Speak Up, Show Up, Shift Healthcare: A Movement Begins | Athena Hall

Welcome to Spark & Ignite Your Marketing, the podcast where real conversations meet real strategies. I'm your host, Beverly Cornell, founder and fairy godmother of brand clarity at Wickedly Branded. With over 25 years of experience, I’ve helped hundreds of entrepreneurs awaken their brand magic, attract the right people, and build businesses that light them up.

In this episode, Dr. Athena Hall joins us to share how her movement, ZNA Health Network, is radically reimagining care by centering community voices and human dignity. From global health lessons to entrepreneurial pivots, this conversation is a masterclass in purpose-driven leadership, confidence, and reclaiming health for all.

Three Key  Marketing Topics Discussed:

1. Marketing with Heart, Not Perfection: Athena opens up about shifting from polished professionalism to authentic storytelling, and how showing up as herself on LinkedIn built more connections and momentum than any curated post ever could. Learn more about the power of Storytelling here!
2. Clarity Over Complexity in Messaging: From pediatrician to founder, Athena shares how she’s learning to articulate a bold, complex vision in simple, clear language that invites collaboration and action. Struggling with Clarity in your brand? Check this out!
3. Building a Movement Through Community Engagement: We explore how ZNA Health Network leverages storytelling, relationships, and visibility strategies to create a brand fueled by shared purpose and real human connection.

Follow Athena:
Athena Hall | LinkedIn
ZNA Health Network | Website
ZNA Health Network | Instagram

Transcript

Beverly: 0:09

Did you know that over 70% of Americans say the healthcare system is failing to meet their needs and 64% don't trust it to prioritize their wellbeing? And for doctors who care deeply about community health, that statistic is just completely frustrating and it's fuel for a movement. I'm your host, Beverly Cornell, founder and fairy godmother of brand clarity at Wickedly branded. And with over 25 years of experience, I've helped hundreds of purpose-driven entrepreneurs awaken their brand magic and boldly bring it to life so they can magnify their impact on the world. And today's guest is a change maker in every single sense of the word. Dr. Athena Hall is a pediatrician based in Seattle, and the founder of ZNA Health Network, a pioneering initiative that connects passionate healthcare advocacy and shifts the foundation of care through community centered action. Athena, welcome to the show.

Athena: 1:02

Thank you. I'm happy to be here.

Beverly: 1:04

Change makers and movement makers. I love it so much. Athena like how did you go from pediatrician and all the things to this? This is a big deal. We were talked before. I was like, she is just one person trying to make a big, huge difference in an industry That's a bit of a elephant. Talk about the spark that moved to ZNA health network and what did that look like for you?

Athena: 1:24

Yeah, I was really drawn to global health work from pretty early on when I was in college. So right out of college I spent some time in Tanzania and then I did a global health fellowship after my residency training. And during that time it really opened my eyes to the problems. In our healthcare system and in our initiatives where we're trying to help communities, I saw that we weren't really asking them what they need and instead we were providing them with help. And it all came from a good place. But a lot of it was really misguided. The initiatives were not actually aligned with what the people really needed. And I saw the harm that they caused. I saw how our system is really hierarchical and that we were teaching these communities and the providers in the hospital to act in the way that we do in our healthcare system, which is to have experts and kind of elitism of I know what to do for you. I know what you need. And creating a sense of powerlessness and helplessness for the patients and making it hard for them to advocate for what they need. I also saw the expense of our healthcare system, the burden that had on the community and just so many of the things were really getting to me while I was doing this work. So when I came back to the states, I saw that actually this is what we're doing in here as well. We're not connecting with our communities and asking them what their need we're doing a one size fits all healthcare system and providing them with services that perhaps. Aren't truly what they are asking for and what they need and burdening them with huge medical bills. Two thirds of bankruptcy cases in the US are due to medical bills and that's just wild. We're trying to help people, but we're actually causing a lot of harm. And 80% of our health issues in the US are actually due to social and environmental factors. So when we're causing people to be in debt and creating more social difficulties for people, this is actually leading to worse health outcomes.

Beverly: 3:33

Yeah. The stress of all that can't be good for anyone. Absolutely. Yeah. Can you gimme an example of a community that has chosen differently? What does that look like even?

