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Lisa Guillot, transformational leadership coach and personal branding expert, joins host Kelly Berry to explore what it really means to build a personal brand as a woman over 40. From overcoming imposter syndrome to practicing radical self-care, Lisa shares her own journey - from graphic designer to thought leader - and how she helps women step unapologetically into their voice, presence, and leadership. If you've ever hesitated to put yourself out there, this episode will shift your mindset and give you tools to lead with clarity, confidence, and intention.
Personal branding isn’t about selling - it’s about aligning who you are with how you show up. Lisa Guillot breaks down the mindset shifts, real-world practices, and emotional hurdles that often stand between women and the powerful personal presence they’re capable of owning.
Here’s what you’ll learn from this episode:
Lisa’s path from corporate branding to transformational coaching wasn’t linear - it was deeply personal. After burnout, perfectionism, and even a shingles diagnosis, Lisa realized that “trying harder” wasn’t sustainable. Her pivot into leadership coaching was born out of breakdown, self-reflection, and a realization that branding isn’t just for businesses - it’s for people, too.
She now helps women uncover the power already within them, combining branding strategy with deep mindset work. Her framework centers around who you are being before worrying about what you’re doing.
Personal branding can sound cringey or self-promotional - but as Lisa puts it, you already have a personal brand whether you’re aware of it or not. It's not about logos or curated photos. It's about your energy, your values, and how others experience you when you're not in the room.
She reframes personal branding as an “energy exchange” and explains how identifying and owning your unique voice can open doors, create alignment, and increase both confidence and impact.
Think you need to “feel confident” before you act confidently? Lisa disagrees. Confidence comes after repetition and action—not before. Drawing from her own experience and client stories, Lisa explains how imposter syndrome shows up and why we need to move through it—not wait for it to disappear.
Her advice? Practice like a theater student. Repetition builds comfort. Comfort builds confidence.
Lisa emphasizes that showing up confidently is a muscle - not a magic trick. Whether you’re pitching, posting on LinkedIn, or recording your first video, the secret is practice. Small actions, taken consistently, lead to big transformation.
And it’s not about being perfect - it’s about gaining reps. Lisa’s challenge to her clients? Record yourself talking every day, even if no one sees it. The confidence comes after the discomfort.
We can’t build a powerful presence when we’re running on empty. Lisa shares how radical self-care and letting go of hyper-independence are essential to sustainable leadership. Whether it’s a midday meditation or asking for help, these small acts reinforce that you’re worthy of time, support, and success.
She reminds us: the most successful people don’t do it all alone. Why should you?
“You already have a personal brand. Whether you name it or not, it's how people experience you when you're not in the room.” — Lisa Guillot @bebrightlisa
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“Confidence isn’t something you find. It’s something you earn—after you do the thing.” — Lisa Guillot @bebrightlisa
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“Radical self-care isn’t a luxury. It’s the foundation of an aligned personal brand.” — Lisa Guillot @bebrightlisa
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“We don’t need to wait to feel like a leader. We start practicing how that version of us would show up right now.” — Lisa Guillot @bebrightlisa
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“The goal isn’t to do it all. The goal is to know what you want—and ask for the support to get there.” — Lisa Guillot @bebrightlisa
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00:00 Empowering Women Through Self-Leadership and Personal Branding
02:45 Lisa Guillot’s Journey: From Graphic Designer to Personal Branding Coach
05:43 The Power of Authenticity and Unapologetic Living for Women Leaders
08:29 What Personal Branding for Women Really Means
11:17 Energy Exchange: The Emotional Impact of Your Personal Brand
14:14 Overcoming Resistance and Fear Around Personal Branding
16:56 Building Confidence: The Role of Practice in Leadership Growth
19:54 Shifting Perspectives: From Imposter Syndrome to Leadership Presence
24:22 Navigating Self-Discovery and Intentional Personal Growth
25:54 Bridging the Gap Between Vision and Reality for Women Entrepreneurs
28:07 Overcoming Mindset Blocks and Inner Doubt in Personal Branding
34:02 The Importance of Support Systems for Women in Leadership
37:55 Breaking Free from Hyper-Independence as a Female Leader
42:01 Balancing Self-Care and Career Ambition for Women
44:32 Taking the First Step Toward Personal Branding with Intention
46:48 Closing Reflections: Welcome to Life Intended
Kelly Berry (01:04)
Today, I'm excited, talk about bold, to have Lisa Guillot here. Lisa is a personal branding expert and certified transformational leadership coach who helps women over 40 amplify their expertise and boldly step into their personal brand without hesitation or fear. She's a bestselling author of Find Your Clear Vision and host of Your Bright Personal Brand Podcast.
With a client roster that includes Fortune 500 executives, tech innovators, and ambitious entrepreneurs, Lisa is known for her ability to blend strategy, creativity, and deep mindset work to help women become sought after leaders in their industries. Lisa's approach goes beyond surface level branding. She helps her clients find their own power, show up with confidence, and build a personal brand that's impossible to ignore. I love that.
