“When passion and purpose and hard work collide, you’ve got some magic,” says Robyn Openshaw, author of Vibe, and she’s got all three in spades.

Robyn’s life mission was found when she decided to share her story of turning away from the standard American diet and usual prescribed medications to a different lifestyle that includes green smoothies, deep grounding, and high vibing. She’s now an active mom and hugely successful business owner who remains humble and never stops learning what the Universe is teaching.

Before we dive in, I just learned that today is the last day to grab Robyn’s shopping list of 200 high vibe foods and the 45 foods to avoid. You can grab it here...absolutely free!

1. Tell us about your business – what’s your mission; your soul’s purpose and why you created your wellness business or service?

Green Smoothie Girl just celebrated our 10th anniversary. When I put it up, in 2007, it had no business plan and no monetization. Nor did I have an MBA or any plan for it besides to share my story.That is, how my 1-year-old went from a Failure to Thrive baby dying in hospitals, and how I went from 206 pounds with 21 diseases–to both of us being competitive athletes with no health problems, traveling, and loving life.

As the site went viral, it began to dawn on me that what I did, shifting my family out of the Standard American Diet, and Western Medicine’s methods of treating health issues, was something that needed detailed care. And that millions of my fellow Americans were suffering, and I could help.

It’s now a $5M business, and what’s really amazing, as I look back, is that I’ve been a single mom for 9 of those 10 years, raising 4 kids by myself at the same time.When passion and purpose and hard work collide, you’ve got some magic. We teach people not only how to get more nutrient-dense foods in your diet, and how to ditch the processed, addictive ones, without suffering–but in the past couple of years, we’ve been applying some exciting quantum physics to what we teach, and the results are spectacular.

In October 2017, I released my book, Vibe. It’s about how we’re looking at food, as well as our emotional state, all wrong, as if calories and counting grams of protein tells the story. (It doesn’t. These are industry-propagated concepts, and they have little or nothing to do with being truly healthy.) And giving people some SSRI drugs doesn’t yield an ecstatically happy life, either.

I learned all of this the hard way. But I also studied Einstein’s and Tesla’s work to arrive at some conclusions about nutrition, wellness, and choosing into high-frequency states of gratitude, peace, and love, based on two amazing quotes that inspire me every day:

“Everything in life is vibration.” –Albert Einstein

“If you want the secrets of the Universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.” –Nikola Tesla

 

2. Tell us about your journey and your story….what got you to this point today?

I was suffering and miserable at the age of 26. I’d been through every infertility test there is, twice, and I’d failed at artificial insemination 4 times. I was verging on obesity, I had high blood pressure, a large tumor, and was having mini-strokes (TIA) and frequent migraines, not to mention four diagnosed auto-immune diseases.

I slept 10 hours a day but never felt rested. I simply wasn’t “me” any more, and my lifelong ambition and excitement for projects had slowly disappeared.

Plus, the baby I finally had, on the 5th AI after I lost his twin, began to fail at about 7 months when I weaned him onto formula, lots and lots of cow’s milk, and all the other features of the diet all the other moms fed their kids, too.

The early “green smoothie” was born when the pediatrician told me that the 5 courses of liquid steroids he had prescribed my little one were “guaranteed to stunt his growth.” I was devastated and went to a health food store and wandered around, buying random things that seemed healthy, and I purged my entire house of flour, sugar, dairy, and processed meat.

The short version is: not only did I ditch all the weight, and end up a competitive 4.0 tennis player in my 40’s, traveling the world speaking about our miracles and the truths I discovered–but my little boy ended up being MVP at the state playoffs, in 4A baseball here in Utah. At 6’3”, hardly a Failure to Thrive young man.

Becoming a single mom with no alimony 9 years ago propelled me into motion. I formalized training in the 12 Steps to Whole Foods that were the 12 major steps I’d taken my family through, on our year back to health. I spent a few years developing a 26-day deep detox program based on my own experimenting with human detoxification, another huge step towards the optimal health I now enjoy at age 50.

And now I bring vibrational frequency to the nutrition and wellness world–quantum thinking in a world where the food manufacturers and diet spin doctors control the way we see food.

I’ve been enjoying a podcast tour leading up to my book launch, sharing how “a substance of a higher frequency can cause a substance of a lower frequency to increase”…..which means we absolutely can control where we live. At the high frequencies Einstein and Tesla dreamed of, or the low ones where most Americans currently live.

 

3. How are you changing the face of healthcare and/or the wellness industry? How do you create, innovate or break the rules in healthcare?