Athena: 3:42

Yeah, so in Alaska there's a healthcare system called the NewCo System of Care. It's run by Alaska Natives. And 25 years ago they were given the opportunity to take over their own healthcare system. It used to be Indian Health Services, which was a federally run healthcare system. They had. Enormous numbers of people that had mental health and chronic disease as well as having to utilize the ER so much because they couldn't get into their primary care doctor. And once they took over their own healthcare system, they decided to do everything completely differently. And they wanted the community to be part owners in their healthcare system. So they call the patients' customer owners and they put them in the center of their healthcare system and they get to say what services they want, how they want the services to be provided. And that has had huge. Improvements in the ER visits, they have 93% patient satisfaction, which is unheard of in healthcare, and I think it's something like 97% employee satisfaction. So burnout is so low amongst in that healthcare system because there is a sense of purpose and an alignment for with the services that are provided and what people actually need.

Beverly: 5:06

So gimme an example of what people actually need versus the services that are provided. Is there an example even in Alaska or in Tanzania where you were seeing these other services shoved down their throats, but what did they actually need in some of these areas?

Athena: 5:19

Yeah. So we really are focused on fixing problems after they happen and putting out fires. So we invest, I think it's 97% of our healthcare dollars in these reactive health services. And only 3% goes towards prevention. And what people actually need and what they are wanting is investment and prevention services. And that includes addressing things like housing food insecurity transportation, and having a safe environment around them, as well as having access to a team of people who are listening to them and helping them to live healthy lives. And in a way that's more of a partnership instead of a parent telling them what to do.

Beverly: 6:06

I love this so much. My mom is a nurse and has always taught me to advocate for myself. Like even if the doctor says something, you have every right to question that or ask for something different, you know your body better than anybody else. So don't let somebody just because they have a fancy degree dictate what you think doesn't feel right. And I remember I had injured my hip and they kept wanting to medicate the pain. And I kept saying, no, I want you to find out what's wrong with it so we can stop the pain from there. And it took me three and a half years Athena Wow. To get to the root of it and to finally get a MRI with contrast to realize that my labrum was torn. I ended up going to an orthopedic surgeon who dealt with people paratroopers who jump out of airplanes. But. I remember feeling so incredibly frustrated at all the tests, and the only answer was to gimme pain medicine.. But I agree with you so much like nutrition and like meditation and helping in the front end versus that backend of reactive medicine is what we've always done. That's very much a western type of medicine. I feel like there's a lot of money happening and power and all those things. How does Athena go up against all of that?

Athena: 7:14

I really don't want to go up against all of that. I think we would lose if we tried to fight it. I think instead it's really coming together everyone who is passionate about providing quality healthcare for their communities, working together to offer something different and funding that our current system is collapsing. Like we had this big, beautiful bill. I put that in quotes. Just pass. And it's going to further deepen our inequities in our country and we will see more people that are sick and unable to access care. That's just, another huge crack in the system that we have that's really not working for people. So we need something that we're building alongside that, that people can shift over to so that they can actually support the health of not only themselves, but of the people around them.

Beverly: 8:11

If they're making so much money on pharmaceuticals and things like that, how do you create the value for them just to work with you to create business models in the healthcare industry?

Athena: 8:22

I think, finding some common ground is important. Where we are all benefiting in a way, but we have to really shift all of the systems to center humans instead of profits. So the systems, our healthcare system is really a myriad of systems that are all centered on profits. And those are collapsing. I think the pharmaceutical company offers a lot of bandaids. It's really not geared towards preventing disease. And a lot of those bandaids are super important. A lot of people do need really important medications but it needs to shift to really centering the people that they're caring for. I think that's just gonna be a process, but we're not here to fight against, we're here to fight for.

Beverly: 9:12

Human-centered, people-centered what did you say that in Alaska? Yeah, customer owners. Customer owners. I love it so much. Recently, the Canadian Prime Minister said that he was traveling the country and talking to his. bosses, meaning the people, right? And this idea of that, we are the customer, but we certainly have a voice, and it is our bodies and our health that's at stake here. And there's just so much to it. It's such a complex thing. I'm so impressed, Athena, that this is something that you want to go up against. What has been the biggest challenge that you've faced so far?'cause it's been about a year, right? That ZNA has existed.