Welcome to the podcast, Lisa. I'm so happy to have you.
Lisa Guillot (02:01)
Yes, I'm excited to be here too and looking forward to a good conversation.
Kelly Berry (02:06)
Yeah, definitely. There's a lot of overlap there in what we do, what we believe, and so I'm excited to dig in and hear from your perspective how you help women find these things within themselves.
Lisa Guillot (02:21)
And I think that's the key is like finding it within yourself. And then you use the word unapologetic in your intro. And that's a word I'm really loving right now because a lot of people when it comes to showing up, living boldly, living authentically, no, not authentically, living with intention, they use the word authentic.
Kelly Berry (02:25)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (02:45)
but we don't really know what that means and we get wishy-washy. It's like, it my intention? Is it my authenticity? Is it like, but unapologetic really, I think gives women and men for that matter, ground, the like rooting into who you're being about it.
and then sharing from that place. It's going to be so much more fun first off, so much more real and like that's the kind of conversation I'm looking to have with people.
Kelly Berry (03:11)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, yeah, and a little bit scary too, right? But good, tell us a little bit more about how did you get here to where you are, whatever that includes, the book, your coaching. Just tell us a little bit about your journey.
Lisa Guillot (03:19)
Yes.
Sure. So I was a graphic designer, branding designer for very long time, working with architecture studios. I worked at Paper Source and Crate & Barrel corporate. And in 2008, 2009, there was a dip in the economy, know, advertising branding designs, always the first to go. I was let go from Paper Source. And at that time, I thought, well, it's great time to start my own business.
I was newly married, about to have a baby. You know, that's always the best time to start businesses. And so I did. I started Step Brightly Creative. I did everything from book design, web design, logos, strategy, business development for a lot of different companies. And then in 2016-ish, my second child was three years old. I had two step boys.
And my son was, I guess, six years old. And at that time in my life, I find that many people, when they move into life coaching or transformational leadership coaching, always have their own breakdown in order to have a breakthrough and then decide, I think I'm going to become a coach. So that's how it went for me. I found that I was trying to be perfect in everything I was doing.
Kelly Berry (04:47)
Yeah.
Lisa Guillot (04:55)
whether that was being a wife, a stepmother, a mother. I lived in a little village outside of Chicago, they call it a village, where, I mean, if you were not organic, if you were not teaching your kids, I mean, it was just ridiculous. Like, the pressure I felt to be perfect showed up everywhere and in my business and with myself and with my workouts, everything. And...
It just, got overwhelming. The day my daughter was born, jump back three years, I ended up quarantined in the hospital with shingles because my body was like, oh no, we're done, we're done. And at the time that should have been my first warning, but it actually took three years later till 2016, 2017 that I was like, this is just not working. Like trying harder is not gonna work for me. So I took a year long,
Kelly Berry (05:33)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (05:50)
leadership coach training program, and then recognize the work I was doing for brand design and branding businesses was very similar to how I could use that in terms of personal leadership, personal branding, thought leadership, and help human beings really show up in a big, bold, beautiful way and express that unapologetically. So I totally like moved into a second career. And ever since then, I've been
the founder of Be Bright, Lisa, coaching. We do a lot of creative work, certainly, but it really anchors into who you're being first and finding that voice, finding that clear vision, and then moving that out into the world.
Kelly Berry (06:22)
Mm-hmm.
Nice. Well, I just learned something we both have in common. I got shingles too. And definitely, definitely think I agree with you in that it's a wake up call. Something's not working. Stress is, you know, your body is basically telling you it's time for a change. Whether or not you listen to it, I guess, is up to you, but
that's a pretty significant sign that there's a little too much going on, whether it's misalignment or like what you were talking about, perfectionism, not giving yourself any grace, there's a lot to that.
Lisa Guillot (07:11)
Yeah, and we're young women, right? I mean, I had mine at
36, I guess, is when it first popped up. And I remember trying to argue with my health insurance that I should get a shingles vaccination. They're like, no, no, you're too young. Like, but it's really happening. Yeah, crazy.
Kelly Berry (07:18)
Wow.
Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah.
It's incredible the number of women that I've talked to since I got it who have also experienced it. And, you know, it's been a similar time in their life where there was just a lot going on. They probably had a lot of other signs they were telling them, but they just weren't listening. And so that's when the universe is just like, all right, if you're not going to listen, I'm going to be louder.
So.
Lisa Guillot (07:57)
Right, I'm gonna stick a
scab, for me it was like I'm gonna stick a scab right on your face that you cannot ignore.
Kelly Berry (08:01)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Yeah. Mine was on my face too. And I didn't even know that that was a thing, that you could get shingles on your face. But it definitely is. So, yeah. So tell us a little bit more for my audience who may not be familiar with personal branding or may even think like personal branding doesn't really speak to me or relate to me. Tell us what that means to you.
what that means to your clients and a little bit more about like the people that you work with.
