725: Robin Arzón’s Game-Changing Advice For Transforming Your Life

0:01Okay, I have been on this ruthless pursuit to purge any clothes that I'm not actually wearing. Like if I haven't reached for it in months, it's got to go. I am trying to be really intentional about what I bring into my closet right now, which means I am only buying pieces that I know I will actually wear and use. Revolve just gets it though. I'm literally wearing my brown Autry sneakers from there right now and my new suede purse. It fits my laptop in it. So it's basically a fancy shoulder bag that works for everything. I love finding pieces like that. Things that look good, but also work hard for my actual life.

0:35Their holiday shop is live right now with all the good stuff. Sparkly party dresses, cozy sets, cute gifts, everything you need for whatever is on your calendar. And it's all in one place, which makes shopping feel way less overwhelming. Whether it's a weekend away, a big night out or a holiday party, your dream wardrobe is just one click away. Head to revolve.com forward slash gold digger, shop my edit and take 15 % off your first order with the code gold digger. Fast two day shipping, easy returns. it's literally the only place you need to shop from. That's revolve.com forward slash gold digger to shop by favorites and get 15 % off your first order with the code gold digger offer available for a limited time.

1:15So happy shopping. We have to allow ourselves to understand that most days you're not going to feel like it. Motivation is the biggest lie we've ever been told. I would have absolutely nothing of value in my life if I only engaged with it when I felt like it. Hey, my name is Jenna Kutcher and I am obsessed with all things business, marketing numbers, and helping you to navigate both the messy and the magical seasons of this thing called life. I'm a small town mama who took a$300 camera, grew a successful photo biz, and now I work from home and run a seven figure online business. I teach you the tried and true secrets to building a career you adore.

1:56Shy away from the real talk? No way. Money, hardship, growth, loss, and marketing are all topics we discuss here. Think of this as your one-stop shop for happy hour with a gal pal mixed with business school. Pull up a seat, make sure you're cozy, and get ready to be challenged and encouraged while you learn. This is the Gold Digger Podcast. Welcome, hustler. Now, you might have thought I was simply greeting you for today's episode of the Gold Digger Podcast, but that is actually the name of the empowerment journal that my guest Robin Arzon designed to inspire strength, swagger, gratitude, and personal transformation from within.

2:31Robin is a New York Times bestselling author who discovered her passion for athletics after healing from a traumatic experience through movement. She fearlessly left behind a successful law career to embark on new adventures in the health and wellness space and has since reinvented herself into an avid ultra marathon runner and global fitness leader. Now she's the vice president of fitness programming and the head instructor at Peloton. She believes that sweat transforms lives and her story and my story with her is living proof. She is one of my favorite instructors. I actually credit her for turning me back into a runner, something that I didn't even think was possible post children.

3:12In our conversation today, she shares some of the empowering mantras that she turns to in her daily life like confidence is a side effect of hustle. Plus, she's giving us tactical journaling prompts that we can use today to conduct self-reflection, break our goals down into achievable steps, and so much more. When we talk about the woo meeting the work, this is your episode. I cannot wait for you to hear Robin's advice for building the confidence that you need to succeed. So without further ado, welcome to my favorite Peloton instructor, Robin Arzon. You know what time it is. Sweater weather, football season, Q4.

3:50It's the home stretch, gold diggers. And it's time to close out another year of growth and prep for the next year of revenue. To bring in more business, this Q4 and beyond, you need sales software that helps you score. And the top tools are all inside the new HubSpot sales hub. With a customizable prospecting workspace, smart deal management suite, and AI-powered apps, you can take total control of your sales operation and manage your people and pipeline with ease. The AI-powered chat spot speeds up your day-to-day tasks with simple chat solutions, while AI assistant cranks out copy, outlines, and out-of-the-box ideas.

4:28They're cleverly designed to accelerate your workflow and baked right inside of your CRM. When you pair Sales Hub with other hubs and HubSpot's smart CRM, your team will be on the same page across the entire customer journey. Leads won't slip through the cracks and data is connected across marketing, sales, and operations so you can better measure your impact on the bottom line. Stop sticking to the same old strategies and start closing more deals because the best time to score is Q4. Make the switch to HubSpot Sales Hub at hubspot.com slash sales. Okay, so today is kind of surreal for me because the woman on my show has motivated me, led me through many sweat sessions, has helped me recover after giving birth.