Athena: 9:47

I first started thinking about ZNA, or I call it ZNA. About two years ago was when I really started investing in it and working on it. And, ultimately what I want to be able to do with Cena is to to offer people adaptable healthcare models, offer communities, so that every community can ask for what they need at different times. It might be, five years from now they need more social workers and then another five years they need more neuroscientists to research something that's going on in their community or whatever it is that they're asking for. I think I've run into a lot of big challenges. Becoming an entrepreneur is like having a baby and it really pushes you to grow a lot. And I'm currently going through a growth process with it and hitting some walls. It's challenging but I know what that ultimate vision is and where I'm moving towards, and I don't know what the path is gonna look like or the hardships that I'm going to face. Sure. But I know I just need to keep moving forward. So yeah, currently it's just difficult to get everyone together towards a common goal. I was initially going after something too big, and so I'm trying to make the steps smaller right now so that we have smaller steps and small wins that we can build on before going after something bigger.

Beverly: 11:11

Yes. Sometimes it can be the tiniest step, at least it's progress. Yes. What is one mindset shift that you've had to make, to move from doctor to founder?

Athena: 11:20

I think as a doctor working in our healthcare system, you're just at the whim of the system. And there, I don't have a lot of say in the care that I'm providing because I have to go, with the evidence-based medicine. And I work with a team and we all have to be practicing in a certain way. And so as a founder, there's a lot more nuance, there's a lot so many different balls in the air and decisions to make, and I really have to ask for a lot more help. And learn a lot of skills that I didn't have previously. So it's a mindset shift and not trying to be this, fiercely independent woman. Now I'm really having to ask for help and it's very humbling process.

Beverly: 12:10

I think, doctors are the most highly educated people in the world, right? You go to school for a very long time and you are highly respected. You have a title that suggests as such, and then you go to founder and you're like yeah, this is not what I learned. This is something completely different. It's almost like a different language, which part of it has been the hardest, do you think is it accounting? Is it marketing? Is it operations?

Athena: 12:32

All of the above. Yeah. I have no business background. So I've, taken a crash course had business coaches help me to understand marketing as well as the financial side. So those things have been really challenging and perhaps not my strong suit. I think my strength lies in bringing people together, connecting as well as being a visionary. And the skills are important to learn, but I want to, at some point, be able to shift those over to people that are really strong in those skills.

Beverly: 13:07

I know the awareness of the things that we don't do well, the humbling of our skillset. And being able to offload those, whether it's through automation or through partners or whatever that looks like for a business owner, is something that I feel like so many entrepreneurs, so many business people have felt from the very beginning. And if you're a listener right now, and you've felt this to your core where you're like, it's so humbling having to figure this all out, you're probably not alone. And I would love it if you'd share this episode with someone who you know is struggling to do all the things, because this is something that we so often see and you are not alone. And there are so many that are struggling, just like Athena and I struggle. I'm in a place now where i've been able to offload some of that stuff. But that's such a ongoing process, not only in, like you said, from your confidence to humbling and asking for help, but also this idea of no one's gonna do it like I would do it. So the trust aspect of it. There's so much to that process as a business owner that is like, how do I clone myself? So if you're feeling that, then you're in the right place. And I'm so grateful that you're here today and maybe you could share this with someone else who you know, is in the same boat, just trying to figure it all out. Yeah. So this whole season's about confidence, Athena, it's all about what does it look like for business owners and is there a moment that kind of like it shows up stronger than others? I gotta believe like probably in the pediatric office, you are like. Awesome. And you've got this thing covered and all the things. How does confidence show up for you as a business owner though?

Athena: 14:37

Yeah, it comes up for me in asking for help knowing what it is that I need help with and being able to ask for that. That's been a growth edge for me and something that I'm growing my confidence in because as I see things growing and people taking on different tasks, it gives me a sense of confidence in we're going somewhere. I'm doing something and instead of putting it all on my shoulders and barely taking steps forward because it's just too much, yeah. And then I'm also working towards being a public speaker so that I can bring people into the network as well as shift people's perspectives on what's possible in healthcare. So many people think their model for what's possible is based on the system that we already have. But we can do things completely differently and totally reimagine it. So as I am working towards getting on stage, that's also building my confidence in my business of I can do this, I can speak about this clearly, and have a clear message and and bring people into to what we're doing.

Beverly: 15:43

That clarity of message, that clarity of purpose, that's so key. But speaking on a stage is not for the weak of heart.

Athena: 15:50

Something I Never thought I would do.