Lisa Guillot (08:36)
Sure. Yeah, personal branding, even the word is something that like rubs people kind of in a weird way. They're like, ew, like that's salesy or slimy or I don't need that. But then I would also offer that if you are someone who has a career or a reputation or are building a business and exchanging services, then you already have one, whether you want to call it that or not.
Kelly Berry (08:42)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (09:03)
You can
call it your personal essence. You can call it your reputation, the character, your integrity, whatever it is. Personal branding is just the way I frame it because it's the background I have in brand building. But really, it's the combo of a couple things. You've got the personal side, your personal reality, your personality, who you are.
your thoughts, your background, how you show up in the world, and then you combine it with just a strategic way to put it online or say it out loud. That's the branding part. You put them together. Similarly, thought, leadership. You can be an amazing leader. You can lead a team. You can get the best ROI. Great. That can totally fulfill you.
But oftentimes my clients, for example, want to combine their leadership with thought leadership, which just means they're going to make honestly a bigger impact in their ideas and sharing those in a bigger way. There's also nowadays people are calling it leadership branding. Literally you can call it whatever you want. But it's taking ownership of how you're showing up both in a meeting with the energy you bring into a room.
the vision that you have for yourself, your career, your business, and then how you express that out into the world with intention. And I think, like as we were speaking and how it related to me was with the shingles, I thought I need to be perfect in order to be valuable. If I'm perfect, and particularly in graphic design, it's like every single pixel, every single color needs to be totally awesome and correct.
so you can win an award and make money for your client. And I'm sure a lot of people feel that way, whether you're doing an Excel file or you're creating design, it's gotta be perfect. And you're judged on that performance and that perfection. So it's not shocking that that leads into everything else. But if we take a breather, take a step back, we can actually have agency, obviously, over how we're being, and then use that to show up in a way
Kelly Berry (10:58)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (11:17)
that honestly at the end of the day, it's going to make us feel better. It's going to make you more money. It's going to give you more opportunities. You can, I've had clients write their own job description and go out and that job finds them. So it's really a flip in how traditional business has been working and giving the individual more agency.
Kelly Berry (11:37)
Yeah, I love how you said you already have a personal brand. And the reason that that like resonates with me is, my background is in business coaching. And so we have done a lot of strategy for business coaching clients that include figuring out what your business's core values are. And that's kind of always been our approach to that is your business already has core values. You're already operating with a set of values.
whether you've identified them and kind of named them or not, you have them. And that's the same with us as people. We already have our values and who we are and what we stand for. And if we can take the time to identify that and name it, then acting like that, it doesn't feel like we're being fake with this personal brand. It does feel more authentic because there are things that already
we're already doing, we already stand for, that are already important for us. So I really love the way that you said that. I don't think I've heard anybody talk about that with personal branding, but that resonates with me big time.
Lisa Guillot (12:40)
Yeah, exactly. Yeah, you're doing the same process where you've got the branding pillars or the business pillars, what they stand for, what you're a yes for or no for. And now I just do it for humans.
Kelly Berry (12:43)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm. Yeah. And the other thing I think that you said was it had to do with your energy, know, kind of almost the way you show up in meetings or as a leader. We've also talked about that before as like how the temperature in the room, what you walking into the room, what, how do you affect the temperature in the room? you?
Lisa Guillot (13:00)
Mm-hmm.
Kelly Berry (13:14)
raise it, do you lower it, do you bring in a big rain cloud with you? And so I think thinking about it like that is like, how do I want to show up? What's the energy that I want to kind of exude and not in a fake exhaustive way, but in, again, like the authentic, like how do I want to be perceived? How do I want other people to feel when I enter a room, when I'm taking the floor, whatever that is. So I really like that too.
Lisa Guillot (13:40)
Yeah, absolutely. Something I really talk about in the book is personal branding is an exchange of energy. It is the energy that you leave with someone else when you're not even in the room anymore. You know, there's those people who always get recommended and always get opportunities and everybody wants to work with them. Well, there's a reason. It's not that they're an asshole. It's that they're amazing at what they do and the energy they leave with you. You want more of that.
Kelly Berry (13:48)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (14:09)
And so you can feel it, whether you want to talk about energy or not, it's there.
Kelly Berry (14:11)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah. Yeah. So tell me for people who, and I have been one of these, so if we want to like dig into my story, can. What do you hear most commonly when women, because I think you primarily work with women, resist wanting to create a personal brand? What are their objections or reasons why they don't think they need one?
Lisa Guillot (14:41)
Well, if I may be so bold, are your objections or reasons that you think you don't need one?
