Ciera Rogers on Why You Don't Need to Fit in to Win EP 470

Nissan Pathfinder
From muddy jungle paths to snowy trails to rolling sand dunes, the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder is ready to take you to some of the most phenomenal destinations on earth. In a Pathfinder, it's more than just the arrival. The real excitement comes from the ride to get there. With seven drive modes, Pathfinder's available intelligent four wheel drive is built for some of the most epic journeys. So chase bigger, better, more exciting adventures in the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder Intelligent four wheel drive cannot prevent collisions or provide enhanced traction in all conditions.

Always monitor traffic and weather conditions. Earning your degree online doesn't mean you have to go about it alone. At Capella University, we're here to support you when you're ready. From enrollment counselors who get to know you and your goals to academic coaches who can help you form a plan to stay on track. We care about your success and are dedicated to helping you pursue your goals.

Capella University
Going back to school is a big step, but having support at every step of your academic journey can make a big difference. Imagine your future differently at capella.edu. Coming up next on passion struck. A lot of times we're passionate about things that we're not good at. We're good at things that we're not passionate about.

Sierra Rogers
There's a lot of people working in jobs that they have no passion for, and there's a lot of people that have passion for something that they're not good at all. And they can never make money. With me, I got really lucky that I just have a knack for women's bodies. I have a knack for fashion and making things look good. I got lucky in that sense.

So a list would help, basically, like if you wrote down things you were good at, wrote down things you're passionate about, and see where they meet. I think that's best because we don't ever want to go into a business where we're just passionate about it, but we're not good at it at all. Welcome to passion struck. Hi, I'm your host, John r. Miles, and on the show, we decipher the secrets, tips, and guidance of the world's most inspiring people and turned their wisdom into practical advice for you and those around you.

John R. Miles
Our mission is to help you unlock the power of intentionality so that you can become the best version of yourself. If you're new to the show, I offer advice and answer listener questions. On Fridays, we have long form interviews the rest of the week with guests ranging from astronauts to authors, CEO's creators, innovators, scientists, military leaders, visionaries, and athletes. Now let's go out there and become passion struck. Hello, everyone.

Welcome back to episode 470 of Passion Struck. Can't believe we're already at 470 interviews. What an amazing ride it has been. And we also just crossed 40 million downloads overall. Thank you so much.

My heartfelt thank you goes out to each and every one of you, return to the show every week, eager to listen, learn, and discover new ways to live better, to be better, and most importantly, make a meaningful impact in the world. If you're new to the show, thank you so much for joining us. Or you simply want to introduce this to a friend or a family member, and I so appreciate it when you do that. We have episode starter packs, which are collections of our fans favorite episodes that we organize in a convenient playlist that give any new listener a great way to get acclimated to everything we do here on the show. Either go to passionstruck.com or Spotify to get started.

I am so excited to announce that my book Passion struck won the gold medal at the Nonfiction Book Awards and also is a winner of the Eric Hoffer Book Award, where it was also on the shortlist for the grand prize. And you can pick up a copy of my book, which is now out on audiobook at Amazon, passionstruck.com, or wherever you order books. In case you missed my interview from earlier in the week, it featured the brilliant Morley Robbins, who's an expert in and mineral metabolism. In this episode, we'll explore Morley's root cause protocol and the incredible journey into the world of minerals, his groundbreaking insights on the root causes of chronic health issues, the power of copper in our diet, and the transformative power of understanding our body's mineral needs. From debunking common health myths to practical tips for optimizing your well being, it's an episode you do not want to miss, and if you liked that previous episode or today's, we would so appreciate you giving it a five star rating and review, which goes such a long way in strengthening the passion star community.

We can help more people create intentional lives, and I know we and our guests love to hear your feedback. Today we have the incredible Sierra Rogers, who's the creative force behind the women's wear line babes. Sierra has carved a unique space for herself in the fashion industry and beyond, sharing her journey and empowering women around the world. Sarah's life story reads like a novel. She went from spending nights in her mom's car struggling with homelessness to advising celebrities and seeing her designs on stars like Kim Kardashian it's a testament to what you can achieve with grit and a fresh perspective.

Today, she's here to talk about her new book, the Outsider Advantage. Because you don't need to fit in to win. It's all about using what makes you different to get ahead, Sarah will share how she turned every setback into a step forward and why she believes that not fitting in can actually be your biggest asset. We'll delve into her practical advice for anyone starting from scratch, how to use what you have right now to get to where you want to be. And she'll tell us why waiting for the perfect time is the biggest mistake you can make.

