PODCAST – How to Stay True to Polarizing Brand Beliefs When Facing Online Negativity

In EP 62 of The Wild Womn Hotline, we are joined by Cara Carin Cifelli who sat down to chat with us about staying true to your polarizing brand beliefs, even in the face of extreme criticism.

As a certified health & life coach and breathwork facilitator, Cara helps women heal their relationship with food & their body so they can feel confident, liberated, and at peace. However, this mission requires that Cara tackles the stigmas our culture holds true, such as fatphobia, diet culture, weight stigma, etc. In this episode, Cara shares her process for creating a successful business and positive impact by shouting her polarizing brand beliefs from the rooftop.

If you’re new to Cara, she is the author of two books, Body Wisdom and Vegan Buddha Bowls, hosts a podcast called Love Your Bod Pod, and can be found across social media @caracarincifelli.  

What separates Cara from other Food and Body Image coaches is her holistic approach. Cara’s process is not textbook and it’s been designed & created through my own unconventional approach to healing. And on a humorous note, she humbly states that she also says “fuck” a lot more than the average coach. 

Here’s a preview of the convo Cara and I had in this episode of The Wild Womn Hotline.

In this episode, we discuss…

• Cara’s journey of turning her rock bottom into a purpose-driven business and act of cultural rebellion against diet culture, weight stigma, and more.
• How to stand firm in your beliefs and values when they go against everything our culture and society stand for?
• Cara’s journey of working through the discomfort of pivoting and how you can learn to be resilient 
• How to learn to trust women after our society has pinned us against each other for generations
• The role that sisterhood plays in your life as an entrepreneur and changemaker 

Links and Resources 

Connect with Cara Carin Cifelli:

• Love Your Bod Pod
• Follow Cara on Instagram!
• Follow Cara on TikTok!
• https://www.caracarincifelli.com/ 

Looking for more inspiration on staying true to your purpose? Check out these suggested articles from the Haus Editorial!

• PODCAST – Binge Eating Recovery Counselor Shares How to Navigate Brand Polarity
• PODCAST – IAFHH Trusted the Vision to Go Global. Where Are They Now?
• PODCAST – Intuition and Psychic Activation in Business w/Ashley Rose
• PODCAST – How to Find Your Authentic Voice w/Kelsey Formost

Audio Transcript

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: [00:00:00] All right. C, drop your story on us. I want you to tell the Wild Womn fam all about your journey into doing the work that you now do as a coach, as a breathwork facilitator, as a healer, as an activist. Like tell us the whole spiel. I wanna hear it 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Starting at kind of the beginning?.

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: What I’ve noticed is like people tell their story differently based on where they are in business. So you start wherever is intuitive for you based on where you’re at in business. 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Okay. 

So I think providing some context will be helpful because the only reason I am in the line of work that I am and doing the work that I am doing and have the business that I have is because I personally struggled with an eating disorder with yo-yo dieting, with binge eating with.

Bulimia with my body image. [00:01:00] Had I not had those personal struggles, I don’t think I would be as invested or as passionate about the work that I’m doing. So the truncated version is I started feeling insecure about my body when I was like 12, 13, 14, right around puberty, which is very, very common. Also, really sad that our bodies are changing because we’re growing and going through puberty and because of the narrative within society, we see it as being bad.

And so many of us, I intuitively feel like we start to create our health issues when we’re going through those hormonal changes and we start dieting. Like I wouldn’t be surprised if down the line there’s these long term quantitative studies that analyze those, that dieted, who then later have autoimmune issues or hypothyroidism, et cetera, et cetera.

That’s a bit of a tangent, but anyways. Started dieting that [00:02:00] snowballed pretty quickly into a full-blown eating disorder, binging, purging. He, you know, felt really insecure with my body. Had some trauma going on at home as well. So I think that contributed to the severity of what I was dealing with.

Eventually hit a rock bottom. Very much had what I would call my first ever spiritual experience, although at the time that languaging would’ve grossed me out because I was very rebellious against my religious upbringing. So like the word spiritual ex, like the word spiritual to me was just like ick vibes.

No, but. Looking back from where I am now, I’m like, yes, I had an out-of-body experience. It was spiritual. Um, I had this moment where I was like in the bathroom after a very typical binge and purge episode, curled up around the toilet, like crying. And it was as if I was pulled out of my body, [00:03:00] looking down and seeing myself.