Kelly Berry (14:47)
Yeah, well, I've totally changed my tune. So these are previous objections that Kelly would have had maybe like five years ago. So a big one was we were building an organization and wanted the organization to take the front seat. We wanted the organization to have the brand because we're a coaching organization and we were competing against a bunch of gurus and individuals. And so in order to be
different, we wanted to present the brand forward instead of the people forward. So that in hindsight, maybe not the best decision, but that was one of the biggest reasons that we as individuals behind the brand didn't come out and have any kind of really like presence. So that was one. Another that I think was just totally mine, maybe imposter syndrome, but like what
Lisa Guillot (15:26)
huh.
Kelly Berry (15:41)
What did anybody want to hear about from me? What did I have to say that anybody wanted to listen to? Or what, you know, I'm like an operations person. Like what's interesting about the things that I'm working on or doing or, you know, is there anything original here? Those were the types of things that I was thinking about.
Lisa Guillot (16:02)
Well, you're not alone in thinking those things.
Often, like I did it in my business first as well because I created Step Brightly Creative versus LisaGio.com, right? Because I wanted to make it about the business, the product, this thing. But you said it and that you were selling coaching services and that you were coming up against gurus, which are human beings, right? Big names.
Kelly Berry (16:16)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (16:34)
So those people already had personal brands out there because of whatever career they had had prior. And I also think that whether you're selling professional services or product-based services, for professional services, it's you. They're buying you, your energy, your expertise, your career, your background.
and why would they trust you to be the COO of their business, for example? They need to know you. And sure, you can work your way around an Excel file or whatever it may be and organize an amazing team, but it's still you. Do they want to spend eight hours a day with you? Yes or no, right? For people who sell products, the most visited page on a product website is the About Us page. People want to know that your value is aligned with my values.
and I'm going to purchase from you because there's an alignment. So for example, there's a
a story I tell in the book about a pair of just like black yoga leggings. You can buy black yoga leggings from Lululemon and spend about, you know, $110. You can also buy a pair of yoga leggings from Walgreens or CVS, you know, when it's the new year, new you. They always put up just like the legs of a mannequin and black leggings on them.
Kelly Berry (17:58)
Hehehe.
Lisa Guillot (18:02)
and they're all just in this bin and they're like $10. So same thing, they're selling basically the exact same thing, but one is doing it with a different type of energy, presence, brand pillars, values behind it. And the other one is selling it because it's new year, new you, and you should get yourself a pair of black leggings to wear to the gym. So the point of differentiation there is the brand. Now, as it relates back to your personal brand, that's where things get wonky, right?
Kelly Berry (18:19)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (18:32)
You're like, why would they want to hear about me? And, right, you identified it as imposter syndrome. And totally cool. Everyone has imposter syndrome, everybody. But I don't think we need to, we can wait until we no longer have it. And it's the same thing for confidence. It's not something that I can go find, put it in my pocket and take it with me. It's actually something that you have to go do the thing.
Kelly Berry (18:34)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (18:58)
and then you get the confidence after you do the thing. So it's like, my son is a theater kid and he's a freshman at high school. They go to practice every single day after school for two months, for like two hours a day. And then for a full weekend, they rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. So he has the entire thing memorized, knows exactly where to step. So he feels confident before he steps out on stage. That is like,
80 hours of training for two shows, right? And then afterwards, he's like so high on adrenaline and so excited and so confident about himself. But that's because he practiced 80 hours. And I think we often forget that like walking into a room to pitch your business for the first time, it's gonna feel awkward and weird. And my god, what are they gonna think about me and you start sweating.
Kelly Berry (19:28)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (19:54)
And it's because we haven't practiced for 80 hours, right? We don't have the confidence yet. And that's why people who are farther along in their career, for example, they, we're like, God, they have so much confidence, so much charisma. What's cause they practice and they practice a lot. And yeah, it gets wonky and weird sometimes to, I tell my clients, you need to film a video, like face to camera. And I don't care if you post it online or not, but send it to me.
Kelly Berry (20:09)
Yeah.
Lisa Guillot (20:22)
And you need to do that every day this week. but Lisa, that's so awkward and weird and, right. But that's the practice. And so, right, with imposter syndrome, that's what we've got to do. And I think once we practice, practice, practice, then we're going to have just a little bit more breathing room and ease. And it also, for me, allows me to go try new things.
Kelly Berry (20:25)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (20:50)
And that flexibility also really helps me as a business person and a personal brand for that matter, see where there's more opportunities to grow. And then it starts to work, right? Yeah. And so you were saying like, Kelly, five years ago, you had no frame of reference for, is this gonna work? But I see so many brands out there that do work. It's gonna be a brand.
Kelly Berry (21:04)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (21:19)
right? Not personal. So it actually just creates a disconnection between you and the business. Because if the business fails, cool, no problem. But if I fail, ugh, right? It feels a lot different.
