IAM952- Well-being Coach Shares Lifestyle Practices

Whitney Lauritsen is a well-being coach, podcast host, and content strategist who shares lifestyle practices that improve the quality of body, mind, and planet. She explores mental health, mindful living, and sustainability on This Might Get Uncomfortable and WhitneyLauritsen.com, and advises creative entrepreneurs with digital marketing that amplifies their passions.

• CEO Hack: Having a way to prioritize my schedule
• CEO Nugget: (i) Prioritise (ii) Don't be so hard on yourself
• CEO Defined: Leader, visionary

Website: http://whitneylauritsen.com/

Podcast: podcast.wellevatr.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whitlauritsen/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whitlauritsen
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@whitlauritsen
Twitter: https://twitter.com/whitlauritsen
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/whitlauritsen/

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[00:00:15.19] – Intro

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[00:00:41.50] – Gresham Harkless

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 Whitney Lauritsen of whitneylauritsen.com. Whitney, it's awesome to have you on the show.

[00:00:51.79] – Whitney Lauritsen

I'm excited to be here. Thanks for having me.

[00:00:54.20] – Gresham Harkless

Definitely. Super excited to have you on as well. And before we jump in, I want to read a little bit more about Whitney so you can hear about all the awesome things that she's doing. Whitney is a well-being coach, podcast host, and content strategist who shares lifestyle practices that improve the quality of body, mind, and the planet. She explores mental health, mindful living, and sustainability on the This Might Get Uncomfortable podcast on whitneylauritsen.com and advises creative entrepreneurs with digital marketing that amplifies their passions. Whitney, are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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[00:01:23.00] – Whitney Lauritsen

I sure am. I'm excited.

[00:01:24.59] – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Well, let's do it then. So to kinda kick everything off, I wanted to rewind the clock a little bit and hear about all the awesome things that you're doing, and we'll let you get started with all the awesome work you're doing.

[00:01:33.70] – Whitney Lauritsen

Well, I mean, it's changing every single day which is, sometimes really exciting and sometimes overwhelming. I'm grateful for the lifestyle I've created because as many people have worked, had a work history in a nine-to-five job. You know? I think a lot of us grew up thinking that that was the path. I went to college and and worked in the film industry and was and my passion and aim was to do film directing and producing and writing and acting and all that.

And, it was tough in the industry, But because of that whole background, it was really easy for me to pivot into video content and eventually audio content with my podcast and now platforms like Clubhouse. So my background kinda led me down this path to working for myself and, running several companies. And, it's just interesting how I never know what's gonna happen from one day to the next. Like, I wake up, and it's like an email could change the entire course of the day or the week, month, or year. I have no idea. And, it keeps me on my toes.

[00:02:43.19] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Absolutely. When you were saying that, I was almost like, that's exactly how life and business is, especially now where, I always go back to this phrase that I think Bruce Lee might have said first is like water. You have to be fluid enough. You have to be malleable enough for all the changes and things that happen. Because if you get stuck in, you can easily kinda be left behind, so to speak.

[00:03:01.50] – Whitney Lauritsen

Yeah. And it's interesting because I think a lot more people can relate to that now. Especially during COVID, many of us are working from home. Some people have started their businesses. Social media has grown so much as an actual career. When I started on social media back in two thousand eight, two thousand nine, it wasn't so common.

So I got used to people asking me questions like, what do you mean, like, you do social media as a career? Like, how do you make money? And what do you do every day? And it was it was, unclear. But now it's so acceptable, and it's I have to do less explaining, and I feel like more people can relate to it like yourself. And that's kinda neat. I feel I feel more understood and less alone for that reason.

[00:03:43.19] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. That's exciting too that you have been able to be ahead of the curve, which I think is a huge thing as we see that. But I also love too, like, your background and wanting and envisioning being in the film industry but being able to kinda translate that to what you're doing now. So it's you're being ahead of the curve, but you're also being in alignment, which is what I love.

[00:04:01.00] – Whitney Lauritsen

Yeah. I'm an early adopter with most things. I've recognized I I'm not the first person to try something, but I'm usually in that second wave if you look at the the curve of how people make decisions. A great example is Clubhouse. I got on there about a month or two ago, depending on when people are listening to this. So that was in early January mid-January twenty twenty-one.

And, I know some people that have been on there for a lot longer, but it's still brand new as of the time that we're recording this. And it's just so interesting because it's a great example of early adopters. After all, there are people like myself who wanna jump in and experiment and understand something and then you can see how other people have a hard time understanding something new so they don't want to try it yet. They wanna wait to see other people get on board with something. So I'm somebody that, like, wants to wait for a few people, but also wants to be as early as possible with things.

And I saw that with my career because I initially got into all this work through blogging. So while I was still working in the film industry, I started a blog. That was because I was inspired by a few other bloggers and I knew about blogging for many years. While I was in film school, I remember seeing friends of mine who were blogging about their experience in film school and it didn't appeal to me then. And then over time, it's like I kept hearing about it and I thought, alright I'll give it a try.

