a leap of faith.

By Lee Funke

Published 7/14/2013 • Updated 6/9/2020

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I saw quote on Instagram last night that really spoke to me.

I am the type of person who likes a lot of different things and has had a very hard time over the past 5 years trying to find my exact purpose. In college, I went back and forth between the Design School and something more science focused like Nutrition or Exercise Science. I was the same way in high school- I played varsity sports and was also in AP Art. My younger self didn’t think it was okay to want to be good a so many things that are so opposite from each other and I tried to force myself to pick just one.

I think we get it in our heads that we NEED to be experts in a certain area. I remember back when I started my blog 3 years ago, I was dead set on going to culinary school because I thought that if I ever wanted to succeed in the food industry, that I needed some sort of higher education or qualification in order for people to respect me.

Today, I’ve realized there is something to be said about an amateur bake/cook/photographer who is self-taught and damn good at what he/she does. A lot of bloggers that I follow are exactly that. They are people who thought they knew their purpose, and then discovered their passion in recipe creation and food photography and are living their dream, with their blog as their business (Oh She Glows, Edible Perspective, Peas and Thank You…just to name a few).

About a 2 years into my blogging career, I realized that this little thing called Fit Foodie Finds does not have to be JUST a blog- it CAN be my career. If you are truly passionate about what you do, it will shine through your work and people will notice. Your best work is your most passionate work.

I have begun to make a steady income off of Fit Foodie Finds through my ad revenue, sponsored posts, and freelance content creation. Never EVER did I think that doing something so fun and energizing could be my full time career. And today I am excited to say…that it is.

I put my 2 weeks notice in at Anytime Fitness HQ on Friday so that I can spend more time building my business and allow myself extra hours teaching Group Fitness/Yoga Sculpt. The best part is- AF is extremely supportive of everything that I am doing and is allowing me to stay on part time. Anytime is a brand I don’t want to let go and I am so fortunate to have such an amazing support system through my workplace. A large part of Anytime’s core values is Passion and Purpose, two things that everyone should have when it comes to their career. Anytime has helped me explore many different sectors of the health/fitness industry and discover mine: recipe creation and group fitness/training.

I know what you are thinking….”you just posted about your incredible story of how you got your full time job at Anytime Fitness Headquarters. And how much you enjoy working for AF.” Well- now I am able to pursue my dream with the support of an amazing organization that has heart and wants to see their employees succeed.

I am still in a little bit of shock that I took this leap of faith at 23, but very excited for what my future holds. My family (especially Blake) has been extremely supportive over the past 6 months as I put my plan together and actually followed through with it. So thank you to each and every one of you.

That is all for now. I will have more to share when some other things play through, but for now I leave you with this…