Sierra's story isn't just inspiring, it's a blueprint for making your own way when the usual paths don't work out. So whether you're an entrepreneur, a creator, or someone who's just trying to figure it out, this is one episode you won't want to miss. Thank you for choosing Passionstruck and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to creating an intentional life. Now let that journey begin. How about Cap'n crunch's crunchberries with breakfast?

Sierra Rogers
Whoa. Dad, we're on Crunch island. He's jean left foot.

And he stole our crunch. Quick, the zip line. He's getting away. Throw our last crunch berry. No.

Nissan Pathfinder
No one steals my crunch berries. I think you mean my crunchberries. Choose your own crunch venture with capping crunch. From muddy jungle paths to snowy trails to rolling sand dunes, the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder is ready to take you to some of the most phenomenal destinations on earth. In a pathfinder, it's more than just the arrival.

The real excitement comes from the ride to get there. With seven drive modes, Pathfinder's available intelligent four wheel drive is built for some of the most epic journeys. So chase bigger, better, more exciting adventures in the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder. Intelligent four wheel drive cannot prevent collisions or provide enhanced traction in all conditions. Always monitor traffic and weather conditions.

Capella University
Earning your degree online doesn't mean you have to go about it alone. At Capella University, we're here to support you when you're ready. From enrollment counselors who get to know you and your goals to academic coaches who can help you form a plan to stay on track. We care about your success and are dedicated to helping you pursue your goals. Going back to school is a big step, but having support at every step of your academic journey can make a big difference.

Imagine your future differently at capella.edu.

John R. Miles
I am absolutely, absolutely thrilled and honored to welcome Sarah Rogers to passion struck. Welcome, Sarah. Thank you. Thank you for having me. Excited to talk with you today.

Today we're going to be talking to you about your brand new memoir, the outsider advantage, because you don't need to fit in to win. Congratulations to you on its release. Thank you so much. I'm really excited to present it to the world, and I hope it helps a lot of people. So, as you were writing this, was there an audience that you had in mind that you hoped the book would resonate with?

Sierra Rogers
Definitely. It's a business memoir, so I wanted a business memoir that catered to people like me, outsiders, people that felt like they didn't have the answers. Maybe you didn't grow up in the right family. Maybe you didn't have any money, connections, resources, any internships, education, experience at all. I wanted to make them feel seen and heard and give them a way to find success.

John R. Miles
Well, I appreciate that. I have two children, 25 and 20 now, and I know my son is finding himself in this stage where he continues. He's the older one, where he's been doing these portfolio jobs that aren't really bringing him fulfillment. And he has this aspiration that he wants, but he's having trouble figuring out how to go from point a to point b. So I'm hoping your story will be an inspiration to people like him and other listeners.

I always think it's important to start these things off by giving people some backdrop into who you are and how you got to where you are. But for in your case, I want to start out by talking about your childhood, and you grew up in less than ideal circumstances. Can you describe that? We moved around a lot. By moving around, I mean, like, hopping from couch to couch or car to car.

Sierra Rogers
I never really technically didn't have my own room until I was in high school or a door to close, so we. Yeah, less than ideal situations, definitely for my childhood. Yeah. And I know that creativity plays a huge role in your life. Were there early signs of creativity being important, that you found early indicators that fashion was something you would be passionate about?

Oh, 100%. None of this comes from me. All this comes from my mother. It's interesting because being an adult, I'm like, yeah, all of these things, all of these attributes I have came from me. But no, they came directly from my mother.

She was heavily influenced by fashion. She always had a magazine in her hand. We would go in and out of thrift stores just looking at clothes. So it definitely came from her and passed down to me. Well, you and I have something in common.

John R. Miles
We both have lived in Houston. I was there for a short time, but it's definitely an interesting city, depending on where you live in that greater metropolitan area. I happened to work right downtown, and I at the time was working for Arthur Andersen, which meant that I was getting to work with a lot of the energy companies around town. But what I found not growing up there was that it was easy for me to make connections, and a lot of people would give me opportunities to meet with them. But I found it much more difficult to break into the community.

After you had that initial meeting, if you weren't a well known person or related to them or somehow introduced to them, did you find the same thing? Yeah, definitely. I think it's much easier if you grow up in the family where the job is handed to you or you already have been given all the answers. If you're just out on your own and you feel like you're an outsider, it can be really disheartening. But I'm hoping that by using what's in my book, it will help you gain success faster.

So, as I opened up your book, I love the initial pages, which had career timeline, and you illustrate on one side what the typical person goes through, and on the other side, you indicate your path, and then you end it by showing the same thing. But what path is the reader going to take themselves? And I find this interesting because I mentioned to you that I came out with my own book this year, and you and I are in many ways talking about the same thing. I went down. This conventional path that you lay out is what most people do, is that they go to college.