Beverly: 15:52

Kids can be a tough crowd, so I feel like you've been tested. Yeah. So I know you've been using LinkedIn'cause we've connected through LinkedIn and you're also doing lives and you're doing some personalized posts to engage your community. Why do you think those strategies are working so well for you?

Athena: 16:07

LinkedIn is a space where a lot of professionals, especially in healthcare, are talking about the problems in our healthcare system. And they're looking for solutions and looking for those networks and connections. So that's a great space for me to be talking about everything. I'm learning to be more and more authentic as I go with it. In the beginning I was like, I have to be polished and professional and be this certain way. And as I'm letting go of that, more people are coming. Cause they're seeing more of who I am and that's what's gonna bring people in.

Beverly: 16:42

I really want my listeners to hear this. What Athena is saying is that she thought she had to be perfect as a recovering perfectionist. I feel it in my bones that initially when I started, I thought I had to be perfect too. But what I have learned is when I just show up as me chatting, like I'm having coffee with somebody or whatever, that's when I resonate the most and connect the most with you guys, the listeners, as well as my clients. And that being so polished and perfect is actually something that people can see right away that you're fake or that you're not genuine, or that there's just something too perfect about the person. So when you are real, when you share yourself in that way as scary and vulnerable, I'm sure as it is for you, Athena. That is where. The magic really happens and people will connect far more to you and who you are. So kudos for you, despite how hard it is for you yeah, to do it. But showing up exactly as you is what the world needs. The world needs more of just genuine, authentic relationships and purposes and passions and It's a hard lesson that I continue to struggle with. Like will people get it? Will they like all the things, right? We have all this doubt around it. So many solopreneurs and entrepreneurs struggle with, I call them the flying monkeys of perfectionism, self-doubt, and imposter syndrome. And I literally visualize when I start to doubt something, like batting it away like it's a monkey, right? This is not gonna get in my way of what my purpose is in this world. So just know, like you are not alone in that Athena. And if you're listening, you feel that, I wanna hear it, tag me. Tell me that you're feeling that way, because I think there's power in numbers of people who understand what you're going through.

Athena: 19:29

Yeah. I've been absolutely crushed by self-doubt and through this journey. And I've had to just be like, you know what? I'm just gonna keep moving towards my purpose. For whatever reason, this is what lights me up and this is where I'm heading towards. And it's scary, but that means it's important to me. And yeah, I still, experience that self-doubt. It comes in and I try to not let it push me all the way down. I just have to acknowledge it and move forward.

Beverly: 19:59

You didn't choose a small little process. Yeah. That was one of the biggest to choose. So you're gonna have to fortify yourself with your support people. Your family, your friends, to keep you motivated. I am certainly cheering you on, I think I told you that last time, is that I believe in what you're doing. It's so important and so powerful. I just I feel a little overwhelmed by the whole process just thinking about it, I love that there's someone who wants to dig in and really make a difference in that way. So literally. Kudos to you. And if you're listening and you wanna help support Athena by sharing this episode, by giving a review, by subscribing, that will help her message get out further and help make more ripples for her please do that because we need more people to speak about change in a way that's beneficial for the human, the people in our country and in the world. If I could just give you a little boost, I would. I am super impressed by the task you have at hand.

Athena: 20:54

ZNA is all about bringing people together from different perspectives, different areas. It's not just healthcare workers. It can be, somebody out in the community who owns a daycare or who teaches meditation as well as people in healthcare. It's so important, if you're feeling called to support something like this, to offer your perspective and just see how you can help out. Because we need to listen to you, we need to hear what you have to say, and your skills and knowledge is incredibly important.

Beverly: 21:31

What's the biggest question people ask you? What is the thing they always ask you? They always wanna know more about what,

Athena: 21:35

They often wanna know what ZNA is about. They wanna know why I started it I actually met somebody named Zena, a woman, and I was struggling at that point to figure out the name'cause it was originally transforming healthcare. And I was, it was too generic. Yeah. So I was spending months trying to figure this out and I met this woman and I was like, that's it, that's the name. It's ZNA. But I wanted it to be ZNA, so that it's like the future DNA of our people so that we can pass down like a legendary healthcare system and shift the health of people for generations to come.

Beverly: 22:10

I love that the DNA ZNA. So if you could say one thing to maybe inspire somebody to be involved, what would it be? What is the thing that should compel them to be part of this movement?

