We had the good fortune of connecting with Lynn Lessell CHWC, CLC, BBA and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lynn, what do you attribute your success to?

That’s a great question. I believe the most important factor in our success of anything is branding yourself as a person and being that person in all areas of your life.

Itz Why LLC® got its name because I believe our personal ‘why’ should be the foundation of everything we do. It sounds simple but it’s more complex than most of us realize and I want to get this message out there.

At the end of last year, I added Inner Power Partners™ (IPP™) to my services to provide a safe space for professionals to connect their personal why with their business mission using a new format and the message is spreading. To date, we’ve expanded the group to four cities because others are experiencing the value of this belief from the work we do together.

What’s that message and how did it evolve? Well…

Because of my life journey, I had to dig deep to discover who I wanted to be and how to love that person 100%. It may sound crazy but now that I own up to the fact that I’m an animated character who dares to be different; I’m living every day with laughter while presenting someone trustworthy, loyal, and reliable. Everything has gotten better with less stress.

We can’t change anything or anyone around us. We have to make the change from within and find our true identity. My clients have given me the name the Identity Coach for that reason. That change eventually can restore us to who we are deep down with less stress.

So, whether it’s business or personal you get “ME”! When you know, like, and trust someone, that’s who you want to learn more about no matter what they do. Once you get to know me, you’ll either want to work with me or know someone you’ll want to refer to me.

Don’t get me wrong, who I am may not appeal to everyone and that’s OKAY because I like myself. I no longer worry about being judged by others or others’ expectations of me. Again, less stress.

If someone chooses not to work with me or get to know me, I immediately think about who I know would be a better fit for them and offer a referral.

There’s someone for everyone and there’s certainly enough business out there.

My success comes from thinking outside the box, ALWAYS, having a “what’s in it for ‘us’” attitude, and being “ME”!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

As the Identity Coach, what sets me apart from other coaches, I believe, is what I like to refer to as my “Spidey sense”. I’ve always had this innate ability to hear layers below the surface of what someone says to help them.

The certifications and training I’ve gone through have heightened this ability even more enabling me to determine the best questions to ask my clients; questions they might never think to ask themselves. The discoveries they experience are often about what they didn’t know they didn’t know about themselves because it was so deeply buried within.

Today, I’m most proud of the extraordinary success that’s occurred with IPP™ in such a short time. It took courage to create something no one else was doing the way I wanted it to be done and risk that the message wouldn’t get out. That courage was generated from all I learned throughout my story.

It was a long solo journey for me and I had to do intense self-exploration to become who I am today. It’s important to me to be there for others as I wish someone would’ve been there for me along the way, both personally and professionally.
Was it easy, you ask? Not at all! So, how did I overcome the challenges?

Simply said…I hit rock bottom- more than once. The chronic stress I experienced from believing I had to ensure everyone else’s happiness was toxic and it was unknowingly impairing my health. The very last time I hit the lowest I’ve ever been, the only way back up was to ask myself some really hard questions and do something I had never done in my life- put myself first!

The hardest questions I had to ask myself were who do I want to be and what do I want?

I had no idea. I never knew I had an option to ask myself those questions let alone consider that I had my own choices to make.

What I didn’t realize then, was that I wasn’t alone. There are many people like me out there and I’m proof it can be different!

What I’ve learned along this journey is that it is far from selfish to prioritize your wants and needs. We don’t need someone else’s permission to be happy. We must permit ourselves to make the choices we think are best for ourselves.
So, was it easy, no; The real question should be, was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY!

Both my physical and mental health has significantly improved. It’s the reason I felt becoming both a health and life coach was important. You have to approach a whole person, not just a part of them. In addition, being a professional with a degree in business management and marketing, along with years of experience, enables me to take my work one step further to help the professionals I work with today in IPP™.

What do I want the world to know about me, my brand, and my story- it’s all connected. One couldn’t exist without the other. It’s about connecting to who you are deep down with less stress.

It’s about not letting anything or anyone cause you to ignore any part of yourself because when we allow that we can get very lost.

Always be who you want to be in all areas of your life, that one person you love being and you’re setting yourself up for SUCCESS and less stress!

If you’re not sure how to go about it, that’s what I’m here for. “Itz Why” I became a coach!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

I love living in Florida and living my life like a local tourist!

I like to take a drive to a favorite spot so I can feel like I’m the one on a vacation. I like going to the Harbor Beach Marriott for the day. It has a private beach and we sit at the outdoor ocean view bar for lunch or dinner watching the ocean in its glory. I also enjoy going to the Wyndham Deerfield which is right on the beach by the pier! The food at the Patio Bar & Grill for some small bites is usually a must. It faces the beach so I can listen to waves and watch them crashing into the sand.

Another great spot is Marco Island on Florida’s southwest coast! The sand is white, the air breezy, and the ocean has a different personality than the eastern beaches. Marco Island has a small quaint village to explore where you can truly feel like a local tourist!

I love Sushi and there are so many great places, all with a different flair; Rise Sushi has a delicious hot menu in addition to its sushi bar options and has outdoor seating on a lake. It’s a serene atmosphere. Ganzo Sushi is located in the Delray Marketplace and has its unique selection of Sushi rolls and hot items with a great atmosphere to hang out with friends. My favorite place to experience a sushi lunch is Morakami Gardens in Delray Beach. Now that’s an experience that makes you feel like you’ve left home! It’s impossible not to relax and unwind while you’re there amongst nature.

There’s no lack of good food in Florida. We’ll drive three hours to Harry’s Seafood Bar & Grill for a taste of New Orleans or simply go a few miles away for great Italian or Mediterranean food.

All that being said, I like being a kid and where can you best do that- Disney World, where the magic is endless and so are the number of parks.

 

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
That’s a tough question.

Who I am today is mostly due to my grandmother. She set the bar high when it came to acclimating to adversity and having to zig and zag to maintain her resilience to the daily stresses and societal changes throughout her lifetime. She’s been gone a long time and yet I think of her often for inner strength.

That said, I cannot ignore the mention of my Inner Power Partners™(IPP™)! The work we do together with unlimited support fuels my confidence and my animated self so I must also dedicate this interview to them.

Website: https://itzwhy.com/

Instagram: @itzwhycoach

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynn-lessell-chwc-clc-bba-speaker-author-05656b37/

Facebook: ItzWhy/Facebook

Other: Weekly “ME” Monday® inspirational tips. https://itzwhy.com/give-it-to-me/

Image Credits
All photography is property of Lynn Lessell, Image done with free photo on Canva with my photos.

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