5:15I've watched her go through the same stages. Robin, welcome to the show. Thanks for having me. I'm so excited. Oh my gosh. So I told my husband, he doesn't get very impressed often with people I talk to. I can talk to some amazing people on the show. And today when I woke up, I said, you'll never guess who I get to talk to. And he said, is she going to growl? And I said, I sure hope so. So we are here as a part of the Wolfpack. So Robin, you are obviously a very wildly successful fitness instructor, but you're also a really brilliant businesswoman. And I think sometimes it can be really easy to see your level of success and hard work and forget about the literal sweat that it took to get here.

5:55So can you share a little bit about your journey of how you got here? Oh, lots of sweat. So I used to be, first of all, I was somebody who didn't work out. Like Growing up, I was not an athlete. I am not naturally gifted in movement. I just created myself and I just consistently never gave up. But the change of my life that really brought me to wellness was a traumatic experience that I had in college. So I really started using movement to heal from that experience. And I was on track to become a lawyer. I did become a lawyer. I practiced law in New York City as a corporate litigator for almost eight years, a little over eight years.

6:38And I know some of your listeners are in that inflection point of career change or trying to figure out what they're going to do next or they're in the midst of building it. I think we're always in the midst of building it, even when we've arrived, quote unquote. But my career change was really pivotal because I started falling in love with running and marathons and ultra marathons while I was still practicing law, you know, upwards of 80 hours a week. So I was the classic underwhelmed, overworked, redlining, not a lot of self-care. And then I had this little glimmer of hope when I would lace up my running shoes.

7:12And not only was it healing me emotionally and mentally, you know, from the trauma that I had in college, but it was allowing me to dream in ways that I never really even thought I could. So that's also when I started journaling. So I recently released Welcome Hustler, which is a journal filled with mantras and my prompts and the things that I journaled to myself about my experience and continue to do till this day to architect my next level. But back then when I was practicing law, I didn't even know... We can see other folks' successes and sometimes try to place ourselves in their shoes. Even that can be really intimidating, but I didn't see a path.

7:55I felt like I was, you know, there with a machete, just charting my own path, which is exciting, daunting, paralyzing all the things. So that's when I started, I created a 10 minute recurring calendar appointment and it was blocked. So my, my EA, the partners, anyone who could see my account, my outlook calendar saw that there was these random 10 minutes in the morning that, you know, kind of before the day got going at the law firm that were my protected time. And I used to kind of flex on those 10 minutes. I, you know, I would say like, actually we need to make the meeting at nine, not eight 45 kind of thing.

8:29Cause I needed, I knew I needed to protect those nuggets of time. I think when somebody says I don't have time, what they're really saying is it doesn't matter. Yes. And I have to make myself matter. And in those 10 minutes I started to dream. I would just allow myself, sometimes it It was pen to paper, free writing. Sometimes it was a Google search of like, what does an editor at a magazine do? Like I had no clue what I was doing, but these were all little seeds. And then that was probably a two year process. I think that we see the bio or the Wikipedia page or the Instagram reel. And we're like, dang, like they just did it overnight.

9:08I didn't just do it at all. It was slow and tedious and oftentimes really, really boring. And I don't think we talk enough about the boring stuff. So over that two year period, 10 minutes at a time, I started to get curious. I started to ask questions and I would ask even folks for like 10 minute informational interviews and I would just beg people for 10 minutes of their time. And that's how it started. That's how it started. And then I realized, wow, I might be able to, I might be able to monetize this passion of movement, but not in a traditional way, not in a way that's really ever been done before.

9:43And so I may, I'm very into vision boards and journaling. And those are tools in my toolkit that allow me to name it and claim it with specificity, honey. I really believe in the power of manifestation, but I believe maybe even more so of my own work ethic. And I think when you combine those two, that's a powerful, like that's a powerful combination. So the, on my vision board around that time, I had put in the business quadrant technology that was disruptive. I had a picture of like a little Apple computer and I really didn't even know what that meant, but I knew I wanted to storytell on a global scale.