I ended up going to the naval academy. So mine was a little bit different. But when I got in the business world, it was all climbing the corporate ladder and then getting the possessions, retiring, etcetera, dying. And I think it's this path that. I think it's this path that so many people find themselves on.

But I was in the middle of this journey and completely unfulfilled. So I understand now why there are hundreds of millions of people who feel unfulfilled, because this path that we think to becoming the dream that we're told to become, I don't think is the path to fulfilling living. And you certainly didn't find that to be the fact. What allowed you to veer from that historical path and to carve out this unique path that you've taken? Honestly, I try to do the traditional path.

Sierra Rogers
I mean, I'm from Texas. I thought I was going to go to school, get my degree, get married, have two kids, send them off to college, and then eventually die, like you said. So I did try, but it just wasn't working. So I was forced off the path, which a lot of us are. It definitely wasn't like a choice for me.

Looking back in hindsight, I wish I would have moved off that path sooner. If I can give any advice to anyone, the traditional path is B's. We're not all taking the path, we're all carving our own course. So the quicker you realize that, the quicker you'll find your own success. Yeah.

John R. Miles
And this leads me back to that discussion I was having before with my son, because he has taken this path similar to you. He got into this desire to want to get into pr, to get into kind of the social media work, helping brands grow, but his real passion is in music, and so now he's working on it. And where we live in Tampa isn't the easiest place to pursue music, but it's difficult when you're in that position to just pick up and go to Nashville or LA or wherever you need to. But you found yourself in the similar place. You were living in Houston and you couldn't find a job.

And it wasn't due to the laziness factor, it was. You didn't find that there was an opportunity for someone like you who had a degree but no experience. Correct. What gave you that courage to go to LA, where really you went with the clothes on your back and nothing much more? I honestly don't know.

Sierra Rogers
I feel like I. It feels crazy now that I did it. Whoever that girl was, she had no other choice. It's funny. Like, it's funny the things that you able to accomplish when your back is against the wall.

So I felt like that gave me the extra push. Like, I have nothing here, nothing is working. And the longer I stay here, I'm just going to lose time and get older. So I just decided to just go, and that gave me that push. And in those early days when you were in LA, there were many times where you were close to homelessness.

John R. Miles
What motivated you when you found yourself in those places to keep going? I talk about this in my book, using trauma as a motivator. I was poor the majority of my life, in and out of homelessness the majority of my life. So whenever I feel like I'm getting close to that, there is a trauma sense in me that motivates me to work harder. I'm one of the hardest working people that I know, because I refuse to go back to the way that I was.

Sierra Rogers
Yeah, that's how I got through that.

John R. Miles
So one of the things that we cover a lot on this show is the power of our choices in shaping our future. Was there a critical moment when you realized that your choices impacted how you were going to live your life and why being intentional about them was so important? See, the funny thing is, none of this is, like, super intentional, which is something that I always say. It's like us as outsiders or anyone that's like, really been through something. It's like a reflex.

Sierra Rogers
It's hard to explain. It's not a written thing, I think. It's not something that is on the surface that I'm planning. It's just something I'm reacting to. And yes, it is a bunch of small choices that have been have let me up to this moment.

There's no long, big out plan that I have made for this. One of the things that I love that you wrote was everything I knew about styling, I learned by watching my mom. I realized that it's not what you have in your closet, it's how you use it. You realized in that moment that you would become successful by using what you did have. Can you explain?

I didn't have anything at that time. So at that moment in LA, I felt like I didn't. I knew what I didn't have. I mean, we all know we don't have. I didn't have the money, I didn't have a car.

I didn't have connections or resources. So it's about focusing on what you do have. And what I had was my experiences. I had what I learned from my mother. I had, literally, the clothes that I brought to LA.

So I used those things as resources to get me to where I'm at today. Instead of feeling like a victim or feeling sorry for myself, I decided to look for what I actually did have. And it's so interesting. I always found in the corporate world that people are reading your resume and oftentimes they're spending 30 seconds a minute looking at this thing that is supposed to define your life, but really defines so little of you and the book you write. Suddenly, the resume I held onto so tightly with a mangled mix of embarrassment and pride felt like just a piece of paper.

John R. Miles
It didn't define me or sum me up just as being turned down time and time again for jobs I knew I could do quite well, didn't sum up who you would be. And you write here that I think something that is so profound. Their short sightedness did not determine my potential. I did. And you write to the audience.