Most of us aren’t aware of the insidious effects of synthetic drugs on our overall vibrational frequency–which can be measured; the health human ranges between 62 and 68 Hz. Nor do we realize that a pork roast has energetic frequencies of 2, while a glass of fresh green juice measure 75 Hz!

If we all had a Fitbit to measure the effect on our energy fields, of every choice we make, I believe we would all make more mindful decisions. That’s the second step!

The first is to make people aware, and accountable, for the vibrational frequencies they live at, in the way they think, eat, do, and feel–so they’re healthier and happier, but also, they’re uplifting everyone around them and creating good karma in a Universe desperately in need of higher resonant frequencies.

 

4. What personal and professional legacy or impact do you want to leave on the world?

My goal is simple. I want to be healthier and happier, live at the high frequencies of spectacular health and also peace and joy and service and compassion–and help others do the same. That’s the entire premise behind my new book, Vibe.

 

5. In your opinion, what is the most significant factor in healing or overall wellness?

There is no “most” significant factor in healing or overall wellness. It’s individual to a person and where she’s deficient or suffering, but if I have to nail it down, it’s a “tie” for two things, I believe.

As a former psychotherapist, I have to point out that the way we metabolize the negatives in our lives (events, reactionary feelings) is critically important to whether we’re in flow in our work, whether we engage authentically and as our best selves in relationships, and whether we’re disease resistant and strong in our physical health.

But diet is also foundational, and I see few people eating a truly high-vibration diet. Most of us are eating a lot of heavy animal proteins and processed foods and stimulants. And we absolutely must address this, as well, as part of our healing strategy.

 

6. What do you wish people realized when it comes to their health or about the wellness industry?

I wish people understood that counting calories is a path to insanity. There are low-calorie foods that are terribly toxic to your energies, and pose disease risk. And there are high-calorie foods that perfectly nourish your cell membranes and raise your frequencies. I’d love to see Einsteinian thinking brought into the way we evaluate our food choices every day, and more.

 

7. How long did it take you to reach important milestones in your wellness business? And, what has really helped you move the needle in making your vision a reality?

Most of the health entrepreneurs around me, it seems, are looking for a quick jump up the ladder. Their first book has to hit the New York Times list, or they want to put on a summit and end up with a six-figure list to market to.

Someone said, “There is no elevator to success; you have to take the stairs.” And this has very much defined my own 10-year journey to a $5 million business. There have been dark days and even hard years. We’ve miraculously been profitable every year of the 10 years, always, every single year, at least 6 figures in profitability–but I have learned many painful lessons. There’s simply no easy path–but what’s exciting is that while I struggle and grow my business, I’m learning at quantum speed. Every day is an exciting challenge.

What I’m most grounded in, and most proud of, is that we refuse to engage in any business practices or sell anything that we wouldn’t buy ourselves, that doesn’t serve our audience first. We care a lot about each person we are blessed to have following us, and I remind myself of that every day, and my team as well, very often.

 

8. Tell us about the start-up scares: Was there a moment where you ever seriously contemplated giving up?

I’ve contemplated giving up, several times. Fantasized about it, in fact, in a 2-year rough patch! But the mission kept me going, and I’m in an amazing place in my business now, where I’m personally grounded, we have a clear plan, and we’re highly profitable every month.Nothing easy comes easily.

Every entrepreneur suffers some failures. I’ve had my share or maybe more. But listen to your intuition, take a few weeks before executing on any business idea to make sure it vibes with you on every level, find trusted advisors to bounce your ideas off, and put your customer first always. If you combine that with a willingness to take steps every day, put the time in, knock walls down every day, you cannot lose, in the long run. You don’t have to win at everything–you just have to win a bit more than you lose.

 

9. Did you ever fail or make a substantial mistake in business or organization? Any serious challenges? How did you overcome and resolve it?

I’ve had several people steal six figures from me. Recently I had a consultant steal a high-value list from my Infusionsoft account. I’ve started two side businesses in the past 10 years that failed.

I used to teach at the business school at Brigham Young University, and I told my students, “There are two types of business. The ones that make money, and the ones you learn from.” I wouldn’t wish my failures and struggles on my worst enemy, and I also wouldn’t trade them for a million dollars.

They’ve given me resourcefulness and resilience, which Harvard Business Review published in 2016 are the two qualities every successful person has. Now, to model that for my children. The oldest three are now adults, and one of my daughters recently said to me, “Mom, you’re a badass. Thanks for showing me how to be successful in business, even when things are hard. I got my work ethic from you.” This means more to me than the revenues, ROI, or respect of my peers.