Athena: 22:21

Yeah. I think that their perspective and their experience and knowledge matters and can have a huge impact on the health and lives of themselves, their families, as well as the people around them. And so if they're involved, they can really magnify or amplify their impact and put their skills towards something that is, really helping themselves and the people around them as well as future generations.

Beverly: 22:50

Yeah, for sure. Advocating not only for themselves, but for all the people you hear talking about their health problems and challenges and what you witness every day.

Athena: 22:59

Yeah. I think too, as humans, we have a longing to contribute to people around us. We have a value in our country of individualism, but we see so many people struggling with isolation and loneliness and having to do things all on their own. And it's really not healthy for humans. And we've seen isolation is, has a huge negative impact on our health. So to be able to contribute and to connect with others is something that will fulfill you and will improve your life in a big way.

Beverly: 23:32

Yeah, for sure. I think when we give, we get so much, there's something so powerful in that. Yes. Exchange. Like you don't even realize what you get when you give fully, when you give without expectation. It's a whole different level

Athena: 23:46

and it's not transactional. It's not a one-to-one thing. You're just giving, and it may come back to you at some point in a different way. But what matters is how it makes you feel and how it fuels you.

Beverly: 23:58

Yeah. And it's one of the things that I think, I don't know if I think it, I probably know it, but is the idea that we all need to be part of something bigger than ourselves?

Athena: 24:06

Yes.

Beverly: 24:07

And, I think having that grounds us in a way that nothing else can, in some ways, like nothing else can do that. Yeah. I've always been very optimistic, altruistic. Probably a little naive to wanting to save the world and all the things.

Athena: 24:20

I relate.

Beverly: 24:21

But I've also had, I think like you had some experiences where it's no, you can't, and you're only one person and getting everyone else to behave has not always been easy. So this Particular section's all about the magic hat. There are a lot of questions in the magic hat. Okay. And I let the magic hat decide what's gonna come out of it. So the first question is, oh, that's a hard one for you, but what was the moment you realized your business was successful?

Athena: 24:45

Yeah, I would say we launched in January and I had gathered at that point a core team to help me to build ZNA. And just seeing how many people were. Rallying around it, that to me, was like, okay, we can do this. I know I can't do it by myself. Yeah. And there are people who believe in this and who want to be part of it.

Beverly: 25:10

Yeah. Everybody needs supporters. One of the things I often ask my listeners to do is if somebody has inspired you or somehow a affected you to please let them know. Because people need affirmations to know that they're continuing the work, do the work that they do. So often we take it for granted that the work that people are doing is just happening, but if they've somehow possibly affected you in some way you need to lift them up so that they can continue to do the work. Yeah. So you talked about self-doubt, but have you ever thought about quitting and what pulled you back?

Athena: 25:39

Actually over the last month I had been struggling with, and I told you, all these doubts were crushing me. The core team is disintegrated in a way because of the initiative I was trying to do was too big and we weren't moving forward. And I was like, maybe I'm just gonna forget all of this, let the healthcare do its thing and just dance. I have two big things that I'm moving towards, but I went on a backpacking trip for a week and just spent a time in nature and really just got away from all of the frenetic energy and. Reconnected with where I'm going and why I am doing it. And prior to that I was really trying to grasp at like, why am I doing this? What am I doing this for? And It was a lot of mental analysis, but spending time in nature helped me just to reconnect to it from a different space. And it really helped to launch me forward again. I was like, I just need to take smaller bites. Let's do this smaller thing together. And so now we're gathering momentum again. But I did have a moment of maybe I wanna quit.

Beverly: 26:44

I think almost every entrepreneur has said I might need to just put this towel in and just say, I'm done. This is not what I need to do.

Athena: 26:51

But I know If I died, in 10 years or whenever it is, I would be heartbroken that I didn't move towards this. It's just something that, it feels, it's a part of me.

Beverly: 27:01

I keep going back to that. Your purpose and your why is the fuel for everything. We help a lot of entrepreneurs get to that. We joke that we're marketing therapists, right? But that's really what you have to get to is that ultimate vision and the legacy that you want to see to fuel everything and get you through. And I think having that awareness of if I were not to do this, I would so regret it.

Athena: 27:23

Yeah.

Beverly: 27:23

Tell us about a time when you had to pivot and what did you learn?