And then I had this vision of like what my life was gonna become if I didn’t get better. And it was like in that moment that I was like, all right, this is it. We’re getting better. Found my way to an eating disorder Therapist wasn’t vibing with that. No shade to therapy. It just wasn’t for me at the time.

And with where I was at, thankfully, stumbled upon personal development work. Uh, got really involved in like the health and wellness scene at the time as well. Like this is when. Food Ink just came out on Netflix to give you a context of like the timeline and Forks overnight had just came out. So I was getting passionate about nutrition and it was like the first time I had heard about health that wasn’t about just do this for seven days and get thin.

It was like actually like this food is good for your bones and your muscles and et cetera, et cetera. So between that introduction and new way of looking at food plus the personal development work, I eventually found healing and recovery [00:04:00] and free from my eating disorder. Had an entirely different career between when I recovered to seven years later when I found coaching and I hired a life coach cuz I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do with my career.

I was really. Going through an identity crisis of like, who am I? My identity’s no longer wrapped up in being thin, but it’s very much wrapped up in my career and I feel directionless. So I hired a life coach and it was through the coaching with her that I was like, could I be a coach but for people with food shit?

And she was like, I don’t see why not. Sure. Uh, so that’s how I got here. I’m gonna pause there. Any thoughts, questions? Should I keep going? Yeah. First of 

all, shout out. Brandly Tebow. Brandly was also the life coach that I worked with to heal a lot of my trauma. We have our stories sync up a lot and I’ve talked a lot about, with a couple different people that have come on as [00:05:00] experts.

My journey with having an eating disorder and my journey with like reclaiming my identity and kind of rediscovering who I am. And something that’s really jumping out to me is this feeling of shifting your identity from being. thin to then being this very impact driven career identity driven individual.

It’s like I wanna actually do something that is going to change people’s lives in a big way. And so can you tell us a little bit about that sensation? Cuz I think that that’s something that everybody listening resonates with. And I, I don’t wanna speak on behalf of everyone, but I know that for the most part, anybody that kinda like identifies as a wild or identifies as this type of entrepreneur, we have that feeling inside of us as like, I am literally on this earth for something big.

And that feeling of greatness and potential and possibility really drives us. Can you tell us a little bit about when you started to [00:06:00] notice that feeling? Before we get more into like the work that you’re doing now? And just tell us from your perspective what that experience was like for you or describe it.

I. I feel like it’s always been there as long as I was, I have like cognitive memories. Um, I have always had this feeling within me that I was like a bit of an outsider, uh, that I was the black sheep of my family. I had that feeling and that narrative, that story for a while. And I always had this part of me that didn’t wanna follow, like the, the rules in quotation marks.

I just always rubbed against like authority in some way or how we were told we were supposed to be. There was always sort of this rebellious spirit within me and this inner knowing of exactly what you were saying. Like, I’m here to do something big. I am not here to just get a [00:07:00] job that pays the bills that I don’t really feel passionate about, to then go home and.

Rinse and repeat. Like, I, I kind of intuitively always knew that like, I didn’t want that life and that wasn’t for me. And that I wanna be a contribution for being of, of service, making a difference. Um, being entrepreneurial, kind of doing my own thing, I think is woven into like my DNA and who I am. I also think it’s possible that because my father was an entrepreneur, that that influenced my relationship with work and how I saw the world because my dad was, had so many different businesses over the course of when I was born to when I was just 18.

So I also saw that you could pivot. I also saw that you could be multi-talented, multi-passionate, um, yeah. So it’s kind of a thing that’s always [00:08:00] been there. Mm-hmm. . 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: Can you tell us what that was like for you and what you had to do internally to step forward as that industry disruptor within the space of. Health, beauty, et cetera. So I think that that’s something that will really serve listeners to hear what went on behind the scenes to be that person. 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah. So I started doing this work in 2017 and at that time on Instagram, I quite literally did not know of a single other anti-D diet, intuitive eating coach online on Instagram.

