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

Isabel , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

I’d love to share the story of how I launched Repurpose Your Life™, my business that has absolutely transformed my life.

It was 4:44 a.m. on December 20, 2022, in Los Angeles, California. I wiped my sleepy eyes, taken by a sudden burst of energy. Something stirred deep within me—a spark in the form of a divine download that I couldn’t ignore. I grabbed my pen and began feverishly sketching the framework for what would become Repurpose Your Life™, an organization that empowers women through holistic lifestyle and business coaching. The ideas flowed like a waterfall, pouring from my mind onto the page. They were accompanied by tears of joy and clarity. I could feel the change running through me like an electric current: what started as a slogan I came up with in 2020 to reflect my early-day sustainability efforts was now crystallized into my life’s mission.

This vision didn’t come out of nowhere. It was born from my own journey of profound transformation. Over 17 years of addiction and the struggle to find myself, I learned to repurpose my own life. In 2011, I was $100,000 in debt from a shopping addiction, seeking fulfillment in material things while neglecting my own sense of worth and purpose. It took me seven years to pay off that debt, and in doing so, I completely transformed every part of my life—my mindset, my habits, even how I showed up in the world.

My turning point came when I watched The True Cost, a documentary that opened my eyes to the impact of consumerism. I began decluttering my life—not just my closet, but my mind, my space, and my emotions. Decluttering became the foundation of my transformation, showing me that the external chaos around me was a reflection of my internal state. Once I cleared the clutter, I was able to hear my intuition and align with my purpose.

That’s how Repurpose Your Life™ was born: a fusion of strategy, mindset, and sustainability that bridges the gap between strategy and holistic transformation. At its core, the business is divided into two pillars: the Transformational Decluttering Method and the Repurpose Your Life™ Method.

The Transformational Decluttering Method is a powerful system designed to clear physical, mental, and emotional clutter, creating clarity, alignment, and momentum in your life and business. More than tidying up, this method empowers you to make bold, aligned decisions and build a space that supports your highest vision. With step-by-step video training, strategic workbooks, implementation playbooks, and a decluttering toolkit, you’ll achieve a clutter-free space, confidence in decision-making, and the energy to focus on what truly matters. Optional community access and monthly live coaching provide added support for deeper transformation, helping you create the life and business you desire.

The Repurpose Your Life Method™ is a transformative 20-week mentorship program designed to help women entrepreneurs launch and scale thriving, purpose-driven businesses in 5 months or less. This holistic journey integrates mindset mastery, emotional clarity, time management, strategic planning, and sustainable action, ensuring your business aligns with your values and vision. The program includes 20 weekly modules, 20+ video lessons, 15+ downloadable workbooks and templates, weekly group coaching calls, and bonus resources like expert interviews and case studies. By combining personal transformation with actionable business strategies, the Repurpose Your Life Method™ equips you with the clarity, confidence, and tools to create lasting success.

What excites me most about this work is its ripple effect. My clients aren’t just launching businesses—they’re building lasting legacies. They’re creating sustainable lives that reflect their deepest values, empowering themselves and inspiring others. With every woman who repurposes her life, we’re collectively rewriting what it means to live with purpose and impact.

This journey isn’t just a business to me—it’s a movement. It’s proof that we can take our struggles, repurpose them into strengths, and create something extraordinary. The world doesn’t need more cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all approaches. It needs bespoke transformation. And that’s exactly what Repurpose Your Life™ delivers.

Isabel , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a multifaceted artist and entrepreneur weaving transformation through everything I do. I was born to two Central American immigrant parents, and from them, I inherited grit, resilience, and a deep sense of purpose. Entrepreneurship runs in my family. Nearly every member has started a business, so it felt inevitable that by the age of 16, I had a dream of my own: to build my company.

At 23, I launched my first fashion brand with just $200 in the bank, entering a fashion show in Dallas where I created my first garment that walked the runway and earned me my first clients. From there, I never looked back. With a background in Apparel Design, Manufacturing, and Textiles (and a minor in General Business Administration), my journey into fashion felt like destiny. Inspired by novelas and New York and Paris Fashion Weeks, I became a known designer in Dallas, Texas, scaling my team to 13 people in six months.

But then, life shifted. Fast forward to New York City, where I moved at age 29 there with a dream of becoming the Latina version of Carrie Bradshaw. However, this fleeting dream led me to face a harsh reality check : I was $100,000 in shopping debt and in desperate need for reinvention. I devoted myself to climbing out of debt and severely restructuring my lifestyle habits. Working as a Master Tailor for luxury brands like Saks Fifth Avenue, Balmain, and Thomas Pink, I learned about the transformative power of hard work and creativity. During this time, I built three businesses while holding a full-time job, and by 2020, I was debt-free and able to take the leap to full-time entrepreneur.

Today, I’m the CEO of Repurpose Your Life™, a life and business coach, sound healer, and speaker. My work is deeply rooted in my personal transformation: turning my pain into purpose, repurposing my life, and now helping others do the same. Through services like my 20-week mentorship, health and wellness retreats, and digital products, I guide visionary women entrepreneurs to build aligned, purpose-driven businesses that reflect their unique gifts and values.

The foundation of my work lies in my Transformational Decluttering Method. This isn’t just about clearing physical spaces; it’s about releasing old identities, emotional baggage, and mental clutter to create room for aligned growth. I integrate this method into my holistic coaching approach, ensuring that my clients’ businesses reflect their deepest values and vision.

What makes Repurpose Your Life™ unique is our mission:
-To empower visionary women to repurpose their challenges into fuel for success.
-To guide them to transform their visions into reality.
-To help them rise into their full leadership potential with clarity, alignment, and purpose.