Kelly Berry (21:31)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, yeah. That's interesting too that you're framing it as practice because in truth, that's what it all is, right? We're just like every day I show up and I'm just basically doing things I've never done before or you know, maybe had done before but it's another under my belt. And so just thinking about it like that, it kind of makes it
Lisa Guillot (21:46)
practicing.
Kelly Berry (21:56)
obvious now why I show up to things with more confidence because I have done them so many more times. You know, I'm not like leading a meeting for the first time anymore, not getting up on stage for the first time anymore, not recording a podcast for the first time anymore. now I have, you know, like, I don't know at this point, maybe 50 reps under my belt. So it just feels a whole lot different. yeah. So that's interesting because I don't think most of us think in our day to day work that we're just
practicing, you know, we think where everything is important and everything is, you know, needs to be done exactly right. And this meeting is so important. This presentation is everything, but truthfully, it's all just preparing us for the next time we do it, to do it a little bit better.
Lisa Guillot (22:24)
Yeah.
Yeah, so what shifted now for that was Kelly five years ago, but then Kelly today, tell me about where you are in terms of like unapologetically owning your personal brand.
Kelly Berry (22:54)
Yeah, so I think I'm still probably work in progress, but I'm just kind of no longer afraid to put things out there. And I think some of it, you I think you'll appreciate this. I'm 43 now. I have 20 plus years in the workforce, have a lot of experience as a business owner. But I think, you know, I finally just realized that, you know, nobody
has it figured out? Like nobody's showing up from a place of being an expert really. Everybody is practicing. Everybody is like, you know, I'll just say like making a LinkedIn post and then I'm just gonna see how that lands. Instead of getting so wrapped up in this one post is going to put my flag in the ground on what I believe and who I am and what I know. You know, now it's like,
I just don't have that same fear or I guess.
just resistance to do it. It's kind of just like, this is just another thing. The life cycle is really short on it. It's not really gonna, it isn't my flag in the ground, which I think was my perspective before. I just, I wasn't ready to start putting messages out there because I didn't really know who I was and what I stood for. And now I've just realized that I can, I do know more of that, but I can also figure it out while I'm doing it.
Lisa Guillot (24:22)
Yeah, you didn't know who you were or what you stood for. Shingles shows up, right? To be like, hey, that's right, you don't know. And then taking the time doing the work, maybe getting your own coach, therapy, whatever it is. And I think for me, it's like finding the experts that can help me. They're just one or two, three chapters ahead of the work I'm doing.
Kelly Berry (24:23)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (24:47)
Right? And so then you see, you can see, that's where I'm going. That's the path. And it gives you less resistance. I really like that word.
Kelly Berry (24:55)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, you know, I'm kind of like, I would say mid-journey, like still figuring it out, but the biggest shift has been I'm just not afraid of it anymore. And that feels really good. you know, I think people change and our positions change and that's normal and like...
just get started because if you get started then you're further than if you are just waiting until everything's perfect.
Lisa Guillot (25:26)
Yes, which will never happen because not everything can be perfect at the same time.
Kelly Berry (25:31)
Yeah,
yeah, definitely. So one of the things that I wanted to talk about, I think you touched on it a few times with my example, but you mentioned to me there's like this in-between space. And I'm gonna read this sentence because I don't wanna mess it up, because I think it is so important for anyone really. And I think we'll have a lot of good things to talk about it.
You said you like to talk about the space between creating a big vision and actually bringing it to life. There's the in-between space where women get wonky and doubt themselves. So with radical self-care, inner trust, nutrition, holistic living, et cetera, as a foundation, it makes staying in alignment so much more sustainable. So what do you mean by that?
Lisa Guillot (26:18)
Yeah, there's.
an interesting place between dreaming about in the future, I really want this to happen. And like, as it relates to my book, for example, when the book launched and I had it in my hands, I can't tell you the number of people who said I really want to write a book. And one person even said, I know what the first sentence of my book is going to be. And I'm like, awesome. So like, where are you in that process?
you know what? I have just got so right. And then they throw lots of things in the way of that big vision. So I can just like, I'll describe it as it relates to the book. What I recognized was the process I was taking my clients through was a pretty great framework, to be honest. And, and I saw that it actually followed the creative process. And so it's called the clear vision framework and clear as an acronym.
C is your clear concept, L, legit and long lasting. Are you gonna actually want to do this six months, six years from now? That's a really big question. And E, expanded energy. And that's the part we can talk about. And then A, aspirational success. What does it actually look like? Like have your book in hand, for example. And then R is rooted in celebration.
Like it has to be fun. Nobody wants to write a book every day from 6 a.m. till 7 a.m. when they could be sleeping. And instead, how do you make it fun? How do you reward yourself? Take yourself out to dinner, buy yourself roses, whatever it is. We've got to figure out how to root it in a little treat, for example. So the space in between is I have this great idea and then the reality of actually making it happen. And
Kelly Berry (28:05)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (28:07)
There's absolutely ways to write books. There's frameworks. There's book coaches. There's sit down and do it, write an outline, find an editor. Like we can go and find the exact formula on how to write a book. But as the human being in that part, that's where the things get wonky, right? Because that's where the mindset happens and posture syndrome. I don't know who's going to want to listen to me. All those voices come up.