It’s like the trendy thing right now is to be like body positive and intuitive eating and health at every size. It was very niche back then, more so than it is now. We’re lied to. Dieting is a scam. Weight loss is not easy, and we actually don’t have a safe. Evidence-based way to reliably produce weight [00:09:00] loss for most people past maybe a year, couple of years, maybe five. So it just all made sense. Once I learned, so getting to the, the meat of your question, once I learned all of this information and I like started reading more research and hearing opinions that were counter to what I had been told my whole life, it just made sense.

And I just had that feeling and that knowing within my body of like, this is actually the truth. This is actually real information. We’re lied to, to sell products and to oppress us, and, you know, patriarchy, capitalism, discrimination, oppression, you know, systemic injustice, right? Like that’s why diet culture is sold to us the way that it is.

And within, I just, like, from a moral and ethical standpoint was like, okay, I have to talk about this. There was just like no other option. And it also gave me permission to start talking more about my story [00:10:00] online and my relationship with food and my experience with binge eating and body image. And I kind of shifted away from like health and wellness and clean eating, um, into what I’m doing now and what I have been doing.

Um, and at the time I didn’t know anyone else really. There was, there wasn’t really anyone else on Instagram. And there were times where I felt like I was gonna be judged. Sometimes I was questioned. I had periods where I lost followers. Um, people in my life were like, what are you talking about? You know?

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: You stepped forward in a very polarizing arena and stayed true to your beliefs. You faced adversity, you faced negative feedback, you had people unfollow, you have you still get comments that of people just wanting to fight? Right. And that experience is something that I have noticed intimidates a [00:11:00] lot of people to the point where they pull back and get quiet.

Whereas you, I see you as having those, I’ve witnessed you have those moments of like Jesus Christ, people enough, like you get sick of it. But I’ve also seen you lean in. So can you talk a little bit about that? Cause I think that’s such a strong leadership skill and skill of resilience to have that a lot of people could learn from you in terms of how to cultivate that within themselves.

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah, like I have strong convictions. I, full disclosure, recently learned that that is a, a part of my human design. So as a two, four projector, that is a part of my human design is I have very strong beliefs that there’s pros to that also cons.

 I really look. The evidence for different perspectives. So what is the evidence that I have for this particular belief? What is the evidence that I have for this belief that contr [00:12:00] contradicts it? What evidence feels more true? Right? But then also what evidence and perspective and belief feels most empowering for me.

What evidence and perspective feels most empowering and helpful and supportive and healing and loving for the collective, for the world. So I think something that very much influences these strong opinions that I have is wanting what’s best for like the planet as a whole, I think, and for the people in my life and for myself.

And when something feels like it’s harmful or hurtful there’s just something in me that is like, nope. Like it’s also very much within the body. Like it’s not just a mental thing, but it’s like something within my body is just like a no, like that doesn’t work. Uh, I wanna add in here that I do [00:13:00] feel like I’m able to hold empathy and compassion for other people’s perspectives and opinions, but that won’t necessarily change mine.

Mm-hmm. . And I also believe that if someone has a different perspective and opinion and different evidence, I’m able to acknowledge that as being real, you know, and not like gaslight them, for example. But I feel like I’m able to look at the, the evidence that aligns with what I believe and feel and stand strongly behind it.

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: Talk a little bit about how to hold that duality because I agree with you. I think that is something that is incredibly important for learning how to navigate a polarizing industry that you have strong beliefs in, and that you are so passionate about shaking up the status quo that we live in, so that other people can thrive and be empowered.

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: I think part of what allows me to stand firm in what I believe in while holding space and doing my best to empathize and understand with people who have a [00:14:00] difference of opinion and values is because I myself have gone through many shifts and pivots in my own personal health beliefs, and so I’ve had periods of my life where I’ve been so strong in my conviction and belief for things, and through new information, through experiences, through growth and evolution, I’ve then had a shift in perspective and have felt equally convicted.

And so because I myself have witnessed a shift in my own convictions and can understand the process that I went through to shift, but also understand where I was and how I was seeing the world at the time. Allows me to see that for other people, even if, even if they’ve never changed their beliefs. And it’s always been one way.

Uh, but I’m able to empathize of like, yeah, at one point [00:15:00] I literally thought that veganism was like the only way to eat. I was like very ver I was like one of those gnarly preachy vegans, man. Right? Like my current self looks past, looks at my past self. And I was like, you are annoying. 

