Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kamila Tan, Founder of Embracing Strength LLC, located in Hermosa Beach, CA, USA.

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

I specialize in coaching current and former high-level athletes struggling to overcome disordered eating, body image issues, eating disorders, and related anxiety or depression that can result from the pressures of the sport. My ultimate goal is to guide current and former athletes to cultivate a healthy relationship with food and exercise so that they can compete joyfully, live freely, and trust the innate intelligence of their bodies!

Tell us about yourself

I specialize in coaching current and former high-level athletes struggling to overcome disordered eating, body image issues, eating disorders, and related anxiety or depression that can result from the pressures of the sport. My ultimate goal is to guide current and former athletes to cultivate a healthy relationship with food and exercise so that they can compete joyfully, live freely, and trust the innate intelligence of their bodies!

In college, I competed in Beach Volleyball at the NCAA Division I level at the University of California, Los Angeles. I was absolutely in love with my sport, and it was the one thing in my life I was most passionate about. However, I was so determined to be the "best" athlete I could be that I became obsessive about eating "correctly" and training hard. What started out as an innocent attempt to eat healthier turned into a full-blown eating disorder: I was diagnosed with anorexia with orthorexic tendencies and compulsive exercise. The thing is: I was getting so many compliments about my appearance and my athletic performance from fellow athletes, coaches, and others in my athletic community that I thought I was doing something right and felt pressure to keep it that way. Shortly after my undergraduate career, I was hospitalized because my heart (and entire body) was weak, and I almost lost my life to anorexia. That day, I decided not to let this eating disorder control my life anymore. I went through a full treatment process, broke my self-destructive patterns of managing food and exercise, learned how to trust my body, and returned to sport more grateful and joyful than ever to be able to compete again.

Now, my mission is to support and guide other athletes so that they don't have to experience what I did. So they can have a structure and a guide to finding freedom from disordered eating and compulsive exercise. Recovery is absolutely possible!”

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Every time I see a client make progress in their own recovery, my heart explodes with happiness! My biggest accomplishment is developing an 8-week coaching program that provides loads of educational information, impactful exercises, an opportunity to work 1:1 with me, and a structure for my clients to follow to success.

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

One of the hardest things I have faced thus far is simply starting the business and believing in myself that I had something to offer to athletes, coaches, teams, athletic departments, and parents. It was hard to believe that my own lived experience could impact others. However, my lived experience combined with my master's degree in Public Health from UCLA has proven to be the perfect combination for guiding and inspiring others, which is ultimately what I love to do!

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

  1. Don't be afraid to start! If you've found a way to fix a problem for someone else, you have a viable business idea. Sometimes the biggest barrier for business owners is a lack of confidence in our value. Believe in the value of what you have to bring, and others will sense it, too!
  2. Don't give up if things don't take off right away. I have experienced dry spells with clients I thought no one wanted to work with me, and then I have experienced huge influxes of clients that have exceeded my bandwidth. Keep working hard, don't give up, and eventually, the work will come!
  3. If you have the financial means, hire a business coach. There are so many little details to figure out when it comes to starting and running your own business; quite frankly, it's exhausting to try to figure it out on your own. There are always more ways to learn how to optimize your business, and someone who is trained in this area can help you figure it out more efficiently.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.kamilatan.com/
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/kamila.tan.3
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/embracingstrengthprogram/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kamila_tweets
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/39kDTlF

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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