And I call those drop box thinking. So when you're in that drop box, you're bouncing around and posture syndrome, you're not trusting yourself, you're doubting yourself, you're trying really hard, but you're really actually just kind of stuck in this mindset that it's not going to work. It's going to be too hard. No one's going to listen to me. And that type of language obviously is negative self-talk. And it's going to talk you right out of making a big move.
So the space in between that and what I call a pop thought or your clear vision, your personal essence, who you are at your highest and best, who you are once you have written the book, written that play, started that new business, started that podcast is magnetic, expansive, bright, whatever it may be effervescent. Like I actually work with my clients to find those words.
of who that future vision, who are they when they do that big, gorgeous, wonderful thing. And all the magic happens. So the way to get there is to actually just move from the drop box up to your clear vision, the pop thought, who you are being there. And we don't need to wait to be expansive, effervescent, bubbly, shiny, bright, wise, sage, whatever it is.
We start practicing that now. And if you start practicing that way of being now, then it anchors you into trusting yourself and trusting your vision and becoming more self-aware of when you're sabotaging yourself and hitting snooze and not getting up, for example, or thinking, I don't have any good ideas, deleting the last chapter.
and that self-awareness will help you stop self-sabotaging. So all of these types of inner work mindset, that's the space in between having the idea and having the vision come to life. And that's where, that's why I said things get wonky and weird and we don't practice self-awareness, right? We don't practice getting out of that negative thinking
quick enough. And so I actually have a practice with one client I'm working with, where she drops a lot into thoughts of like, why am I doing this? This is stupid. And I'm like, okay, cool. Like, let's think that thought for like a minute. Like, cool, let it out. Like one minute, we're gonna do it. Tell me why this is so stupid. And okay, now what are you gonna do?
And that's the biggest difference. That's the one thing you can do is like, what am I going to do now? And then you just have to take that next step. Right? Like what we were talking about, if you're practicing for a play, you've got to say the next line. And that's it. Like, that's all. Just say the next line and somebody else is going to say their line back to you. So it's just tiny little steps along the way. They're going to help you get in between today and
Kelly Berry (31:22)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (31:43)
that clear vision. Does that make sense?
Kelly Berry (31:45)
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
It does make sense. And I have maybe some questions, but really some thoughts or things to add to it. I think we've both been around a lot of people in our lives probably who have great ideas or great, they wanna do, it's always a person who's like, this is what I wanna do, this is what I wanna do, but they're never doing it. And so that's what I hear you saying is like,
they get stuck in that space between, know, that I want to launch a business or I want to leave my career and go out on my own or, you know, any number of things that we probably just heard a lot of people say. And there's, you know, this sounds like this is the difference in the people who will say that forever and the people who will actually do it. And I think, you know, something that I can be like this a lot about things I want to do, even like ways that I want to be.
uh, you know, the, hitting snooze really resonates with me, like trying to get up and get to the gym. But at the end of the day, it's like kind of that identification with who that higher self is, who do you want to be? You know, like I want to be the person who goes to the gym. I want to be the person who puts my health first, who, know, I have a toddler who can keep up with my toddler at the park, you know, like, and so sometimes like that.
that aspirational self is like, that is enough to be like, all right, I'm not the person who will lay in bed all morning and hit snooze. I am the person who will go to the gym. And in doing that, like you're saying, in like the smaller bite-sized pieces, like I am the person who will sit with this objection that I have until I've kind of realized that it's just a story that I'm telling myself, or I am the type of person that will...
do something like send Lisa a video every day of the week, even when it's uncomfortable or it's hard or I don't want So I'm kind of hearing some of that in what you're saying. And then of course, there's a lot more to it than just identifying who you wanna be and doing it. And I think that's where you're talking about like all the mindset stuff that can kind of get in the way and you can like have tools and things to work through.
Lisa Guillot (34:02)
Right, that's why we hire personal trainers, right? If you're paying somebody beaucoup bucks to meet you at the gym, I'm gonna go to the gym, right? And so that's why the best coaches have coaches. That's why I love NFL football. That's why an NFL team probably has like 50 coaches. They also have mindset coaches on staff too. And I really think we need support and we...
Kelly Berry (34:05)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (34:31)
we don't need to do it alone. And that's oftentimes the issue I see with particularly women, moms, business owners is we think we have to do it all alone. And it's actually kind of a this like hyper independence of we can have it all. And I think we need to decide, do I really want it all? Because maybe I don't. Maybe I just want this.
