Today we’d like to introduce you to Kayla Pina.
Kayla, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Upon graduating from Bentley University six years ago, I entered the athletic retail space bright-eyed and bushy-tailed ready to take on adulthood. As most millennials know, the transition from school to the real world is full of many ups and downs. With a few life lessons in my pocket and a desire for a creative outlet, my best friend and I started our first blog Adventurself- a lifestyle blog targeted towards millennials with inspirational content for life’s ups and downs.
Two years into the project I decided to take a break due to a minor quarter-life crisis. I was knee-deep in my corporate career; just ended a tumultuous and unhealthy relationship, and I found myself searching for fulfillment. I began obsessed with the concept of living one’s best life. I pressed the reset button on my life and did some soul searching and realized that my biggest roadblock to happiness was my people pleaser complex. I wasn’t living for myself and constantly found myself living to make others happy even at the compromise of my wellbeing.
I quickly began to reorganize my life and severed the things and people that were toxic to my happiness. For once in my life, I started to live for me. My journey of self-love and appreciation has only just begun, and I want to share my stories with my online tribe. Living in a digital age has its pros and cons, but I truly believe that we have the opportunity to reach people digitally. So that brings us to the birth of The Hustle and Glow- a lifestyle blog where I share my journey to living my best life and inspiring my online tribe to slay every day with that hustle and glow! By sharing my stories, I hope to help my audience find their bliss in life. That’s what keeps me going and makes it all worth it. To truly help my audience I owe it to them to be as authentic as possible, even when it’s the scary thing to do!
In the three short months since the launch, I’ve found myself delving into my history of unhealthy relationships. I was embarrassed at times to admit to the behavior I accepted from men, but I owe it to my audience to let them into my truth and also show them that we can all find our way out of our darkest moments. Our struggles are what shape us, and it’s never too late to start living your best life.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Quite the contrary, it’s been an extremely bumpy road! The biggest struggle has been maintaining balance in my life. With my full-time job and a new blog, I’ve found it very difficult to find balance with my workload without sacrificing my mental well-being. With the help of my family and faith I’ve been able to reach new heights and have found ways to keep my sanity during the hectic times and that has helped me stay centered and grounded!
In the beginning I struggled to find the strength to be authentically me. It’s easy to compare and measure your blog/brand against some fierce competitors. But when I stopped viewing others as competitors and started embracing the aspects that make me unique, I was able to not only resonate on a deeper level with my tribe but also have reached deeper self-love.
Please tell us about The Hustle And Glow.
The Hustle and Glow is a glimpse into my life. I’ve found that the biggest life lessons for me have come from the unhealthy relationships in my past. I’m fascinated with the role that love plays into living your best life. Whether its friendships, romantic relationships or our lack of self-love I believe love is the key to living our best life.
Dealing with the remnants of my broken heart after a verbally abusive relationship was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. It’s hard to be happy when you don’t acknowledge your worth. Thankfully after many years I’ve been able to develop a relationship with myself and have learned to love myself- the good, bad and the ugly! One of my favorite quotes from the ever wise and chic Diane Von Furstenberg speaks to my soul- “When a woman becomes her own best friend life is easier.”
I hope to help others out of self-inflicted darkness because I believe we do hold the key to true happiness regardless of our past and circumstances. Once we deal with the roadblocks holding us back, we can learn to love ourselves enough to empower the dreamer within to live your best life.
To reach my audience I’ve established a social trifecta to help my tribe along their journey.
1. My blog (thehustleandglow.com) which is the hub for all my content including articles and YouTube videos.
2. My YouTube channel (The Hustle and Glow) – where I feature weekly vlogs where I delve into the poisons prohibiting us from living our best lives.
3. Instagram (@thehustleandglow) – where my tribe can tune in for an unfiltered look into my daily life- fully equipped with me doing the most on my IG story!
What were you like growing up? Personality wise, interest wise, etc.
I can tell that I haven’t changed from the little girl who was full of life and big dreams from the countless home videos and family anecdotes. I was extremely animated, boldly vivacious, and a young creative. My Mom tells me even as a child that I had a glow about me spreading positivity, so it’s no surprise that my blog name relates to who I am and who I am to be- a positive light to anyone I meet.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.thehustleandglow.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehustleandglow/hl=en /
https://www.instagram.com/thehustleandglow/?hl=en - Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtorfueRoMuZcKu4MV9bBKA?view_as=subscriber
Image Credit:
Kevin Lemieux
https://www.lemieuxphoto.com/
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