We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Asia Hilario a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Asia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

The biggest driver that got me from idea to execution was addressing my inner child wounds that were tied to my business. Often times we don’t think our childhood trauma has anything to do with our business- but it affects everything. It affects how we view ourselves, it affects our belief in our ideas, it affects our motivation, it affects how we show up in our business, even down to determining prices in our business. The biggest inner child wounds that surfaced before launching were: 1) believing I was worthy of success, and 2) the fear of rejection/fear of being seen. I slowly chipped away at the wounds through inner child healing and practices of cognitive behavior therapy. I invited my fears in, got curious, and spoke to the inner child within me who didn’t feel worthy and was afraid of being rejected by others- society, my peers, other business owners, the world essentially. A lot of people don’t realize, but one of the biggest reasons why we procrastinate is actually self-sabotage. And underneath self-sabotage is a fear. It normally falls into categories of: fear of failure, fear of success (yes we can fear success!), fear of being seen/judged, feelings of unworthiness. Everyone self-sabotages- it’s about catching it when you do, and then countering it. At the beginning of launching my business it took time to really recognized where self-sabotage came up for me. Slowly but surely, I was getting everything I needed to get done. Also- indecisiveness in our businesses can be rooted in the fear of being seen/fear of being rejected- which is why we take so long to make a decision- we’re essentially pushing off being seen.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started off as a lifestyle blogger blogging with an emphasis on mental health. The more vulnerable I became in my blog, the more readers were drawn to it. I would eventually win Woman of the Year 2019 by Women on the Rise for my vulnerability and storytelling through my blog. From there, I was getting messages online of women who were seeking guidance in their lives- and people suggested I become a life coach. At the time, I had no idea what a life coach even was. After reading up on it, it appeared to be a job I was looking for my whole life- to be able to help people and make a living. I then became a Self-Love Coach- serving over 250+ clients in 3 years. After a very successful career as a self-love coach, I kept getting inquiries about being a guide for business owners to start and grow their businesses like I did mine. After eventually onboarding more business clients than self-love clients, I completely pivoted to a business mindset coach. As a business mindset coach, I ditch the traditional teachings of business and dive deep into the trauma work behind having a successful business. Because the way we show up in business is directly tied to our childhood traumas. What makes me the most proud is I really got it out the mud- I grew up in poverty, I have ADHD, had debilitating anxiety, depression, and complex post-traumatic stress disorder from my severe childhood trauma of childhood abuse- and yet I was able to create a successful business that brings me ease and joy. A business that I don’t have to trade in my sanity for.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson that I had to unlearn is that I had to sacrifice my sanity in order to have a successful business. I always thought that I had to subscribe to toxic hustle culture, but it was until my best friend (also a business owner) showed me that it was possible to have a life of ease AND have a successful business. I had to let go of the beliefs that I had to run myself to the ground in order to “earn” rest. I also had to detach my worthiness from my productivity, which was an extremely challenging thing to do as a daughter of immigrants. Now- I take a week off every 8 weeks, I work a 4-day workweek, and get a consistent 8-9 hours of sleep every single night. I also believe that one of my callings is to show other business owners that it’s possible.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

I’m very intentional with my clients and pour a lot of love into them (without being self-sacrificing). I move with love in my business and I receive that energy back. I also show up as my full, authentic, unapologetic self and it inspires my clients to do so in their businesses, which in return grows their businesses as well

Contact Info:

• Website: https://asiahilario.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asia.hilario
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/asiahilario/
• Other: Podcast: The Business Baddies Podcast