You do. Can you explain this and why it's so important to the audience? You're not a piece of paper. I mean, I'm sure you know that. You're not your education.

Sierra Rogers
I mean, hell, sometimes a lot of those things on those papers are lies. We've all done it like or fibbed. You're definitely not defined by those things. It's about what you're capable of, what you can do. And that's definitely hard.

That's why I wasn't getting hired. I think that's definitely hard to portray to someone that's looking at you as a piece of paper or based off of your experiences. So it's best to just know what you're capable of and go from there. Yeah. And one of the things that I love to explore is this whole idea of life, crafting the life that we want.

John R. Miles
And this is this chasm that we often find ourselves into in exploring the relationship between what we're good at and what we're passionate about and making the two become one. And this is something that you absolutely did. How did you go about figuring that out? I got lucky a lot of times. We're not.

Sierra Rogers
We're passionate about things that we're not good at or we're good at things that we're not passionate about. There's a lot of people working in jobs that they have no passion for, and there's a lot of people that have passion for something that they're not good at all and they can never make money. So I think with me, I got really lucky that I just have a knack for women's bodies. I have a knack for fashion and making things look good. So I found that I got lucky in that sense.

So a list would help, basically, if you wrote down things you were good at, wrote down things you're passionate about and see where they meet. I think that's best because we don't ever want to go into a business where we're just passionate about it, but we're not good at it at all. So it's best to make those things meet if you're smart. Yeah. Well, I think the way that you write about it in the book is a smart way for people to think about this, because you said in the list you had things such as film, music and art.

John R. Miles
And then in the margins, you started to jot down notes on what sort of hard skills are required to do these jobs. And I think that is a really important thing because either you're going to have the skills, you're going to have to learn the skills. And sometimes when you understand what that gap is, it gives you an opportunity to realize what you're up against and you realize that you were, as an example, passionate about film production. But one of the hard skills required to do video editing, which is something you didn't do. Right.

Sierra Rogers
It gave me the opportunity to learn it. You know, that's definitely right. Like, even when you talk about your son being passionate about music, is he good at it? That's the question. You know what I mean?

Like, do other people think that you're good at it? Can you actually do this for a business? So it's important to. Yeah. Find out what those skills are with the things that you're passionate about and either get learn those skills or you may already have them.

John R. Miles
Yeah. So it's basically carving out the intersection with your experiences that you've had so far and the goals that you want to accomplish in life and then figuring out how you get from point a to point b, which is very difficult for people to do. Correct. Was there an initial person, like a mentor or an influencer that you ran into that inspired you on this journey? The only person I say is my mom.

Sierra Rogers
I wasn't lucky enough to have a mentor. Sometimes I wish I would have. I don't know if my journey would have been different. I think they're great if you can find one. I didn't have that.

I had to make a way for myself. But I definitely. My mom is my main inspiration. She taught me everything that I know now that I'm realizing as an adult, like, all of this came from her. Yeah.

John R. Miles
I also understand, in addition to your mom, that you had a chance to meet Spike Lee. What influence or advice did he give to you? At the time, my business wasn't together. I just got here in LA. So I was just calling myself a stylist.

Sierra Rogers
I think that's what people do when they get here. They're like, I'm a singer now. I'm a stylist. I was calling myself something, but he took it serious. He's, wait a minute, I need, like, actual proof.

You need a website, you need a business card. So you need to get your stuff together. So that kind of motivated me because I admire him so much and all the work that he's done to push me further and at least look professional, look the part instead of just saying. What I was from muddy jungle, paths to snowy trails to rolling sand dunes, the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder is ready to take you to some of the most phenomenal destinations on earth. In a Pathfinder, it's more than just the arrival.

Nissan Pathfinder
The real excitement comes from the ride to get there. With seven drive modes, Pathfinder's available intelligent four wheel drive is built for some of the most epic journeys. So chase bigger, better, more exciting adventures in the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder intelligent four wheel drive cannot prevent collisions or provide enhanced traction in all conditions. Always monitor traffic and weather conditions. Earning your degree online doesn't mean you have to go about it alone.

Capella University
At Capella University, we're here to support you when you're ready. From enrollment counselors who get to know you and your goals, to academic coaches who can help you form a plan to stay on track, we care about your success and are dedicated to helping you pursue your goals. Going back to school is a big step, but having support at every step of your academic journey can make a big difference. Imagine your future differently at capella.edu. Yeah.

John R. Miles
And where did you think that gap was? Because oftentimes you hear people say, you've got to manifest what you want to be. You need to start acting the part. You need to start showing up as if you want to be a millionaire, you need to start acting like a millionaire. If you want to be a record producer, you got to start up acting like you're a record producer.