10:17This is kind of when influencer marketing and things on Instagram were just starting to take off. So I was getting a little bit of traction there, but still really just free falling, like jumping off a cliff every day and just not knowing what the heck I was doing, just making it up as I went along. and something that I should mention that I think will be useful for folks is so I when I was in my in the time period from when I left law I quit a few weeks before the London Olympic Games and I just started blogging from the London Olympic Games as a quote-unquote blogger journalist person and when I came back I started getting introductions to athletic brands and people who wanted to quote pick my brain because they were paying attention to what I was posting on social media and I you know, I had a specific point of view that was urban.

11:03It was athletic. It was female focused. It was, um, you know, there were people, people of color and runners who are folks of color who hadn't really been featured in that same way before by a lot of brands. So I was getting, I was so flattered. I was like, wow, you're from so-and-so brand wanting to meet me for coffee. Yeah. And after a few of those meetings, yes, I was still grateful, but I'm like, I can't pay my rent with shoes and the receipt from this coffee shop. So I started, so I called myself a consultant. I was like, here's my fee. I'm a consultant and I used my billable hours model from law and I translate it into this new consultancy.

11:40And yes, for sure there are people who are like, oh, you know what? No, thanks. But I got the right yeses. So that was really pivotal for me. But yeah, the trajectory in that vision board, I didn't really know what that meant, technological disruption. But then I read an article about Peloton and it was before the studio had even opened. I was the second, I think second or third instructor hired. And if I truly believe I had not done that vision board and planted that seed that what, six, eight, 10 months later, I would have glossed right by that article. So that's kind of how the Peloton piece of my story came to be.

12:19And I sent a cold email to the company. It was like info at PelotonCycle.com. And I was like, what's up? I love you. Here are the reasons. We are lines. And it was basically like my elevator pitch in an email. And I had an audition the next week. And then a few days later, I had a contract. And here we are 10 years later. So that journey has been something I'm really proud of. But I don't want to gloss over the fact that I was just making it up like most of the time. And really, so what I infused in Welcome Hustler is the audit. I call it now an audit. I didn't call it that at the time. I didn't know it was that at the time.

12:59But at the time when I was making that career change, I said, okay, I have to take stock of my physical health, my spiritual kind of existential health, my financial health. And these audits are in the Welcome Hustler journal for folks to plug in where they think, is important in this chapter of their story. Because when you're on the precipice of a life change, I think physical, spiritual, and financial health are all things that we really need to take stock of. And there were questions with the career manifestation piece specifically that I literally listed. What am I good at? What am I not good at?

13:34What do I need to learn? And it was that list that I was like, okay, this is what I can leverage. This is where I still need to work. And this is a gray area where like, I'm going to allow the vision boarding and the journaling to kind of scaffold to something else. Yeah. So yeah. Does that answer your question? Oh my gosh. Yes. No, we are so aligned. Like my, my whole philosophy is where the woo meets the work, because I feel like nowadays, especially for ambitious women, there are two camps, right? It's like the hustle harder, work more, do more. And then there's like the, just think it and it'll come into your life.

14:12And it's like, we've got to meet in the middle here because I think you said something so powerful. And I really want to come back to this is if you had not done that vision board, if you had not dreamed in that way, you would have missed it. And I think a lot of people are missing opportunities, invitations, curiosities in their life because they haven't actually thought ahead. There's another powerful aspect of what you said that I want to know about. and your experience in that is that when you have a vision board or you have a clear vision for your life, when you actually reach that goal, you recognize it.

14:47And I think a lot of people are achieving things that maybe they once thought could be kind of cool, but they're missing the beauty of being in those moments. Let's talk about that. Yeah. You know, that's, I'm at that place right now. Actually, I was speaking to Allie, a prior guest on your show. And we were just talking about like when, you know, she's one of my dear girlfriends and we were talking about when is enough enough? Like when do you quench the thirst? And I just, I fall in love with the process of who I am when I'm building, creating an uncomfortable. So I think the answer to that is never for me, but the punctuations, I think that journaling, vision boarding, somehow like creating those little punctuations allow us to at least create an ellipsis, a little bit of a pause where you're like, dang, I really did do that.

