Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Chris Carlisle, Founder of Move or Die LLC., located in Gilbert, AZ, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I am in the business of helping people along their path to their best life. I work with anyone who feels that they are stuck. They feel that they know they can be doing better than they are doing.

Tell us about yourself

I grew up with a lot of "issues" in my life. I was born with a physical handicap that doctors did not believe I was going to be able to "run like the other children." I never did run like them; I actually ran better, earning a college scholarship in football.

My next hurdle was the premature loss of my front teeth. As a child with a disability, I fell a lot as I tried to keep up with my two older brothers. After a few too many falls, I eventually knocked my brand-new front teeth out. Most people don't know that your teeth are on a schedule. And mine were nowhere close to coming in. So, during a very important speech development period, I was lacking my front two teeth. I developed a speech impediment that led a speech therapist to tell my mother that I would never be a public speaker. And today, I speak to thousands of people a year.

Later in life, a traumatic head/brain accident and being diagnosed with cancer added to the collection of "things that tried to stop me ... but failed" lists! So, I have been a motivator for my entire life. Telling myself that I could do better and I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. And I did. I have two degrees (BSE Education and a Master's Degree in History). I taught and coached for eleven years at the high school level and then moved into the college ranks and professional ranks.

I was blessed to be surrounded by talented people who wanted to listen and use my motivational and coaching techniques. I am the only coach who has a High School State Championship - A Junior College National Championship - Three NCAA BCS National Championships, and a Super Bowl on my resume.

I found that coaching and working with teams in the training phase was great, but I was limited on who I could actually help with my motivational talks. When I felt the right time had come to move out of the football world into the private sector, it was an easy transition.

I still spoke the way I did with my athletes, but I broadened my subject matter to that of the business, corporation, or individual client that I was working with. The guidance is very similar. It's about continuing to move towards your dreams. My dream, when I was ten years old, was to win a Super Bowl. Forty years later, I did.

I'm not different in any way than anyone else. I just have the answer's my clients need to hear in a way that makes sense to them. Because the lessons I teach are lessons I had to learn in my life, rather than bending others' stories and their lessons into a canned narrative, it helps the client to relate to my advice. I am motivated every day, from the minute I wake up to the minute I go to sleep. I can't wait to follow my passion ... it's not "work" - it's not a "job"; it is what I am supposed to be doing.

What energizes me is the knowledge that I am making a difference in other people's lives. When they send me a message or we talk in our weekly one-on-one session, they can't wait to tell me the great things that happened to them that week. They then get even more excited talking about what their plans are to expand their ideas. I walk away even more excited than I was when I went into the "huddle" (The term for our one-on-one meeting).

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

The biggest accomplishment I feel is that I only need to answer to myself at the end of the day. I am not working for someone else's dream with Move or Die, but I am working for myself and the people who help me run my business and, of course, my clients.

After being part of the staff as a teacher or a coach, I no longer wait for people to give me a schedule for the week. I set my schedule and fill every minute of it with work that will have value. I found it in the coaching world, and I would do a lot of work tracking athletes. Hours and hours would be spent doing write-ups and program development. And then, the next day, the dynamic would change, and now all the work I did was looked at for 2 minutes and tossed to the side. All because someone wanted to "try" something else. I found quickly if you want to be successful, you can't be "trying" new things. You need to go with what is tested. Now on the side, I am always experimenting. But I would never "try" or "experiment" with a person's career at stake. Once I shook out all the "bugs" in the "try" phase, I would then implement it, piece by piece. That's how you win at the highest level.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

I don't have hard days. I look at each issue that might seem "hard" to others and grind it down into small pieces that I use as a foundation for my next day.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Know who YOU are. Is this just a passing whim? Just a good idea cooked up over drinks? Or is this your passion coming to life? Understand what gifts you bring to this business.
  2. Be ready to commit every second of your life to making this venture successful. Things don't just happen overnight. You need to grind through the problems and persevere when things get tough.
  3. Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you and are as driven as you are. You can't always know everything, that's where you fill that spot with some who does know that, but you MUST be the most driven employee of the company. You set the tone. Don't expect the people that work for you to be self-starters; you need to be out front leading the way. EVERY DAY!

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Running a business is hard for some because they aren't prepared for the tough times. If you come into the game KNOWING that there will be rough waters and what to do when they hit, then you will survive long enough to become successful.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.thecoachcarlisle.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecoachcarlisle
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecoachcarlisle/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CoachCarlisle
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachcarlisle/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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