And then the same thing with social media. I was on Facebook fairly early because I  was in college at the time. And then I started to hear about Twitter. So I was like, alright, I'll get on here. And then that just shaped the rest of my career because I became known as somebody who got familiar with social media fairly early on so they could come to me to ask. So now people are asking me a lot about Clubhouse and TikTok because I've been on those platforms for enough time to understand them and translate them to others.

[00:05:50.89] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Love and appreciate that. And I think so many times, we forget that a lot of these platforms are reflective of human tendencies or interests or things like that. So you being an early adopter to me, I don't wanna call you a psychologist or anything, but to me, you're getting really into understanding the platforms, how and what they work, how they connect people, how brands can leverage. Just all this information that drills down to that communication piece in my eyes, and I love that you're able to kind of, leverage that and, of course, remind us of how important that is to do that as well.

[00:06:22.00] – Whitney Lauritsen

Yeah. I think that's a huge passion of mine is helping people understand things. I like helping people figure things out. And, actually, in my Clubhouse profile, that's something I put in there. And Clubhouse has been really neat, actually, as a platform because it gets you to think about yourself and how to concisely share that with other people.

And for those of us who are drawn to mediums like podcasting, Clubhouse is a no-brainer. We're used to speaking. We're used to using our voice. We don't have to turn on our cameras. It's it's simultaneously laid back, but also great for developing your professional identity. So I actually wanna update my bio across the web thanks to Clubhouse because it's pushed me to, like, be very clear about who I am, what I do, and what I'm good at.

[00:07:04.39] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. And a lot of times, the best way to do that is to continue to kinda put those out there, test those things, and try those things. So, I wanted to drill down a little bit deeper and hear a little bit more about your podcast how you serve the clients, and how you support them in the work that you do.

[00:07:17.89] – Whitney Lauritsen

Yeah. Well, I started the podcast, This Might Get Uncomfortable, with my cohost, Jason, who's been my best friend for many years. And that we started working on for months before we launched it. We launched in December twenty nineteen. And, we're actually at the time this episode comes out, I think we'll be hitting our two-hundred-episode mark. We do three episodes a week, and we explore mental health, mindful living, and various aspects of being a human being. We're trying to, like, figure out whether should we narrow it it down or keep it broader. It's been interesting to your point about, like, testing things out. Right? But we aim to have interesting conversations with people from different backgrounds, who can talk about their experience with life professionally and personally, from different angles so that we can reflect on what's gonna work best for us.

I think the podcast has been really helpful and humbling in some ways. I recognize that I don't want to be perceived as an expert per se because I'm always learning. And I think that is something that we see a lot in podcasting. We see it on social media, definitely on Clubhouse. Clubhouse, I think, is getting a little bit of a negative reputation right now because there are so many, quote, experts on there and people kinda competing to be the most knowledgeable on something. I'm not a big fan of that because I wanna open it up to say, like, I always have something to learn. I'm trying to grow as a human being, and it is uncomfortable. That's why we titled the show that.

And so we kind of my cohost and I try to bring in situations that will make us uncomfortable so that we can learn from them, and that's been exciting. I feel like if we don't feel uncomfortable during an episode, then we haven't achieved our goal. And we're trying to demonstrate that you'll be okay if you're uncomfortable. I think so many people want to make improvements or changes. They wanna expand in some ways, but they're afraid to because it is unpleasant sometimes. Sometimes it's not easy. A great example was at twenty when I started to evaluate my relationship or participation, I should say, with racism as a white woman. I was confronted with everything that was happening in summer twenty with Black Lives Matter and stepping back and saying, how have I participated in this and how can I be a better ally?

And it was tough. I mean, I didn't think that I was racist, but the more I examined my life, I could start to see how it had infiltrated in ways I don't think I was aware of because I was so committed to not being racist. Right? And that, I mean, that's an ongoing journey, and I think a lot of people are afraid to dig into that. They're afraid to admit their weaknesses. They're afraid to admit where they may not have been their best selves. And sometimes looking at those things just hurts. But if we can be brave enough to allow ourselves to hurt, we can heal not only ourselves but help other people. And my big passion is how can we make a change that has a global ripple effect. So I think my podcast, contributes to that in some positive ways.

[00:10:15.79] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. And I love the name. You know, as you said, it speaks to that, where the magic happens, so to speak, is when you get uncomfortable when you get out of that safe space. And I think that so many times we don't want to do that because we want to maybe have that I don't wanna say facade, but that's what was coming to mind of it being altogether. It'd be it'd be imperfect.

But a lot of times, if we don't have those conversations, whether it be racism or whatever things might be the case. If we don't look in the mirror and look at ourselves as the flawed people that we are and the imperfect people that we are, then we can't get uncomfortable. We can't see progress. We can't get to where the magic is if we don't do that.

