Miscellaneous
I cannot begin to tell you just how excited I am to bring this week’s guest, Tianna Madison, to you all today. Tianna is a two-time Olympian, specializing in long jump and short sprinting events, with three gold medals and multiple World Championships to her credit, but, as she will tell you herself, her track and field resume is ‘the least interesting thing about her’. Hers has been a life filled with obstacles which she has faced with perseverance and resilience, and that makes up so much of what she shares in her blog and recent book, and what we talk about in this fascinating and inspiring conversation. I do want to give you a heads up that some aspects of Tianna’s story deal with domestic abuse, so, while it is absolutely a critical conversation for all to hear, please be aware that some details may prove difficult or triggering. Tianna starts us off by sharing with us who she really is as well as details regarding her journey thus far in life. These details include her early days, her experience with domestic abuse and leaving that relationship, the impact of finding yoga, where she is at now, and what she feels will be her legacy. Finally free to share her remarkable life story through her tremendously popular blog and her memoir, Survive and Advance, Tianna does everyone a valuable service in shining a light on the obstacles that she and so many others face, and providing hope and inspiration for all along the way. As always, if there is ever a topic you would like me to discuss, a guest you’d like me to interview on the podcast, or feedback you wish to offer, please feel free to contact me at pr@kellytravis.net - I would love to hear from you! The Finer Details of This Episode: Tianna and her journey to this moment What kept her going during her journey The impact of not being allowed to share her story Her early days Tianna’s memoir Survive and Advance Her experience with domestic abuse The impact of finding yoga Leaving her husband and where she’s at now Club 360 Her legacy What’s next for Tianna Quotes: “Whatever the goal is, do whatever it takes to get there, leave no stone unturned about it, be super curious about it.” “There was never a part of me that believed or needed it to be easy in the first place. So I guess my expectation level was that it would require work.” “My mission became more like, allow me to reintroduce myself, tell you my story, where I've been, but also bring you along on this journey for real, moving forward.” “It was just kind of ridiculous that I would just be targeted because I was with other black kids.” “Because I wasn't fully owning the story, I couldn't move beyond it either.” “It felt like there was a certain calling and responsibility for me to own my story, but to also take the additional step of sharing the story so that other people could feel seen and supported and maybe be inspired to take that step for themselves.” “I wish we would just trust ourselves and then act on that.” “I had a really, I think from a young age an ability to take horrible things, lock them in a closet temporarily, and then deal with them later if I needed to deal with them at all.” “I have forgiven myself for doing what I felt I needed to do to survive in that moment with the information that I had and the resources that I had.” “So literally in every way, there was some type of yoga practice that was supporting my life. That's self care. That was me taking care of myself, which I wasn't doing or giving myself permission to do anywhere else in my life.” “It really introduced me to myself, I could hear that inner voice again, and I wasn't hearing it before.” “When you're tired and beat down, it's so much easier to believe the BS about you.” “My continuing work is to forgive myself for not being brave enough to talk about it or to tell anyone, because right now, the fact that I didn't say anything during that time is being used against me.” “Why is it so hard for people to understand you say what you have to say, you do what you need to do, to survive situations like that.” “My legacy, I think, is in part in my perseverance, and my determination, and what appears to be fearlessness, and using my voice. But I will tell everyone, I'm not fearless. I just do it anyway.” “There's like thousands of miles between surviving that and thriving.” “Ultimately, we do save ourselves and it's just that we can do it sooner, maybe even better, with the right support group and the right knowledge.” Show Links: Kelly’s homepage - www.kellytravis.net Ascend Mastermind - www.kellytravis.net/ascend Social: @kellythealth Homepage Tianna's Instagram Tianna's Blog Survive and Advance