But I’ve grown, I’ve had more information, experience, knowledge, et cetera. So now I’ve shifted and I’ve realized that that paradigm I don’t think is actually true. But having been in the paradigm and that’s all you see, and that’s all you know, I understand it’s hard to have those deeply held beliefs challenged.

Just like I was saying earlier, when I first started learning about diet culture and learning about weight science and learning about how. It’s actually not easy to change your body shape and size for very long or without extreme behaviors. That was hard [00:16:00] for me. I had a lot of resistance. Um, but I stayed open.

But my point being is I’m able to just have empathy and compassion cuz I’ve gone through that experience of shifting. 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: Mm-hmm. . And there’s this aspect that I see in you of also being really comfortable in uncomfortableness. And that doesn’t mean that you like it, but I think that you kind of see the value of getting uncomfortable.

For everybody listening, and this is another really common experience that people either reach out to me with questions about or they come to me for my help in their transition, in their pivots, in their brand, is walk us through the experience of.

Being, you know, I think the most recent one was probably going from health coach to the work that you’re now doing. And you’re in a quasi transition right now [00:17:00] going into being a documentarian. So you’re in this experience right now of, I think I’m making a transition. I’m not quite there yet, but I feel it coming.

And for some people I know that that experience can just cause total shutdown panic, oh my God, fight or flight. How am I gonna survive? How am I gonna, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Which is reasonable. It’s understandable. But what’s your internal process like at this point for navigating those pivots and those shifts because you’ve done it so many times in your life.

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: So I, when I, so, so on one hand it’s as if I’m not thinking too much about making these pivots. Now, I don’t mean necessarily being flippant or not being conscious or intentional or discerning. What I mean is I, I have this gift that, that I think, I [00:18:00] think I’ve learned it through my eating disorder recovery of not overthinking things too much, not indulging too much in the fear.

Oh no. All of this bad shit could happen. Do does it come up? Absolutely. Uh, fear comes up, doubt comes up. Um, scarcity comes up, right? Like all of those uncomfortable things that are absolutely a part of taking a risk, changing directions. Um, and I do my best to not overly indulge in them. So I will experience those uncomfortable emotions.

I will think about the different possibilities that could happen. I will think about what is it that I love about what I’m doing, and why don’t I wanna leave it? What don’t I like about what I’m doing and why do I wanna leave it? I [00:19:00] think about when I’m at the end of my life and I’m on my deathbed and I’m looking back, how am I going to feel if I don’t take this risk, if I don’t just try, if I don’t, just give it a go? And that, I think is something that, that thought process is something that I think pulls me forward through a pivot when I’m scared, when I’m doubtful, when I’m unsure. Another component is I really value the journey and the experience.

I really want to do all of these different things and not only be able to say, I did that. Look at me, cool. Ego boost . Um, but I also wanna be able to learn and grow from that experience [00:20:00] and evolve from that experience and share. And so I think, again, working through those experiences, not overthinking it, thinking about the end of my life, um, and then also wanting the experience of these different things, like those are the components.

That’s probably my thought process that helps me evolve. 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: And I think also anybody that has ever had any form, like I can’t define what a rock bottom moment is because everybody’s experience is subjective. But for anybody that has had what they consider to be the lowest of the low point in their life, there’s really nothing.

Than death that can get worse than that. Right. So it’s kind of like when you’re in these situations, and I was talking to you before we started recording how I am making some gigantic investments right now and how there’s part of me that’s like, well smoke ’em if you got ’em, we’re going in. Right? Like there’s part of me that kind of [00:21:00] has that mentality, but there’s also part of me that’s like, okay, if none of this works out, it all fails.

You lose all your money, everything goes down the drain. Right? That still is not as bad as where I have been. I know that if I have to, I can figure out money. I know that if I have to, I can problem solve my way out of anything because I’ve literally been desperate to die before. Right. So it’s like when you hit that point, and again, it doesn’t even have to be that, just your lowest point.

And I love that you said that you’re kind of driven by your own morbidity, because I am too. And I know that sounds really dark at emo, but. At the end of the day, like when you’re thinking about my life is not that long, not in a scarcity perspective, but like we are literally just like a fart in the skillet, in the timeline of the universe, right?

