @amberleylagomotivation, and you can find my book at any bookstore or it's on Amazon, True Grit and Grace: Turning Tragedy into Triumph and I am going to be having a Pacer Challenge soon it's free.

And it's every day we're gonna be connecting and building community to support you and all your goals and aspirations and really to teach you how to tap into your resilience. So you can find that on my website.

Gresham Harkless 16:06

Awesome, awesome, awesome. We'll make sure to have those links in the show notes as well. But Amberly thank you so much for telling your story and for showing, you know, our grace and grit. And I appreciate your time. I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Amberly Lago 16:17

Thank you. Thanks for having me on.

Outro 16:20

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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