Kelly Berry (34:32)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (34:58)
from six till 7 a.m. and then I want this. But it takes even inner work to find out, what is that thing I want? And I really like the way you framed it. I'm the type of person who gets out of bed at 6 a.m., right? And that way it can just take the mindset out of it. I often like when I was writing the book, it was really from six till 7 a.m. and I would set the alarm for six.
and I wouldn't give my mind the opportunity to argue with me. I would just get, I say this, like, get my body up and take my body downstairs. Right? Get my body up and put it in a car and take it to the gym. Right? Get your body up and go step on stage. Yeah.
Kelly Berry (35:34)
I will.
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah. In our house, we say feet forward. You know, just all you have to do is get your feet moving and everything else will follow after that.
Lisa Guillot (35:45)
ooo
Kelly Berry (35:50)
So I really like the topic, and I think we can dig into this a little bit about women being, like having this need to want to do it all themselves, to be so independent. I am right there right now with some things that I'm working through, or just like really...
Feeling like if I don't do it 100 % on my own that it's not my accomplishment. And so trying to like take this mindset I guess that I have this fixed mindset really and try to break it down so that I realize that getting help doesn't mean you're not doing it or that you're not responsible for it. Like you don't have to know all the answers you just have to know where to go to find all the answers. And so I think that's where
You know, your analogies of having coaches or the NFL teams, know, like every player on that team doesn't know every single thing about every single thing that they have to do. They don't know every single thing about their training program or their, even all the plays or their nutrition, know, any bazillion things, anything about, you know, all the rules of football, but they, when they need to find an answer, they know where to go. And that's what makes them the best at what they do and surrounding themselves with the right people.
who have those right answers. And so I think that if we can, as women, have a little bit of a mindset shift there, that it's just as valid and just as important, and maybe even more so, if you know where to find all the answers and don't think that you have to have all the answers.
Lisa Guillot (37:26)
Yeah, I love that reflection. it's, for me, I've noticed I'm 49 and I was taught that hyper independence as a child, as a girl, right? a coming into being a young woman where usually, know, women, should do it all. We can go to work. We can have the family see. And I think that's honestly very reflective of
the baby boomers before that where the I mean and history for all of history like where women okay so the reason why men can be incredibly successful is because they have a wife at home who cooks and cleans and takes care of their family and has everything in order men can be incredibly successful because they also have an assistant at work who takes care of all the details right
Kelly Berry (38:01)
Thank
Lisa Guillot (38:24)
I would love to have an assistant and a wife within that capacity, right? Who wouldn't? I would get so much done. But then it was reflected that no, no, women can have it all, we can do it all, but we're not going to give you the quote, wife to do it. You get to actually just still keep that role. And we're not going to give you the assistant to do it either. In fact, you're going to become the assistant and you're going to have to assist all these other people. And then it...
Kelly Berry (38:24)
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (38:51)
it turned into a mixture of being hyper independent trying to do it all, or being the caretaker of all these other people that you still needed to take care of. So society, like quote, gave it all to us, but didn't give us the resources or the mindset shift for everyone else to help support us to do that. And so it's no wonder that we got to this space where we were. It's no wonder I thought I had to be perfect.
Kelly Berry (39:10)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (39:18)
in order to be valuable. Right? It's no wonder that my body was like, you know, shingles 2013 shingles 2016, like you got to figure this out. And so for me, like the first time that I specifically remember, and this is in the book, like giving myself something to myself for myself outside of my kids, my business, my family.
was I booked a 30 minute meditation on a Friday at 11 a.m. when I should have been working quote unquote. And I went down to there's a Buddhist temple center in Oak Park and I sat there with the Buddhist monks and like you know whatever 10, 15 other people and they told a funny story and then we all meditated for about 15 minutes. And it sounds so tiny now.
but that was the first self care moment I put on the calendar for me that wasn't working out, getting the nutrients I needed for my body. It was actually like toning down. And now my self care is so vital to everything else in my life that that seems silly just to have booked a half hour meditation that was like three blocks from my house. But
Kelly Berry (40:26)
Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (40:43)
It's often that first breakthrough moment that gives you permission to tone the F down and find out what you really want.
Kelly Berry (40:48)
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah. And like giving yourself permission to do it and then seeing that everything else doesn't fall apart because you took that step, you know. But I do think in the world that we're living in right now, in the comparison and the highlight reels, you know, we tell ourselves stories that everybody else is doing this. Nobody else is having as hard of a time as I am. Nobody else is stretched as thin as I am.
When in reality, we don't see the whole story. We don't know the help that other people have or what they are actually doing or not doing. And so I think that this is something we just have to decide for ourselves. Like what are we willing to do? What are we willing to not do? What are we willing to sacrifice? What are we willing to not sacrifice? you know, I think with age comes some wisdom, you know, and I think knowing even
You I was talking about this the other day, you know, like I think that I was wearing myself out long before my body was saying you are, but I was younger and I could do it and I could handle it. But then as I, as I get older, I can't anymore. and you just have to make decisions sometimes that are harder because you maybe wish you could still go 150 miles an hour when now you really just have to go 70.