Like really eloquent and poetic way to say it, but honestly like we are not here for very long. And if I wanna do anything in [00:22:00] my life, It’s this, and so I’m gonna go for it. And fear be damned. Like you can be in the room, but you’re not driving the car. Fear is not driving the car. And I think that that’s something that I’ve always really appreciated in you.

And I love that you’re sharing your story because I don’t think that there will ever be enough of this type of storytelling and experience sharing. And I think this is the type of thing that really helps entrepreneurs and beginning founders and just women who have aspirations in general to grab onto something and say, Hey, I’ve got a sister, I’ve got a friend.

I know somebody that has gone through this. And this is kind of talking about the value of sister, sisters and mentorship. And you just made this beautiful piece of content the other day about the value of friendships and the value of sisterhood and the value of mentorship. And I would love for you to kind of talk about your experience.

The value of strong women in your life, or inspirational women in your life, because not everybody has that. Not everybody has that sort of a [00:23:00] circle. So like, how did you create that for yourself and what has it done for you in your personal life and in your career? 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: And look at us just pivoting the conversation.

So 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: effort, this is how I talk, is I’m like, we’re gonna talk about 90 different topics in the course of 30 minutes. So hang on to your seat cuz here we go. . 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah, you’re just, you know, you’re just bringing the pivot into the podcasting world. I love it. So, uh, sisterhood at this point in time, one of the most valuable, influential things in my life hasn’t always been that way.

I, because, uh, it played a role. My eating disorder was a contributing factor in this, but also just, I was such a mess when I was younger. I had good friends and then, Shit happens as it does, and I lost all my friends and women became a not safe place for me. Couple that with society’s [00:24:00] continual narrative of pitting women against one another.

 Historically speaking, women very much had to compete for men because they couldn’t work to support themselves.

So they had to compete for the husband. Right. So it’s also woven into our history. There’s some very real shit to it. My point being is I was taught to compete with women and not trust them and feel like I. I had to one up them in order to be worthy. And enough couple that with having my heart broken by girlfriends that had me spend many years where I had this narrative of I’m this independent, I can do it alone and I don’t need girlfriends.

All that matters is my man and or my career. And that was a protective way of being for me for a really long time because I was repairing a broken heart from all the rejection from women that I had experienced. But eventually that that shield was like, it was a shield with inward spikes. So yes, it [00:25:00] kept me from having my heart broken from women and being vulnerable, but it was stabbing me because I was so lonely.

In my life, like I, I wanted to go to the farmer’s market with a girlfriend. I wanted to get my nails done with a girlfriend. I wanted to go shopping with a girlfriend. Like truly, I was like sick of doing it alone. So when I finally like realized what I was up to by keeping women away from me and when I did the inner work and the inner child work and all of those beautiful, lovely things to heal and I was honest with myself about what I was up to, I was like, I actually deeply crave women and sisterhood and, and friendship and intimacy.

And getting to like the heart of your question, I don’t think I’d be where I am without my female friends. With the collaboration, with the sisterhood, it’s helped me with my body image. It’s helped me with the work that I’m doing because so much of the things that my clients struggle with is comparing themselves with other women and not feeling good [00:26:00] enough and not having friendships and re believing that they have to be the thinnest and prettiest in order to be liked.

And it’s like, that’s not why people are gonna be your friend, I promise. And if that’s, if that is, fuck them. We don’t want them as friends, you know? 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: I love it. I love it so much, and it’s such a, you know, I’ve heard many people say, I have never felt this way around another woman. I’ve heard that more times than I ever really cared to in my life, because it’s something that I so deeply understand and feel so much.

It’s like this sadness mixed with relief. It’s like, I’m so sorry that that’s how we’ve been molded to interact with each other. And I’m also relieved that people are having experiences where they recognize the power of female friendships. They recognize the safety that’s available in being in sisterhood and even [00:27:00] honoring the word sisterhood or calling people your sis or your sister, or whatever it may be.

And not having that be something that’s weird. I think it’s hilarious when people are like, well, they’re not really your sister. And I’m like, well, not in like a D n a sense, but I don’t think you understand how my soul interacts with the soul of this other person. And I think that that’s something really special that we get the privilege to experience and that everybody should get to experience.

