We recently connected with Josh Grimm and have shared our conversation below.
Josh , we are so deeply grateful to you for opening up about your journey with mental health in the hops that it can help someone who might be going through something similar. Can you talk to us about your mental health journey and how you overcame or persisted despite any issues? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.
I chose to answer this question as hard and complicated that the answer may reveal.
I find that my journey has been a bit unlike most. When one takes the perspective of mental health being not a priority but THE priority, doors will open. It’s incredible how much you can unlock with a clear mind. The practice of meditation, manifestation techniques, and sheer drive to be and do better is what has driven me and my successes in both my work and in my personal life…
There are too many that don’t recognize the impact mental stability has on our day to day decisions. The decision to do more, do better, or do nothing is all dependent on what our mind is guiding us through.
My journey the last few years has been quite interesting. I’ve talked about it and this may be the first time I’m actually answering an interview question about it. I have had a fantastic upbringing and am very fortunate to have always been supported by my family by my career and personal choices. But, I have also, often, felt a bit of a loner (which I now know the value of) which has forced me to spend a lot of time in my own head. Time analyzing my thoughts, movements, and actions. I think the struggles I have had with self acceptance are not much different than most but what I had realized is that the moment I started to feel like I knew who I was, or who I wanted to be, and I got a glimpse of what that could look like, then I had the drive and the will to go farther with it. Who and how far could I be and become? The dangling of the carrot of clarity is where my perserverance developed. Quite simply, I liked who I was shaping to be.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I started my brand in 2014 while I was living and volunteering in South East Asia.
I was in the middle of a painful breakup that left a significant impact on me. It felt as if the only excuse I had to get out of bed everyday was to have a beer and journey around the town of Siem Reap In Cambodia looking for connections, new friends, answers, a direction and a distraction. I believe the distraction, at the time, was the priority. What I realize now is sometimes, you just need to sit still with it.
After a month of wallowing… I actually got tired of myself. I made a choice to be better. I ordered a tuk tuk and asked the driver to take me to an orphanage. Any orphanage. If I recall correctly, I literally picked one from a map without any research.
I arrived into the dirt road driveway just an empty vessel consumed with self pity and the pain of the loss.
There was a director that greeted me… confused as why I was there. I said I wanted to help. I knew somehow people less fortunate than me would give me the spark and fuel I needed to change my situation. And it did.
I ended up volunteering for several weeks and my pain and selfishness and licking my wounds were replaced with these kid’s needs and simple joys. Everyday simple tasks needed to be completed such as food shopping, playtime, reading and writing. Seeing the positive response I got from the kids increased my sense of purpose and I started to feel myself again. And, I felt like I was getting control back in my life.
I remember going back to the hotel where I had been holed up in for weeks one evening after leaving the orphanage and it dawned on me I should start a business with similar purpose. I was sitting next to the pool with a notepad jotting down names for my new business I was going to create. A business that helped others and helped me. I was great at training myself so I decided I can make it a new step in work and I created FITNUT.
I got back to NY and just grinded within the first year, I was already making a six-figure income just by believing in what I was offering – fitness training and nutrition coaching. Over the years, my work has grown and evolved and I’ve even started offering giving fitness retreats for gay men and . Something still pulls me back to my time in Cambodia, that space I worked hard to reach in my mind, and I’ve wanted to incorporate it into my work. I finally realized it’s this actual thing – Mindfullness and I’m good at it. This is a new exciting dimension for my business.
Today, FITNUT looks a bit different than when I started it. I still have in person clients that I see 40 hours a week, but I have recently launched a subscription based online health and fitness coaching service which I am really enjoying. The possibilities of scale and number of people I can help push to the best version of themselves are endless. I am also currently writing a book based on the correlation with fitness, mindfulness, and relationships. All of this ties into what I’m very passionate about which is the mindfulness and wellness coaching phase of FITNUT.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
First and foremost, if you want to be in the health and fitness industry, you must obtain knowledge and know how through proper education, certifications, and applied work. That may not be the most FUN part of the journey, but it is essential. From there, you can decide what your niche is and how you want that to look and shape your business. And, that may change over the course of the years just from your experience of knowing what you want and don’t want.
I think learning and investing in who you are as a person is the most crucial step. This can be obtained through many areas of self-discovery. For me, I pay close attention to gettin clarity in all aspects of my life through daily meditation practices and mindfulness techniques, I encourage this to all of my clients or anyone in their life looking to make clear, concise decisions. A clear mind will make room for a clear path.
And thirdly, my ability to be adaptive to the ever changing fitness market is crucial. There are always new workouts, new certifications, new criteria to keep your offerings current and aligned with the market and clients want to see the growth and evolution of your brand.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
I’m a book reader. When I read something I identify with it really gets me going. Mainly because I find the value in the knowledge so incredibly interesting and also, self-retaining.
One of my favorites that sorta lifted me off on the path of clarity and self discovery was the book AWARENESS by OSHO. I learned from this book the meaning of being present and sitting still in peace and thought. This book was what drew me into a few dozen others that helped to expand my mind and thought processes toward a life that I wanted – which is clarity, abundance, and connectivity with self.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.FITNUT.org
- Instagram: joshgrimm_fitnut
- Other: www.FITNUTCOACHING.com
