In an exclusive interview with The Business Woman Today Magazine, Dr. Kellyann opens up about her personal health challenges and how they sparked her passion for holistic healing. She shares her inspiring journey from battling endometriosis to becoming a renowned wellness icon. As a leading figure in functional medicine and a New York Times Best Selling author of 10 books, Dr. Kellyann emphasizes the significance of healthy habits and self-awareness in achieving success.
She also advocates for mental wellness among business leaders, highlighting the importance of self-assessment and self-care to break free from unhealthy patterns. She advises entrepreneurs to seek mentorship, create a positive customer experience through communication and preparation, and shares her proudest achievement – initiating a global bone broth movement that continues to transform lives. Her insights offer valuable guidance for entrepreneurs and individuals alike, emphasizing authenticity and self-love in the pursuit of a healthier, more fulfilling life. [ez-toc]Dr. Kellyann, you have created what many call “The Bone Broth Revolution.” Tell us about your background and how you got to this career path.
I was always interested in medicine but when I hit my teens, it got personal. Doctors diagnosed me with endometriosis and my doctors told me that I probably would never be able to have children. My mother and I went from doctor to doctor, but we kept hearing the same story. Then, one day, I experienced what I can only call a miracle. In my early twenties, I got into bodybuilding, and my trainer put me on an anti-inflammatory diet that cut out certain foods such as gluten. It changed my life. I went on to have two beautiful sons. So that’s how I found my calling. Once I witnessed the power of natural healing in my own life, I became passionate about giving that gift to others. I studied at schools and programs around the world, culminating with an amazing opportunity to study biological medicine with Dr. Thomas Rau of Switzerland, one of the world’s leading physicians, through the Marion Institute in Massachusetts. Everything I learned there reinforced the lesson my own medical crisis had taught me: we have a tremendous power to heal, if we simply give our body what it needs. I went on to open my own functional medicine clinic and I was talking about things nobody had even heard of back then. I focused on intermittent fasting, anti-inflammatory diets, gut health, and ancestral foods like bone broth. I also realized that I needed to share this information not just with a handful of patients, but with thousands of people who needed to lose weight and get healthy. So that’s when I wrote my Bone Broth Diet book, and started the bone broth revolution.You are a New York Times Best Selling author of 10 books translated into 9 languages. How have healthy habits led you to your success?
The things you do every day create your reality. I had to create habits for writing time, work time, kid time, and exercise time. Having habits allowed me to create a pattern that worked for me instead of against me. If you don’t create good habits, your life controls you instead of you controlling it. When it comes to stopping bad habits, I’m big on mindfulness. That’s because you can’t take control over bad habits until you know what’s triggering them. For instance, just saying “I’m not going to overeat anymore” isn’t going to work. You need to identify the emotions that make you want to overeat. Are you lonely? Stressed? Tired? Then find a way to satisfy those needs. I learned this back when I was writing my first few books, raising two boys, running a medical practice, and doing TV appearances. I usually eat all the right foods, but I was reaching for carbs and junk instead. When I realized that I was using sugary, starchy foods to relieve my stress, I addressed the real problem and started cutting back on unnecessary commitments — something I call “strategizing my yesses.” And that was the end of my bad-food habit.
Why is it important for business leaders to take care of their mental wellness?
You must take care of yourself in order to be the best leader you can be. You must be mindful, and truthful with yourself about how you are feeling. Most people walk through their days numb, just going from thing to thing, and that’s a recipe for burnout. Instead, ask yourself every morning: “How am I feeling today? Tired? Dehydrated? Happy? Energized? Sad?” Having this self-awareness is so important. This is a habit you can form and when you see that you’re not feeling your best, take a step back and figure out what you need. Maybe it’s a day off. Maybe it’s a better diet. Maybe it’s something as simple as a good night’s sleep. Then make that need a priority.What is a common mistake that entrepreneurs make when starting their business?
Many people feel when they start a business that they need to do everything on their own. But, they don’t have to. It is important for entrepreneurs to reach out to others who have successful businesses for mentorship and guidance.What should business leaders do to create a positive customer experience?
It is so important to make sure your clients feel safe, loved, and important, because those are our basic human needs. That’s the X factor in creating transformation. Communication is also very important. Effective communication is crucial in both professional and personal contexts, and it holds significance when it comes to interacting with your team and customers. It is also important to over-prepare. If I’m looking to partner with someone, I want to know all of their business stats ahead of time. If I’m meeting a new patient, I want to learn everything about them up front. People are impressed when they know that you can speak confidently about what’s important to them.Can you share your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”?
One of my favorite quotes is, “Always remember to know yourself, to be yourself, and to love yourself.” One of the most important things I’ve noticed in guiding people’s health and weight-loss transformations is it’s such a challenge to simply be who you are — especially in the age of social media when it’s all about creating a “perfect” image. To lead an authentic life, you need to stop trying to create that illusion and instead be brave enough to discover who you really are, bold enough to act on that knowledge and kind enough to love yourself no matter what the outcome is.What is your proudest moment in your career?
One of the things I’m proudest of in my life is that I started a bone broth revolution. When I first started talking about bone broth, almost nobody was talking about it and there were no books and no products. I love educating people about this amazing healing food and making it more accessible to everyone. We’re now global, and my hope is to further expand this revolution.