Our vision is to create a global ripple effect of transformation, impacting one million women by equipping them with the tools to build purpose-driven businesses and lives.

I’ve had the privilege of working with 65+ entrepreneurs, guiding them to launch businesses and create lasting impact. My frameworks, like the Time Freedom Method, have helped countless women transform overwhelm into clarity, scattered ideas into focused impact, and stalled progress into sustainable success.

My work has been featured in outlets like CNN, NY1, and Reuters, and I’ve collaborated with leading luxury brands like Balmain and Saks Fifth Avenue on best sustainability practices for the corporate world. I’ve also spoken on over 30 global stages, including Columbia University, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and the Ford Foundation. What I’m most proud of is turning my personal struggles into a platform for change and being able to inspire others to rise above their challenges.

To me, success isn’t just about strategy—it’s in my heart. I take a holistic approach, integrating sound healing and mindfulness into my coaching to help women release emotional blocks and step into their highest potential.

If you’re ready to transform your challenges into purpose, create aligned success, and build a legacy that reflects your values, Repurpose Your Life™ is here to guide you every step of the way.

Let’s connect, transform, and rise together.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Last year, I had a pivotal moment that redefined the trajectory of my business. I was accepted into a business accelerator in New York City, a three-month program designed to help entrepreneurs refine their pitch decks and prepare for investors. At the time, the original vision for Repurpose Your Life™ was centered around helping women start their own decluttering and organization businesses. My plan was to create a “train-the-trainer” model where I would teach others how to build successful businesses in this niche while also expanding my own team to tackle larger projects.

This experience was both rewarding and eye-opening. I won a grant, built an eight-woman team, and launched my course by the end of the year. But as I engaged with potential clients, I realized something crucial: my original messaging was too narrow. I was focusing on a small subset of potential entrepreneurs. So, I took this learning and decided to expand my focus to a broader group—visionary entrepreneurs looking to build sustainable businesses that aligned with their purpose—and the numbers shifted dramatically. The response was overwhelming. I went from 2 potential clients to over 70 interested leads. This messaging pivot led me to a broader impact and strong results, proving that adaptability is essential in every business.

In February 2024, life threw me another curveball. After a successful run with my decluttering gigs and working hands-on with clients alongside my team, I tore my meniscus. Suddenly, I couldn’t continue the physical aspect of my work. It was a challenging moment—facing physical pain, managing a team, and navigating the frustration of being unable to fully show up for my clients.

That’s when I made another significant pivot. I shifted my focus entirely to the online space, scaling my efforts by creating digital courses, hosting online coaching programs, and refining my Transformational Decluttering Method into an online framework so I could reach more people. This decision not only allowed me to recover safely—it also helped me expand my impact and connect with clients on a global scale.

Each pivot I’ve had to roll with has taught me resilience, adaptability, and the importance of staying connected to my “why.” These challenges have forced me to find new ways to serve my clients while staying true to my mission of empowering women to repurpose their lives and build businesses with purpose and alignment.

These moments of change reinforced a powerful lesson: obstacles are often redirections toward something greater. By staying open to transformation and listening to what my clients truly needed, I built a stronger, more sustainable business model that aligns with my own growth and purpose.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned throughout the years is that growth, scalability, and success often come from building and nurturing a strong team. Early on, I realized that I couldn’t do everything on my own—and more importantly, I didn’t want to. Delegating tasks to people who excel in areas where I don’t has been a game-changer for me. It allows me to focus on my strengths while empowering my team members to shine in their roles and teach me new things along the way.

I’ve managed teams of anywhere between 13 and 200 people in various capacities—from managing a team of 200 volunteer sewers creating masks during the pandemic to overseeing high-volume tailoring operations that completed over 150 garments a day to leading a creative team in my first business. Through these experiences, I’ve come to understand that the energy and morale of a team often mirror the energy and morale of their leader.

This is why maintaining a high morale begins with you. When you show up for your team with clarity, empathy, and a positive attitude, it sets the tone for the culture you want to build. Early in my leadership journey, I noticed that my team members often reflected my own mindset. If I was stressed, overwhelmed, or unclear, it was this frantic energy reflected in their performance. Once I invested in my own personal development—becoming more empathetic, respectful, and grounded—my teams transformed.

The team I have today is a testament to this growth. They are loyal, motivated, self-starters who not only get the job done but often go above and beyond. They’re coachable, appreciative, and truly aligned with the values we’ve cultivated together.

Here’s my advice for managing a team and fostering high morale:

-Build a Strong Culture: Define the values you want your team to embody and lead by example. Whether it’s empathy, integrity, or collaboration, your actions set the standard.

-Invest in Relationships: Take the time to know your team members as people. Care about their well-being, celebrate their wins, and show empathy during challenges.

-Empower Through Trust: Delegate tasks and trust your team to execute. Micromanagement kills morale; empowerment fuels growth.

-Communicate Clearly: Transparency and clarity in expectations are crucial. When your team knows the “why” behind their work, they stay engaged and aligned.

-Lead With Gratitude: Regularly acknowledge and appreciate their efforts. A simple “thank you” or public recognition can go a long way in boosting morale.

At the end of the day, a thriving team is one that feels valued, supported, and inspired by their leader. When you invest in building a team that shares your vision and values, you’re not just managing—they’re growing alongside you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.isabelvarela.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/isabel.varela
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isabelvarela/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@iamisabelvarela
• Other: Transformational Decluttering Method: https://www.repurposeyour.life/the-transformational-decluttering-method-1

  Repurpose Your Life : https://www.repurposeyour.life/letsconnect

Image Credits

Ricky Cortez, Reta Grace