Interview with Lisa Byrne of “The Well Grounded Life”

With a background full of science and a master’s in Public Health, Lisa Byrne has a strong affinity toward anything to do with chemistry and quantum physics – but mostly is in awe of the wonders and workings of our bodies.

Staying healthy, balanced, and vibrant in a world that challenges our well-being at every turn is her passion.

Lisa counsels groups, leads workshops and teaches classes on healthy living when she isn’t burping, bouncing or chasing her three little ones around.

Her recent venture is The WellGrounded Life, a blog dedicated to providing busy moms with support.  Visit her there for tips on inspired nutrition and healthy living. While your there, make sure you download a free copy of her How to Break the Sugar Habit workbook.

I’m delighted to do an interview with Lisa on her recent venture and the online life.

1. What is “The Well Grounded Life” all about?

Ultimately, The WellGrounded Life is a place that supports moms to live their highest quality of life while they are doing the most important work of their lives.

It is easy for mothers to put on hold their own self care, health and wellness needs because the job of mothering is so demanding.  But this feels backwards to me. These are exactly the years we need to care for ourselves in order to give the best we have.

So I work to provide articles, inspiration and courses that help busy moms take great care of themselves…through holistic nutrition and healthy living skills– as well as encouragement along the journey.

2. Is your site geared mostly towards mothers?

Yes…(and no) 🙂  I do write for busy moms.  That is where I am in my life and it’s the group I really have a heart for…but I am amazed at how many men and women (who are not mothers) stop by and comment or email me telling me how much they get out of my site.

I think that in general if you feel you could use help in taking care of yourself and need concrete, practical ways to do that in a demanding, busy lifestyle, you may enjoy my site.

3. How long have you been doing this?

I have a long background in biochemistry, nutrition and public health, but I’ve specifically been a holistic health coach for 3 years.  I started my blog about 1 1/2 years ago.

4. While reading your “about” page, I noticed you have an extensive educational background. What made you want to stay home with your kids and start an online business?

I suppose I always knew I wanted to be home with my children when that time came.  What I didn’t expect, though, was the early struggle I felt toward finding a way to keep my own passions and interests alive and growing while devoting so much of my time and life to raising my children.

What I learned about myself is that I needed to keep creating and contributing to the world the gifts and passions I had in some way or I was simply not being the best person I could be, which directly related to the mother and wife I was being.

So intentionally choosing a career path that connected me to other mothers, had tremendous flexibility, and focused on the things I enjoy most in life was a no brainer.  In so many ways keeping this part of me alive is helping me live balanced, healthier and inspired.  And these are all the things I want for my children…things I want to be modeling for my children.

5. What were some of the struggles you faced as an online entrepreneur ?

Well, specifically as an online entrepreneur, I struggle with the intensity of computer time it requires.  Truth be told, I am just not a huge fan of computer work– I really love connecting one on one with people, speaking, teaching classes, running workshops, ect.

Translating those human experiences into online experiences sometimes feels difficult.  It is one of the reasons I am trying to reach out with a number of different media sources, video, audio classes, webinars, ect.  I keep striving to imbue more personal, direct, real contact into my work online.

As a mom of three little ones (as well as a wife) being an online entrepreneur can feel tricky because the lines between home time and work time can very easily blur.  I have to be diligent on keeping hours in my day just for work or for home life sacred because it can feel taxing to my husband and family if I allow myself to get pulled into the work all throughout the day without boundaries.

6. How has working with your passion and doing it online changed you and your family’s life?

I don’t believe in the whole “you can have it all” mantra, if having it all, really means ALL.  What I think is more accurate is you can dig deep and prioritize what is most important and make choices in your life that allow for those priorities to all be attended to.  Staying at home and caring for my family is my top priority…but that did not extinguish my desire to grow, create and contribute as a unique person in the world.  So building a small business online has allowed me to hold both of those priorities in my hands, in the proportions that feel just right, right now.

And the online component makes the breadth of my work possible.  It is a more rigid type of scheduling that happens when you book all your clients and courses in person.  There is not as much flexibility– for you or your participants.  When I hold a teleclass, I have no travel costs or time considerations…but neither do my participants.  And if they can’t make it for any reason, they listen when they can.  For my audience, busy moms, it’s a real bonus.

7. What do you see for the future of the food and health industry OR what do you hope to see?

Goodness, great question.  I’ll answer what I hope to see.

I hope to see that the connection between the food we eat and the health we feel becomes so clear and obvious that future generations will never have the disconnect we have right now.

I hope to see our government subsidizing fresh fruits and vegetable farmers.

I hope to see our health insurance companies rewarding healthy living choices.

I hope to see our medical sector shift from a disease prevention model to a wellness promoting model.

I hope to see people investing their time and money in building the skills they need to understand their bodies and treat them well.

I hope to see more and more people truly alive and living their lives with optimum vibrancy, giving back to their families, communities and to the world.

I hope to see healthy moms feeling balanced, energized, calm and supported as they care for our next generation.

8. What kind of advice would you give to someone who was thinking of taking their passion and turning it into an online business?

I’m not sure I’m qualified to give advice on this 🙂  Perhaps I’d just say, if it is truly a passion, than remind yourself of that often and use it as a litmus test to be sure you are keeping the passion in the mix as you go along.  I’ve found that people are amazing at identifying authenticity even through the veil of cyberspace.

The online world is this strange mix of intimacy and isolation, and that can feel confusing as you grow your business.  For me, constantly seeking out real connections and community within my business helps me get the feedback I need to know how to move forward and whether what I am offering is resonating with others and helping.

9. Favorite inspirational quote or story?

A guiding quote for me for many years now is from Mother Theresa, “We can do no great things.  We can do only small things with great love.”  It reminds me that the small things I offer to my family, myself…to the world, when they are done with deep love and authenticity are great things indeed.