Athena: 27:26

I first launched ZNA last year and I I hadn't really gathered enough support yet. I wasn't posting regularly on LinkedIn. Not many people knew what I was doing. And I was down on myself for a little bit after, it wasn't going anywhere. And I was like, you know what? I just, I need to pivot into focusing on building support first and then launching it. Yeah.

Beverly: 27:51

Every single quote unquote, failure is a learning opportunity. And if you don't learn, then you'll keep making those mistakes or you'll prevent yourself from growing. So I love that you took it as an opportunity to be like, okay. What do I do next? And if it's not feeling right, like in your bones, in your soul, in your intuition, then it's time to shift something. So what is something in ZNA that brings you pure joy?

Athena: 28:13

It brings me pure joy to just to connect with people who want to be part of the change and to feel our collective. Excitement and momentum. That just brings me a lot of joy because when humans come together and they have a shared purpose, it's incredible what is possible. And that really excites me. Just to see everybody lighting up and feeling like they're working towards something and gonna make an impact.

Beverly: 28:42

So good. I love the idea of humans coming together and, as an individual you can do something, but as a collective you can do so much more. One of our core values is fusion because. Individually, you're powerful, but together you create an explosion. Yeah.

Athena: 28:57

I love that. I've never heard of that as a core value. I really like it.

Beverly: 29:00

Oh yeah. It's one of our core values. Another one is dynamic.'cause we're always like, adjusting and changing and like tools in our business change all the time. It's marketing and social media algorithms change, so we can never be complacent. We have to be dynamic. And then honor is the other one, which I think honor to ourselves, honor to each other, honor to our client that also incorporates honesty and integrity. But it's more than that. It's how you show up in the world. Walk with honor is a whole different feeling than just integrity. So I do have a magical wand. Oh, okay. And the wand helps us go into the future. And into the past. So I'm gonna wave the wand and we're gonna go in the past and we're gonna talk to Athena when she just graduates from high school.

Athena: 29:43

Oh, wow.

Beverly: 29:44

And we're gonna give her a piece of advice. So what advice would we give her?

Athena: 29:48

Wow. I experienced really debilitating social anxiety when I was in high school and it was, I think in 10th grade, that I decided that I wasn't gonna deal with that anymore or let it stop me. And so I started being more of a chameleon and I was voted most transformed. I developed some skills and how to navigate my social environment without being so isolated. But underneath it all, I was still experiencing incredible social anxiety. And so I would tell her that it really doesn't matter what everyone is thinking and how they're perceiving me that I'm a beautiful human and we all have unique gifts, and if I just let that shine, people will come to me that are meant for me and people that aren't meant for me will be repelled by me, and that's okay.

Beverly: 30:39

Oh, such good advice. You have all this passion, but this anxiety it is like keeping you back. What were some of the tools that you used to get past it? What did you learn?

Athena: 30:48

Yeah. I saw a counselor on my college campus who helped me, gave me some tools to deal with the anxiety and to see the thoughts for what they were. That helped some. But overall, like what has been huge is my healing journey over the last six years. Just like confronting all of my feelings and being with them and processing. As I've done that, I've just grown stronger and integrated all this stuff. Yeah.

Beverly: 31:16

It's not easy work though, no. I have some anxiety and my therapist calls it my Jenga tower of trauma that I have to like work through. And I call that the elephant, like I have to go through it piece by piece. I can't just dive into the elephant. I have to actually go through every single piece of it.

Athena: 31:33

Yeah. And you think, Hey, I went through this piece, but here it is again.

Beverly: 31:37

Oh, that's where I'm at. I went through all of it and then I got married and had kids and like that triggers in a way that I never thought. Yeah, it's a whole thing. Plus you add on hormones of like perimenopause and all other things and oh wow. I was recently diagnosed with A DHD and I'm actually AuDHD, so oh, that makes so much sense now that I reacted the way I reacted as a kid. It's very complex. The human experience is very complex. It's such a good gift you're giving yourself to do it, to allow yourself to have the freedom from some of that stuff so you're not carrying it with you all the time.'cause it can get real heavy, real fast. So, What Would Young Athena, 18-year-old Athena, if she could see you now, what would she say to you?

Athena: 32:17

She would say I'm a really rad person. She'd be like, whoa. Because I started traveling soon after that and really becoming adventurous and wanting to explore the world and my mind was opening. So when I was 18 though, my world was pretty limited and yeah. So I think she would just be astonished with who I am now and how dynamic I am.