15:35And a gratitude practice that helps me that I often journal about is what do you have right now that you used to wish or pray for? Like the stuff that might even annoy me now are things that I really, really hoped I could have back then. So it kind of brings me to the present time, but your point of celebrating the successes is so huge. I think ambitious folks just are plowing onto the next thing. I am completely guilty of that. And I am, you know, a personal challenge for me is, is balancing gratitude for where I am with the like healthy friction building to the next thing. Yes. Oh my gosh. Let's talk about that because I think that's super powerful.

16:13It's so funny too. I'm curious to know as a mom for me, there are some days where I'm like, I want to shut it all down. I want to move to the country, have chickens and be barefoot in the woods with my children. And then the next day I'm like, I want to take this business as far as I can, I want to go as wide as I kind of want to make the biggest impact. And I like oscillate between those two things. Have you experienced that in your journey of motherhood? Gosh, yeah. I have always been proud of the fact that I think because I've made such a drastic career change, I've been proud of the fact that I can step into many roles and that I'm not just one thing.

16:48And that multiplicity of being is something that I think now we're getting more comfortable talking about professionally. That being said, I still feel like I want to splinter myself when I'm like, I'm not going to be enough of a mother. I'm not going to be enough of a partner. I'm not enough of a friend. I'm not enough of a, and that's when I started to really, really, really own my no to protect my yes and commit to when I say yes to something, it's going to be with my full self wearing the hat that I choose. And when I decided, when my husband and I decided to have kids and we're both career minded folks, we made the choice long ago, we were going to have to be comfortable with other folks loving our kids and being a part of that extension.

17:35And not to say it's not hard. I mean, I, I, I totally understand the pangs of guilt, but I make an intentional choice where to use my energy. And that makes it a little bit easier when I'm like, do I just move, move on a farm in the country? And, um, you know, it's, I can, I'm getting better at shutting down the things that aren't in alignment with the hat I'm wearing in that moment. Yes. Oh my gosh. It takes a lot of practice. I think I literally look at it. Like I'm getting dressed for this version of myself. Yes. Yeah. And I'll see the other version later. Yep. Oh my gosh, I love that so much.

18:14If you love the Gold Digger podcast, you've probably heard me talk about my best friend, Amy Porterfield. Did you know that she has her own marketing podcast too? It's actually the first podcast I ever listened to. Online Marketing Made Easy is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Every episode focuses on giving you the best strategies for online business owners, including starting a digital course, growing your email list, social media content creation, and hosting webinars. Amy is the best at breaking down big ideas and strategies into actionable step-by-step processes.

18:50And her show is designed to get you more results with a whole lot less stress. Tune in to Online Marketing Made Easy wherever you get your podcasts. When we were young, we dreamed of castles and fairy tales. And as we grow up, those dreams might shift into building something real, like starting a business. You need a website, payment systems, a logo, and a way to reach customers. It can all be overwhelming and confusing, but thankfully that's where today's sponsor Shopify comes in. Shopify powers millions of businesses around the world and 10 % of all U.S. e-commerce from big brands to folks just getting started.

19:28They offer beautiful ready-to-go website templates so you don't need design skills to look professional. Their AI tools help with product images, descriptions, discount codes, and more. Shopify also makes it simple to run email and social campaigns so people can find you. And if you ever feel stuck, their award-winning 24-7 support is always available. Turn those dreams into and give them the best shot at success with Shopify. Sign up for your$1 per month trial and start selling today at shopify.com slash gold digger. Go to shopify.com slash gold digger. Shopify.com slash gold digger.

20:09It's time for Cyber Monday, Dell Technologies' biggest sale of the year. You'll find the lowest prices of the year on select Dell PCs like the Dell 16 Plus with Intel Core Ultra processors. And with built-in advanced AI features, it's the PC that helps you do more faster. From smarter multitasking to extended battery life, these PCs handle the busy work so you can focus on what actually matters to you. Plus, earn Dell rewards and enjoy perks like free shipping, expert support, price match guarantee, and flexible financing options. They also have the biggest deals on accessories that pair perfectly with your Dell PC, improving the way you work, play, and connect.