And I’ve loved hearing your story about that so much and just. Am in this exact same boat with you. I would not be here without my female friends, without my mentors, without people that I look up to. I mean, it just wouldn’t be possible. 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah, totally. And I also think it’s one of the most cherished things in my life, and maybe that’s because my family hasn’t been the one with the white picket fence, you know, um, family has, has for a [00:28:00] lot of my life, been a really painful thing for me.

And so my friendships have become really important. And maybe that’s a part of it. Not sure, but something for me to think about and process with you guys here on the pod, live . Um, but, but I also like, love my friends. Like, I love like one of the. Meaningful components of my life is my social life. I love to hang out with my friends and have fun and listen to music and dance and put sparkles on our face and get dressed up.

Like that is such an important, meaningful part of my life that makes my life worth living and makes me have a strong sense of aliveness. And I think that if that area of my life was lacking, I don’t think I would have the energy or the joy or the [00:29:00] courage to go after the career, um, or to work in the ways that I I work.

Um, that’s also something I’ve heard so many people say on podcasts who have like very successful businesses. Like we’re talking, you know, fortune 500 CEOs or whatever. I’ve heard so many of them say one of their biggest regrets was that while they were building this business, they. They were not around for their family and their friends.

And that’s a big, deep regret. And I’m like, okay, well maybe it’s gonna take me longer to build the business that I wanna build, because I am not going to be so single-mindedly focused, but I’m gonna learn from that and I’m going to have fun experiences with the people that I love on my way there. 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: Hmm. I love that man.

We have gone down so many, so we started talking about your ability to stand in the discomfort of backlash or disapproval or disagreement or whatever [00:30:00] it may be, and I think that that was such a valuable. Combo to have for people who maybe have the like undercurrent of really strong opinions and they can kind of feel that fiery energy of having a really strong stance, but they haven’t yet found the courage or the bravery, the boldness or whatever you wanna call it, the resilience to stand in that.

I think that your story is such a great example of like what that feels like, what that takes, and also how to do that in a way that is respectful and compassion and empathetic towards others. And also just the value of women in your life of inspiring, kind, loving, fun, playful, weird women in your life who just light, uh, parts of you that you otherwise don’t get to be activated.

So thank you so much for sharing this part of you and for really letting us in behind the scenes of how you got to where you are today being a. Featured expert [00:31:00] in a lot of different publications, being somebody that has mentored and coached hundreds of women to recover from eating disorders, and now being somebody who is going down the path of a documentarian, can you tell us a little sneak peek about what’s coming for you?

And I do wanna talk about how you see brand playing role in all of this, because that’s something that we haven’t gotten the chance to talk about yet. And I definitely wanna touch on that before we wrap up. Can you share your perspective on how brand has supported you through all of this and kind of what your perspective on it is moving forward?

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah, so I think my perspective is mostly rooted in my own personal experience of other people’s brands. So I’ve been able to see the different, different product, like same products, similar products, right? But very different branding, very different ethos, very different copy, different [00:32:00] colors. And I’m able to see how that influences what I wanna buy and why I wanna buy it.

A perfect example of this here for me is like wine branding. Like if I don’t like the branding of a bottle of wine, like I don’t care how good you tell me it is. I don. Want it on my table. I don’t want it in my photos. I don’t let you know. Like, and I know branding isn’t just logo and colors, I know there’s more to it, but you can learn a lot about a brand through the copy, through the colors that they choose.

It makes you feel a certain way. So I think for me, my brand perspective has been influenced from my own personal experience there, but then also thinking about what is it that I want other people to experience when they come to me. And for a really long time, you know, it was like fresh and health and wellness and colors, you know, bright colors and um, [00:33:00] and it’s just evolved into something that’s more earthy and more grounded and, um, more warmth.

Mm-hmm. , um, More of that like healer vibe with like the coaching that I, I bring in more of a spiritual perspective, less commercial as well. I feel like the brand that I have now is less commercial. Uh, where the brand that I had with Kara’s Kitchen, you know, so, um, yeah. I’m gonna stop there. Any other que like how, how’s that?

You’re muted honey. 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: I wanna talk about our time together to kind of close on, cuz I got the honor of supporting you with your transition from that commercial brand you were talking about into more of the earthy, personable healer brand. And I wanna hear from your honest perspective, if you’ve got shit to say, you throw, you throw it at me, babe.

