I met Lisa Druxman last year when she reached out to me about being a guest on her Empowered Mama Podcast… um, yes! She came across Breathe, Mama, Breathe as it was often listed next to her book, The Empowered Mama, on Amazon. Lisa’s energy and passion is clear, as you will see in her interview. I am grateful to be able to mine the depths of her wisdom.
Grab a cup of tea, read on, and enjoy!
Lisa’s Bio:
Lisa Druxman is the founder of FIT4MOM, the nation’s leading company for pre and postnatal health, wellness, and fitness programs for every stage of motherhood. FIT4MOM has created business opportunities for moms nationwide, with more than 300 franchisees and 1,000 locations across the U.S. In addition to leading her team at FIT4MOM, Lisa is an awarded author, speaker and podcaster. She recently wrote The Empowered Mama, which offers practical tools to help women live their best lives. She is also the creator of Success Sprints, 30 day courses to help you reclaim your time, your health, and yourself.
Tell me a little about your path and who you are.
I am the chief founding mom of FIT4MOM. We are the company that helps women find the strength in motherhood. I am mom to Jacob 17, Rachel 14 and married to my sweetheart, Jason, for twenty-two years. I have been a fit pro for over twenty-five years and a dreamer all of my life. I am an idea monkey with too many ideas and too little time. But all I do comes down to helping moms reclaim their time, their health, and themselves.
What’s your biggest life lesson/challenge right now?
My biggest life lesson right now is that as your business grows, it has different needs. and as your kids grow, they have different needs. You have to have a growth mindset and be open and willing to keep growing and learning.
What keeps you grounded?
I stay grounded in gratitude every single day. Throughout the day, I think of my blessings and how they are too many to count.
Sometimes we practice present-moment awareness without necessarily calling it mindfulness. How do you use mindfulness in your life to contribute to your success?
I clinically have ADD. My mind, like so many, is like a monkey jumping around. So I have been very deliberate to practice mindfulness in what I do. I do this by blocking my time. I no longer try to multi-task. When I am working, I am working. When I am with my kids, I’m with my kids. When my mind/body starts to wander (and it does), I just bring it back. Just as you do in meditation—no judgment. Just coming back to the task at hand.
What are your thoughts about balance?
Everyone desires a fictitious version of balance. Instead, I first prioritize my minimum effective dose of self-care. it is a must, a priority, a non-negotiable. People feel out of balance because they have no time for self-care, no time for joy, no time for solitude. If you program that in first, then the things that fall off are social media, surfing the web, Netflix.
Perhaps look at counterbalance instead of balance. There will be times when work gets out of control. Instead of going back to regular routine, counter balance and give yourself a little more family time and/or self-care on the other side. if family times gets out of control (sick kids, vacation), then realize you will need to counter balance on the other side of that.
What’s your superpower?
My super power is coming up with ideas and believing that anything is possible
Tell me about your relationship with fear.
As a young girl, I lived in fear—fear of failure, of embarrassment, of not being liked or accepted. I have a very new relationship with fear. I face it. Every time I face it, I get stronger. I am not afraid to fail because each failure brings a lesson so I get better the next time. If you don’t fail, you aren’t trying hard enough.
What do you think women are craving?
I think women are craving solitude. We are in a state of solitude deprivation because even when we are alone, we fill the time with Facebook and Instagram and email. We need time to be alone with our thoughts. We need time to let thoughts settle and also to bubble up. Your big aha moment won’t happen when your mind is busy.
In what way(s) do you empower yourself? Others?
To empower means to make (someone) stronger and more confident, especially in controlling their life and claiming their rights. I have reclaimed my time, my health, and myself, and that is at the core of everything I share every single day. Everything I learn, I share so that I can lessen the learning curve for those who follow me.
What is the biggest myths that keeps women stuck?
I think comparison is what keeps us stuck. We look at others’ highlight reels of perfect homes, bodies, kids, food, vacations and we feel bad when we don’t have that. Sometimes there is imperfection shown on social media but that is curated imperfection. We all need to be authentically ourselves so we don’t get caught in imposter syndrome where we feel like we aren’t good enough, like we are a fraud. If every woman tapped into her personal strengths and unique abilities and stepped into her own light, the world would look dramatically different.
What’s your go-to phrase/mantra for empowering yourself?
I am. Those are two powerful words. What follows shapes your reality.
What are you working on now that thrills you the most?
My newest focus is teaching women how to find the joy of living. I speak to thousands of moms. Most are in a constant state of overwhelm. Most are running on a hamster wheel and then they can’t believe it’s over and their kids are grown. I don’t want us to miss life. The pursuit of happiness isn’t working for a lot of people so I, instead, am working on the joy of living.
What would others be surprised to know about you?
I’m super uncoordinated, which surprises a lot of people since I teach fitness.
Tell me about a “mistake/failure” that turned out to be good fortune.
This is funny because nothing is coming to mind. I make mistakes all the time, but I really try to learn from them. Many business consultants would say that I made a mistake by creating a low-cost franchise for moms. It does not fall into the typical definition of a big franchise business. But I did it my way and created one of the fastest growing franchises in the United States.
What do you think about that gets you really excited?
What gets me so excited is thinking about how someone’s life will change when they believe in themselves, stop making excuses and start taking action. When people tap into their unique strengths and gifts and live in alignment with their values, magic happens. That gets me incredibly excited.
Favorite resources?
Audible, Evernote, Trello, Insight Timer
Thank you, Lisa, for sharing your wisdom with us!