Meet Jaclyn Gallo

We were lucky to catch up with Jaclyn Gallo recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jaclyn, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
When I was 7 years old, I learned the meaning of the word regret. My dad and I were running errands when he pointed to a brick building and said, “See that store? I almost bought it 15 years ago. I was going to open a deli and seafood market, but my father talked me out of it. I had young girls at home, and it was too much of a risk.” He went on to tell me how much he regretted not opening the store and pursing his dream. I didn’t have to ask what “regret” meant because the look in his eyes that day said it all.

Today, I pursue my dreams on a daily basis. Most of the time, I fail. I have learned that our failures are not a bad thing, though. In fact, my failures have led me to exactly where I am today. They are like GPS directions that lead me to the place I’m meant to be.

Despite this inner-knowing, it still takes quite a bit of resilience to get back up each time I fail. I get my resilience from my dad, and my commitment to living a life where I have no regrets. A strong why motivates me to keep going even when the odds are not in my favor.

I also believe resilience is like a muscle and the more you exercise it, the stronger it gets. I exercise my resilience by challenging myself frequently. Each day, I end my showers on 45 seconds of freezing cold water. While the chills sweep across my body, I practice positive self-talk telling myself, “You can do hard things. This is temporary and you can do anything that’s temporary.” I also engage in challenging workouts that require me to tap into my inner-resilience each time. These habits prepare me for the unplanned challenges where I will inevitably need resilience.

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?
The mission for my company, Spark Your Light Studios, is to help millions of women spark the light inside of them. My podcast, Spark Your Light, shares inspiring tools, stories and interviews so that our listeners have the tangible steps they need to create a life that truly lights them up inside. I’m a resilience keynote speaker, and I travel the country delivering speeches at conferences, corporations and universities.

I’ve published two books and am currently working on my third. In addition to these larger scale operations, I also offer 1:1 coaching services. As a life coach for women, I help my clients take aligned action towards their goals and create lives that are just as beautiful on the inside as they appear to be on the outside. Typically, my clients are ambitious women who have big dreams and are ready to take life-changing action towards those dreams.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The three qualities that have been most impactful in my journey are self-belief, resilience and courage. Each of these has contributed to my willingness to put myself out there and go for my dreams even when they don’t make sense to other people. We all have these traits inside of us, but it’s important to dedicate time and energy to strengthening them. To do this, a combination of mindset and action is a great approach.

One of my favorite mindset practices is affirmations. These are “I am” statements that reinforce the new belief you are building. So for example, “I am confident.” Sometimes, an affirmation can feel like a lie. In this case, it’s better to try a bridge affirmation- one that bridges the gap between where you are now and where you want to go. For example, “Each day, my self-confidence grows a little bit.”

In terms of taking action, it’s all about giving your brain evidence for this new identity. If you’re telling yourself that you’re confident, but you are still acting out of insecurity, it’s going to be difficult for your brain to really believe the things you are saying. Think about the confident version of you. What does he or she do differently? How can you start small and incorporate some of those actions or habits into your daily routine?

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?
While there have been many books that have played a role in my development, one of the most impactful ones is The One Thing by Gary Keller. This book helped me make my dreams reality, but teaching the power of focus and intention. I learned that it’s better to pursue the one thing that will actually change your life, instead of pursuing five things that won’t. As an entrepreneur and creative thinker, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with ideas. The One Thing helped me stay true to my vision and with diligent focus, make that vision a reality.

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