Lisa Guillot (42:01)
Yeah, yeah.
Kelly Berry (42:15)
And it feels a lot different. But truthfully, when you think of the consequences like your long-term health or your mental health or whatever else, it truly isn't that tough of a decision. But I think it does sometimes take a little bit of a reckoning to realize that you can't go 150 miles an hour forever and that if you try to, your body's gonna tell you that you can't.
Lisa Guillot (42:16)
Yeah.
Kelly Berry (42:39)
then you're really gonna have to, you'll be forced to make some changes. yeah, I think there and I could really talk about the...
world that we've been conditioned to try to live in and the expectations. I could have that conversation for a long time, but I'm glad that you brought that up because, you know, that it is so true. the support, yeah.
Lisa Guillot (42:54)
Hahaha
Yeah.
Oh
yeah, I mean, that's probably about 80 % of what I talk about with my therapist. And I'm sure I'm not alone in that either. And like even getting upset with myself because it's 930 at night, I'm like, oh my god, I'm just dead tired. And it's like shocker, go to sleep, Lisa, like in my 20, like literally when I was 25, this is terrible, but
Kelly Berry (43:06)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Lisa Guillot (43:29)
I would go to work all day. I would come home. I would go to sleep from like five until 10 p.m. I would wake up and go see my favorite DJ out at a club until 1 a.m. Come home, get another nap, and then go to work the next day. And that was like, that was awesome. that was, and then here I am like 25 years later, and I'm like, oh my God, why am I so tired?
Kelly Berry (43:45)
huh. That's hilarious. Mm-hmm.
I know.
Yeah. Yep. I'm in the 930 bed club as well. and I know I was going to say, and I'm not sad about it either, but it's a change for sure. Yeah. Well, this has been really great, Lisa. I love everything you said. I think that there's so much of this that is relevant to so many people, so many listeners.
Lisa Guillot (43:59)
I love it too. my God. love sleeping.
Kelly Berry (44:18)
And I think, you know, the just getting started. Like, I guess if you had any advice to people who are like, don't, you know, I think this may be important for me, but I don't really know what to do. Like, what would you tell them to do to get started?
Lisa Guillot (44:32)
Mmm.
Well, if, so like circling way back to the beginning of our conversation, if you feel wonky or weird when you're like, when you say personal branding, that's something to take a look at. Because really it's just about doing the inner work to find what you're aligned for and what you are not for. And then showing up in that way. Then making a move, feet forward, right? Taking that first step.
and trying it out and trying it on and not being afraid if it does make you feel weird. It's just because you're stretching and growing and that one foot in front of the next is going to lead you somewhere and it's certainly not going to keep you stuck in the same place. Like you're definitely going somewhere and get help. Ask for help. Ask for support.
Kelly Berry (45:24)
Nice. Yep. V forward. It can be used all over the place. Awesome. Well, tell everyone where they can find you, where they can find your book, how, someone wants to work with you, what are the next steps to that? Just how can we learn more about you and what you're doing?
Lisa Guillot (45:27)
Be board.
Yes, thank you, Kelly. I appreciate that. Yeah, so I have my podcast, Your Bright Personal Brand. And so you can go, you know, meet me there every week on Tuesdays. You can find the book, Find Your Clear Vision on Amazon. And let's see. Yeah, BeBrightLisa.com. That's where you can learn more about my services and offerings and memberships.
Kelly Berry (46:07)
Great, and Lisa's on LinkedIn and all the socials. So I'll link to all of that in the show notes as well, but she's always putting out really great content, really great things to think about. So definitely check her out. And thanks, Lisa. This has been great. And I know that people will take away some kind of nugget and be the seed for them to.
start stepping into who they are and what their voice is here for and start shouting it.
Lisa Guillot (46:37)
Yes, thank you, Kelly. I appreciate you also sharing your story and letting us get to know you a little bit more behind the scenes.
Kelly Berry (46:41)
Thank you.
Thank you so much. Bye everyone, we'll talk to you next week.
Kelly Berry (46:48)
Thanks for listening to Life Intended.
Sadie Wackett (46:51)
If something from this episode landed with you, stirred something up or gave you a new perspective, share it. Tag us, leave a review. That's how this work reaches more women who really need it.
Kelly Berry (47:04)
Life Intended is more than just a podcast. It's a movement back to self-trust, personal power, and living with intention.
Sadie Wackett (47:12)
and we're just getting started.
Kelly Berry (47:15)
So keep showing up, keep tuning in. If you're ready for more support on your path, head to LifeIntended.co. We've got tools, community, and programs to meet you where you are. Until next time.
Kelly Berry is a strategic business leader and business coach. She is known for her operational excellence and her ability to drive growth and results across multiple industries.
She is also hosting her own podcast, Life Intended.