Beverly: 32:39

She'd be proud, right?

Athena: 32:40

Yeah, absolutely.

Beverly: 32:41

So when you're feeling like you wanna give up, think of her too, right? Think of her like, oh yeah, you got this. Look how far you've come. Yeah. Have her be your little voice in your head. Yeah. So I'm gonna wave the wand and I'm gonna take you way into the future. And you alluded to this a little bit in the interview, but what do you want people to remember most about working with you if you were to pass, what is the thing that you want them to remember about you?

Athena: 33:03

Oh, I love this. I would want them to remember that I'm somebody who helped them to just be fully expressed, to feel like who they are matters, what they have to offer matters and that they can create change in their world and be a part of something bigger.

Beverly: 33:23

So at your eulogy, someone's gonna give that eulogy of you, Athena, and they're gonna talk about all these amazing things that you've done. What do you think will be your most significant legacy or impact?

Athena: 33:33

I think my most significant legacy will be that I have given people and systems the opportunity to return to nature, to return to what's healthy. So I have opened doors and encouraged and inspired people and our healthcare system to shift into something that is truly supportive, that is healthy, and that is impactful.

Beverly: 34:04

So I'm gonna wave us back into the present. This season's all about confidence. So this is the magical tip. As small business owners or aspiring entrepreneurs, for those tuning in today, what is one tip you'd give to those who are trying to build more confidence in how they show up to run their business?

Athena: 34:21

I would tell them to really lean on the people around them. And see what gifts you have, where your strengths lie, really lean hard into those and lean into the people around you to support you in the areas that you struggle in. We can't be perfect. We can't be everything. We all have our gaps. And I think it helps so much in building your confidence to recognize where your strengths are and where you need help.

Beverly: 34:49

Yeah. I say confidence is built, it's not natural. Yeah. You have to over and over again build it and have those successes and put yourself in situations like public speaking or whatever that kind of push you outside of that. And the more you do it, the more it's built and the stronger the muscle gets and it just becomes something so much more than you even possibly could imagine.

Athena: 35:10

Yeah, that's another thing that I've done to build my confidence is to throw my hat over the wall of like, all right, so I booked a speaking event. This is happening. I don't feel ready, but I have to get ready. And just having that challenge, it's something that's possible. It's not overwhelming but it's scary. Yeah.

Beverly: 35:34

Throwing the hat over the wall is like half the battle. And then once you have the date, now you have to figure out all the things to get there. Even if it's not perfect, it's going to get you one step closer to being better. So throw your hat over the wall people. Let's go. If his episode has sparked something in you. Maybe you're gonna throw your hat over the wall. Maybe you're gonna go book that talk. You're gonna go do something you haven't had the gumption to do before. Take a minute and leave us a review and let us know if we've helped you move that forward. That's super helpful for us. So Athena. I want you to share with our listeners where they can learn more about you and ZNA and how they can get involved.

Athena: 36:10

Yeah, you can find me on LinkedIn at Athena Lorin Hall. So Lorin is L-O-R-I-N and you can also find ZNA on www.znahealthnetwork.com. Love it. Yeah, and there's a button there to say, join the movement and you can join for free and see what we're all about.

Beverly: 36:31

Wonderful. And from one curly haired girl to another. I'm so glad that you've come and stopped by today on the podcast, and this has been an incredible conversation, sharing your wisdom, your journey, your vulnerability, and your magic with us. I know our listeners are gonna walk away feeling far more inspired and ready to take action. I'm so grateful for your time, for the impact that you are making on the world. Kudos to you.

Athena: 36:54

Thank you so much, Beverly. This has been wonderful.

Beverly: 36:56

For those of you who are listening, I hope you enjoyed this incredible conversation, and I hope it lit a little bit of a fire in you and gave you new ideas, and most of all, inspired you to take action. Because here's the thing, your message matters. Your work matters, and the world needs to hear what you have to say. Marketing isn't just about visibility. It's about impact. It's about connecting with the right people in a way that feels true to you. Having that network of people, like Athena said, so you keep showing up and you keep sharing your brilliance and keep making more magic in the world. And hey, if you ever feel stuck, know that you don't have to do this alone. We're here to help you turn that spark into a wildfire. Until next time, keep sparking and keep igniting.