So I love the spirit of what you do, but the way it manifests itself in trying out Clubhouse or trying out Facebook or so many different ways that you're getting uncomfortable so that you can see growth and make an impact. Would you consider that to be what I call your secret sauce? The thing you feel kinda sets you apart and makes you unique? Is it that desire, that ability, and then, I guess, courage to be able to be uncomfortable and remind people to do that as well?

[00:11:16.00] – Whitney Lauritsen

I never thought of it that way, but I suppose you could say so. Because I do feel fairly comfortable getting uncomfortable. You know? I'm I'm I've gotten used to that, and, I don't know where that came from. You know, sometimes we just have either innate qualities about us or just the factors of the experiences throughout our lives add up to that. And I think I've been surrounded with I've been blessed to be surrounded with a lot of very supportive people throughout my life.

But I will say that I struggle with feeling not enough. I struggle with feeling like I'm, like, afraid to make mistakes. Like, a lot of things I'm talking about today, it's not like they're not struggles of mine. I think I'm I'm comfortable being vulnerable too, and I like reflecting on it. So I suppose that's another quality there is when I'm going through a hardship, I tend to reflect on it as quickly as possible and look for the silver lining and think, okay. This is tough. This is uncomfortable or painful, but I know I'm gonna get through this.

And what can I learn from this? How is this making me stronger? And I also remember that it's temporary because most of the discomfort that we face is temporary, whether it's physical, mental, or emotional. We don't know exactly when it's gonna end all the time, but if we can examine it more, sometimes it ends a little bit quicker, or at least when it does end, we can move into something else that feels better.

[00:12:37.20] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. Absolutely. And it manifests itself in so many different ways. And, wanted to switch gears a little bit, and I want to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an Apple book or a habit that you have, but what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

[00:12:49.50] – Whitney Lauritsen

The thing that helps me the most is having a way to prioritize my schedule because this is something that most people struggle with, myself included. I'm not always great at this, but I have developed a system for myself to get things done. I use a tool called TikTik. It's a free app and website with a paid version of it, which I have been using for, like, six years minimum. What I like about it is that it's a to-do list with all these advanced features that can help you organize your whole life. It has a way to set priorities. So as many of us know, if we can just figure out what the priorities are for each day, we're more likely to get them done. It has a system for setting the time and date, which you can sync to your calendar.

[00:13:31.50] – Gresham Harkless

Would you consider that to be what I call your CEO nugget, which is, like, kind of a word of wisdom or a piece of advice? Do you think that something you would tell your younger business self is really to make sure that you are prioritizing yourself so that you can give more to others?

[00:13:43.50] – Whitney Lauritsen

Yes. And I would add another thing, which is to not be so hard on ourselves. Because I think that we see so many successful people, and we believe them to be perfect and have it all figured out. And we get into that comparison trap, and that can lead us to not feeling good enough. And I struggle with that so much throughout my life, if not my entire life, because it's not just about being an entrepreneur, it's about being a person.

Like, you can naturally start to think, I wanna look like this person. I wanna act or live like this person. And I think that's a huge, huge issue that we're finally waking up to, is that just because somebody else has it a certain way doesn't mean that you will ever get there because each of us is on different paths and gets different outcomes.

[00:14:26.79] – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. So now I wanted to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. And we're hoping to have different quote-unquote CEOs on the show. So, Whitney, what does being a CEO mean to you?

[00:14:34.89] – Whitney Lauritsen

I guess for me, it's a leader. Sometimes it's about being a visionary, but I think it was in a book that I read that visionaries, by definition, aren't necessarily great CEOs because it takes a lot of management and focus.

[00:14:47.70] – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Well, I appreciate that, Whitney. Appreciate your time even more. What I wanted to do is just pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional you can let our readers and listeners know, and, of course, how best they can get ahold of you and find out about all the awesome things you're working on.

[00:15:00.20] – Whitney Lauritsen

My main username at the moment is Whitney Lauritsen. If you go to my website, I'm very easy to find. So no matter which place you go to, I've tried to optimize it. Speaking of optimization. I've tried to make it easy to find me. So if you just type my name in, you'll find me somewhere. You can always email me. I truly love receiving messages from people, whether they're direct messages on social, they're conversations on Clubhouse, they're comments on the podcast, or private emails, I invite you to reach out. And if I can do anything to support any of the listeners, any of the readers, I'm here for you truly. So please don't hesitate. I'd love to get to know you better too.

[00:15:40.79] – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Well, I appreciate that, Whitney. To optimize it even more, we will have the links and information in the show notes so that everybody can follow up with you. But I appreciate you for being open and honest and letting us know, like, all the things that you're working on and then that we can work on as well. I think, one of the big things that I remember from twenty twenty was giving yourself grace.

And I think, as you said, sometimes, if you wanna color outside the lines, color outside the lines, but sometimes by coloring outside the lines, you realize you wanna just color in the lines, and both are okay. And that and that's perfect, and that's what makes this unique and special. So I appreciate you for reminding us of that and doing that, and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

[00:16:18.70] – Outro

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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