Business is a long game. When we start, we’re often in it for the quick wins. And business owners definitely love the adrenaline rush of those short-term wins! Nothing wrong with that. But when we’ve climbed some mountains and overcome some mind-bending challenges is when we have so much more to share with the world. And we aren’t tipped over by little setbacks in the path.

 

10. What would you tell your younger/earlier self about following your dreams?

I would teach my younger self to be steadier and more grounded. My 20-something self was “ready, fire, aim,” and I’d tell her to take her time to think things through, look at the future and listen to a few carefully curated coaches or advisors. I know that “Believe in yourself!” and “Never let anyone tell you that you can’t do things!” will be most people’s response here, and perhaps the right advice for many or most people.

But I’ve always had the internal drive, so if someone is like me, highly motivated and a hard worker, but tends to be frenetic in her energy–for some of us, slowing down and consulting others ahead of us on the path, and listening to counsel of those carefully selected advisors is a great idea, too, to balance out the “never stop!” and “believe!” counsel.

 

11. What’s the best piece of business or personal advice YOU’VE ever received?

A long time ago, I was trying to force something, and a man close to me said, “Robyn, do you ever ask yourself, when you’re pushing really hard and things aren’t going your way, if maybe it wasn’t meant to be?”Being a hard worker oldest-child from an overachiever family, I’d never thought of such a thing. I had to admit, “No, I haven’t ever asked myself that!”Now I check in with whether I’m vibing with a potential joint venture partner, or opportunity. And that has made all the difference. To slow down. Take time to process what’s bothering my intuition. Think and wait and get more information.

And let go of what I don’t absolutely love in my business, release the negative energies of failure or pushing hard for something that doesn’t happen. Be willing to change course when that feels right.

I needed permission to “let go.” And the more I let go of–outcomes in my business or personal life, responsibility for my children’s choices, the need to be “right”–the happier I get.

 

12. What’s the #1 piece of advice you would give a new Wellness professional who really wants to make an impact in healthcare and people’s lives?

Play the long game. Know that you have many challenges ahead of you, but success lies in the journey, not just the destination. Building a business out of passion and a love of service is the most difficult AND the most rewarding thing possible in your professional career. Love others and make their needs as important as yours, learn and grow and challenge your confirmation biases. You might not always be right. (What if you’re partly wrong, or completely wrong? It happens!) If you “get it” on these issues early, stay in humility and openness–and you will always win.

 

13. What does a typical work day look like for you?

I always play tennis with my team, or go for a run, or go to a yoga class–usually two of those, nonnegotiable! Besides answering messages on my phone, I often don’t get to work until 10 am or even 11. Then I get to work, directing my team in Slack or on the phone, doing phone or video meetings with partners and colleagues, vetting new opportunities and relationships, filming and podcasting and writing, until about 6 pm.

I take two or three short breaks, to eat, or go sit in the grass and “ground” and enjoy the sunshine, and play with my two cats. Then I feed my son, I might go get a massage or have dinner with a friend, and often I work for another hour or two before lights-out at 11 pm.  I admit that I also usually work on both Saturday and Sunday for at least 5 hours each day, because it’s the perfect opportunity to work on quiet, “whole-brain” development projects (like writing a book or blog post) that are hard to accomplish when 20 employees are asking you questions and phone calls chop up the weekdays.

 

14. Stevie Wonder or The Beatles? (this, I personally must know.) 🙂

The Beatles, all day! My parents came of age in the 60’s, when I was born, and the 8 of us kids were required to go in the basement and read, leave Mom alone, for 2 hours every day in the summer. It made us all good readers, but we also listened to Beatles records for endless hours. (And yes, I do mean vinyl records.)

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Robyn Openshaw is the author of 15 books, including bestsellers The Green Smoothies Diet and 12 Steps to Whole Foods. Her latest book, Vibe: Unlock the Energetic Frequencies of Limitless Health, Love & Success, will be released by Simon & Schuster in October 2017.

She is a former psychotherapist, university professor, and lectured in over 450 cities in the 6 years after launching her popular site GreenSmoothieGirl.com in 2007. She’s a single mom to four children who are now flying the coop. She skis and plays tennis competitively in Utah, and believes that everything is possible if you leverage the highest frequencies in the Universe.

You can find her podcast, Your High Vibration Life, on iTunes–also look for Green Smoothie Girl on Facebook, and visit her website GreenSmoothieGirl.com.