20:51Whether you just started holiday shopping or you're finishing up, these PCs and accessories make perfect gifts for everyone on your list. Shop now at dell.com slash deals and don't miss out on the best prices of the year. That's dell.com slash deals.

21:10I want to know about your journaling practice and how just different stages and seasons of your life, it's kind of like ebbed and flowed because I think journaling is like one of the most beautiful ways to evolve yourself to see past versions of you, but also to meet the next one. So how has your journaling practice kind of evolved from the lawyer days into the Peloton days into the motherhood days into the businesswoman days? Like, what does that look like? Oh my gosh, it's evolved so much. So it used to be my morning routine pre kids was more wake up breath work, meditation, journaling, and that would probably all take maybe 40 minutes.

21:46I mean, 40 minutes or something that is completely unrealistic with my life right now. Although it is a choice, I could wake up at three in the morning and make that choice. Right. So I don't like to fall into that. Yes. Martyrdom of motherhood. Yeah, exactly. I refuse. I refuse, refuse, refuse, refuse to martyr myself to motherhood. So now the choice that I make is to have a more reasonably efficient morning. I mean, mornings are chaotic when you have kids. But so now it's prioritizing my movement practice in the morning. And for my husband's prior choices, movement practice. And so we're like just clamoring to get, you know, the kids ready.

22:19And then we have our nanny come, which is a huge, huge help. And then he and I usually either both do our workouts before we start the workday. But my journaling practice now is more so at night. And I released myself from this idea that it needed to be this 20 minute thing where I'm doing this elaborate thing. And so James Clear's book, Atomic Habits, really helped me because he was like, wow, two minutes or less. And I was like, two minutes or less? I can do it. I can write up two sentences. And some days it's literally that. And some days I pick up to where I left off, especially if I'm using something like my own journal, Welcome Hustler.

22:52There are prompts that you can kind of jump around. And some days I'm just using a blank page or if I'm working on a business idea or if I'm trying to get creative juices flowing or if I'm feeling like, oh, God, I'm feeling annoyed, very annoyed. Then I'm like, well, I need a little more gratitude today. So it kind of it allows me a moment to at least have a conversation with myself and check in. Yeah. So yeah, my journaling practice now is I would say I'm pretty consistent. I'm pretty consistent, like five to six days a week, most days. But sometimes it's sometimes it's two minutes before I'm passing out with the pen in my hand.

23:23Yeah, I'm the same way. I feel like there were so many years where I almost felt guilty that I didn't have this very elaborate, peaceful morning routine. And I'm like, sleep is the priority right now. Like I will sleep until the very last minute that my child comes and wakes me up. And I have found that instead of thinking of like routines, I have to think of resets and like, when can I just take like a five minute reset, whether it's movement or water or journaling or whatever it is. And that totally helped me reframe that guilt or like the fact that I was like, that is not what my morning looks like, where it's like, no, the whole day doesn't go, go to toast.

23:58I sent my husband something the other day and I was like, if you're having a rough day as a parent, think of the day in quarters and like you had a bad quarter, but like get back in the game and have a good next quarter. And I was like, I love this. Like we need this. I tell myself cause gosh, I call it getting out of the avalanche. Yes. Like when you feel the avalanche, you're like, Oh my gosh, this is it. This is it. And I have had days where I just lean into it. I'm like, screw it. I'm going to order the food that I know is not going to make me feel great. I'm going to do, I don't need to go for a walk, you know, like this afternoon.

24:32And then you just start like that misery loves company thing. But now I try to tell myself like, get out of the avalanche. Like what is like one thing you could hold on to, to like pull that thread a little more just to get out. And that's so true. I love the idea of thinking of it in quarters. It was just this part of the day. It wasn't great. Yeah. Let's move on. Okay. So let's talk about some of your business ventures. I think you are an amazing case study of just looking at someone who started in this one area really became known, but you have just expanded your brand in so many ways and into so many different genres.