I don’t care. I wanna hear your honest perspective of what it was, what the [00:34:00] difference you experienced. Working with somebody that can have an objective bird’s eye view for your strategy in terms of how you navigate these pivots and how you navigate these changes versus basically doing it on your own in the past and then kind of hiring here and there for design and things like that.

Were there differences? What was the experience like for you? 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Um, well first of all, I had a great experience working with you and with Mio. I loved the collaborative effort. So you weren’t afraid to give me feedback and say, I actually don’t agree with I, and here’s why. So it was nice to have constructive conversations where we were discussing different possibilities as opposed to having somebody just doing exactly what I was saying without offering any critical, any, any feedback essentially.

Um, That was, that’s the first component. It is that working with you, you are getting [00:35:00] someone with expertise, with perspective who’s going to ask you questions to gain clarity or to make sure that what it is that you are envisioning is properly executed, but then also questioning if what you’re envisioning is really in alignment with the goals and the vision.

So that’s, that’s really helpful. Um, and you went above and beyond, you know, like that’s something that I also, I’ve had, you know, uh, one of my clients come work with you, and this feedback has been the same as just your c your standard. You have very high standards and you’re very committed to the success of your.

Clients and you’re gonna do what it takes for them to be happy and also for you to feel happy with the work that you provided as well. Um, so that’s also just unique, you know, like actually somebody who truly cares about the, their client’s experience and the, and the results of the creation. You know, not everybody cares.

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Well, [00:36:00] thank you for that. And there’s this, that quote that I love that’s like, if you would wake up and do something for free every day, you’re in a career path that like thoroughly just lights you up. And that’s the way that I feel about the work that I’m doing now and it has taken me a long ass Kara nose, a long ass winding road with a lots.

Pivots and challenges and question marks and breakdowns and failures and all sorts of things. But I’m here and you know what aligns you and I and the reason I’m here and the reason I think that you are where you are is we’re we are okay standing in the fire. We are okay being extremely uncomfortable because we know that on the other side of it is going to be something that is more expansive and gives us more of the full experience that we’re looking for, and ultimately gives us the freedom that we want to navigate and be in command of our own life path.

So I just love you. I appreciate you coming on and spending some time with me and sharing your story. I think it’s [00:37:00] incredibly. Like inspirational is such a overused word to describe this. I think it’s more so permission giving, but also helps people know that they’re not alone in their experience and that there are people that have had the exact same feelings and sensations.

And at the end of the day, it comes down to you choosing and being responsible for how you move forward. And that’s always within your power. So I just appreciate you coming on and sharing your story, and I love you so much. So for anybody listening, where is best place to come hang out with you if they want to observe your journey or even let’s talk a little bit about people that maybe want to get into the line of work that you are in.

You have a training program for people that want to become coaches, and then you also mentor women who are actively struggling with food and body image. So can we talk a little bit about the ways that you support people right now? 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Thank you for having me. This was so funny.

Um, any excuse to talk to you because you’re busy as fuck. So look, if I gotta be on your podcast, I have a [00:38:00] conversation. Fine. 

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: If it’s not on my calendar, it doesn’t exist. That’s my, that’s my . 

GUEST: Cara Carin Cifelli: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, so i, caracarincifelli.com you can go check out the amazing website and new brand. That Tristan’s team Wild Womn House, uh, helped me.

You can find me there. Um, you can also find information about the e r a, the Embodied Rubble Academy, the training program Tristan talked about. It’s for socially adjusted minded, heart-centered women who want to build a career. Not only transforming the world of diet, culture and obsession with weight, but wants to help women transform and heal from disordered eating, body shame, et cetera.

Uh, and then you can learn about one-on-one coaching. I have in-person retreats, food Buddy Soul, um, and the Love Your BOD pod. I’m not actively recording it, but like that’s an incredible resource for all kinds of things. Like, yes, we talk about body [00:39:00] image, but there’s all types of stuff around spirituality and entrepreneurialism, entrepreneurialism, feminism, all that fun stuff.

HOST: Tristan Thibodeau: I love it. Well, thank you so much. See this. This is a blast. I love you too, mama.