Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jimmy Clare. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Jimmy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.
When I started CrazyFitnessGuy it was a big risk because I didn’t know if people would read content from an Autistic point of view. I also did not know anything about public relations (PR) for marketing, social media marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO) and I had no idea how to create a website.
I spent 1 full year on WordPress which set me back over $800 due to bad hosting providers and horrible plugin developers. I switched to Squarespace and learned the ins and outs of the platform finding workarounds and I stayed with them for around 5 years.
In 2020 I started my podcast which is called CrazyFitnessGuy Healthy Living Podcast. I was very overwhelmed managing writing content for my website, podcasting, marketing, etc. I bought different courses to help me with (SEO) which has worked here and there. I know it is all based on algorithms so it can be a hit or a miss.
I even took a course about marketing to have a consistent bio and look. I am glad that I took the risk of starting my own business because it has opened up many doors for me. I have been published in 20+ publications and was featured in New York City Times Square on a billboard.
I have over 2,000 readers on Google News and on top of that I have met two celebrities, I was a guest on 159+ podcasts and I was also on Australia Live TV. I took the risk of becoming an Entrepreneur to show people that Autism is not the end of the world and it does not need to be cured. I also wanted to show them that it is okay to be different than other people and to embrace their uniqueness.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Growing up people told me I wouldn’t be able to read higher than a second-grade level, I also went through eight years of bullying, and nine ear surgeries, I live with spinal stenosis, and on top of that I am autistic. I was also told I wouldn’t amount to anything and I would be depending on others to help me out: I wouldn’t be able to cook, clean, drive, etc. In other words, I would be useless.
Fast forward to today, I am currently in college majoring in Media Studies working towards my Bachelor’s degree because I want to prove myself wrong. Because after high school I took three years off and I said I would never go to college. Now I am betting on myself to get my degree.
I started my motivational speaking and Autism advocacy at the end of 2019 right before the Pandemic hit, I have peccable timing. I truly believe the reason why I got myself into this industry is because I wanted to help and educate others about how Autism is not a disease and it does not need to be cured. Furthermore, I wanted to help others by shining a positive light and embracing our gifts.
One of the other big reasons why I started down this road was because no one in my school district growing up did not listen to me. They just thought I was a problem child even though I was asking for help in my own unique way. I admit I could have handled asking for help in better ways than tipping for desks growing up and knocking over chairs. But the bullies made me feel like it was a sign of weakness in asking for help so I tried showing people I needed help.
Plus, when I was invited to my own Individual Educational Plan meeting (IEP) I was told I was not supposed to speak at my own meeting even though it was a meeting about me. After complaining many times I was invited back in 12th grade and they finally asked me what would be beneficial for me. My mom was right the squeaky wheel does get the grease.
What sets me apart from others is I haven’t seen many other people and or publications shine a positive light on Autism etc. I am proud that I have kept crazyfitnessguy up and running for 6 years so far.
CrazyFitnessGuy has many products including CrazyFitnessGuy Healthy Living Podcast, CrazyFitnessGuy Premium Podcast, a web app, and The Triple Crazy which is a video/audio blog post service that helps people be motivated in less time. Think of it like Blinkist learning more in a shorter time. I also offer motivational speaking services which I am happy to do virtual and in person.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
After working 90+ hours a week on WordPress for almost a full year I felt like giving up because I was tired of jumping from hosting providers, troubleshooting plugins, and dealing with frustrating 3rd party developers who did not like my 100+ questions. I asked that many questions because that is how I learn as an Autistic entrepreneur and it drove those developers to never want to help me again.
While I was sitting on the couch talking with my mom on the phone. I was feeling exhausted and I was tempted to leave everything behind until I discovered Squarespace. I jumped over to them by copying and pasting everything which took quite a bit of time.
After I have been with Squarespace for 5 years I decided it was time for another change especially because my Squarespace bill was going to skyrocket to the roof. I decided to jump to Podpage because it made importing my videos and podcasts much easier than copying and pasting over and over again.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
One of the biggest lessons I have learned when starting my own business is that it’s okay to not jump on the bandwagon. When I first started I started on WordPress because so many people in the many different Facebook groups I am a part of said it is easy and better than any other platform.
I am not bashing WordPress but even coming from a technical background, running a website is a whole different ballpark of crazy. It cost me over $800 dollars a year which was a huge mistake. After jumping multiple platforms there was no turning back and I ate the cost.
It’s good to be different and that’s why there are many different website platforms out there. Don’t always follow the heard because it can get you into trouble.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.crazyfitnessguy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimmyclarespeaker/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JimmyClareSpeaker/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmy-clare-speaker
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JimmyClareSpeak
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CrazyFitnessGuy
Image Credits
crazyfitnessguy