In your case, you want to be a fashion mogul, you got to start acting like it. But that's much more difficult to do than it sounds. And it's difficult to get into some of those circles that you need to surround yourself with in order to accomplish it. How did you bridge that gap? I think it was the audience, too.

Sierra Rogers
He's like, Spike Lee, so he's wanting proof. You know what I mean? Like, it depends on who you're talking to. If you're in a room where you're just networking, yeah, I think you should definitely act the part. If you haven't styled one person, act like you've styled one person, because that's going to get you more work.

With Spike, he was like, no, I need proof. So it really depends on your audience. It depends. You gotta cater your message to your audience. So I was talking to Spike Lee.

I needed to have my stuff together a little better.

John R. Miles
So I've started a few businesses myself, and there's always a bunch of hurdles and getting them off the ground and then gaining momentum. And I find oftentimes when people start to struggle with some of the hurdles, they often lose the emphasis on the core thing that they were trying to solve for in the beginning. Did you ever find yourself in that type of situation and how did you get through it? Yeah, definitely. I talk about this in my book, too.

Sierra Rogers
When I lost my core, I started. I think it's good to look at competition, but I started comparing myself to competition, and I felt like babes. My business didn't look like a lot of the other businesses that I admire. Babe started by just relating to the everyday girl. I used everyday pictures.

I use a lot of my customers pictures. So my site or my website didn't look like other sites did. But that's how I gained my success. But as I got more successful, I started comparing, and whenever I compared, I changed my aesthetic, and that did not work out for me. That was some of my lowest sales to date.

So I had definitely was forced to get back to my core. Yeah, this is something that I write about in my book. I actually borrowed this from Benjamin Hardy, who's a psychologist, but he calls this the gap versus the gain. And so many of us live in the gap where we are making incremental progress, but we keep comparing ourselves to others that we see. And for me, it would be as a podcaster trying to compare myself to Jay Shetty or Joe Rogan or someone who's been doing this a long time.

John R. Miles
And I'm constantly going to be living in the gap as opposed to looking at the gain, which is my past self, compared to my actual self, who I am today, and the progress that I've made. Why do you think it's so difficult for us to look at the gains and we always fall back on the gaps. It's hard. It's hard for me now, even though I know it's wrong, I still do it. It's hard.

Sierra Rogers
And social media, it's a great tool, but it's also, like a dangerous tool because you can find any and everything around the world to compare yourself to. So it's definitely hard to look at the gain. It's definitely easier to stay in the gap. But I always, I try to remind myself, do I want to be a watered down version of what I'm copying, or would I prefer to just be me? Because people like original things.

What's the point in copying someone that's already them? I don't want to be a watered down version. So it's just. It's smarter to be yourself. Yeah.

John R. Miles
And I think a great example of that is everyone's heard of Groupon, but when Groupon hit the scene, there are like eight different companies that came out of the woodwork that were doing the same thing that Groupon did. And to me, I think one of the superpowers that people don't utilize enough is our originality. To me, the key to success is utilizing your uniqueness in the service of others, in the service of how you can use the unique talents that you have to make a difference in other people's lives. Have you found that to be true yourself? Yeah, absolutely.

Sierra Rogers
But I think there's a balance, right. I don't think you should not look at other podcasts or should not look at your competition, because if they're successful, like, looking at what they're doing can possibly help you. But you also have to know yourself if you're a copier or you get, or that would make you insecure, maybe lay off of it. It's a balance of sticking to your core eyes on your own paper, remembering, like, who you are, staying original, but also looking at competition, looking how and why people are successful, and seeing how you can make those two things meet. Yeah, you're absolutely right.

John R. Miles
When I started this podcast, I remember I must have listened to 250 different podcasts because I was trying to get my wits are about me, about what made a great podcast, what didn't, how did the host behave, how did they not? And so that was really important. But, like, the first six months I was doing this, I found out that I was asking questions and emulating other hosts that I had seen. Yeah. And I realized that no one's gonna listen to this because I'm trying to be someone else.

They're going to either love it or hate it by me being myself. But it's a difficult thing to come into, because oftentimes you don't have the confidence to trust that what you're doing is actually going to take off. Did you ever feel that way? Oh, yeah. I'm still working on my confidence.

Sierra Rogers
I know it sounds weird, but being yourself, especially on camera, is very vulnerable. Like, we take the Internet lightly, like, we're putting ourselves out there, our faces out there, our thoughts out there. So it's much easier to try to be someone else. You can be in a corner just in case they judge that person. So, yeah, it's definitely.

It's a very emotional, vulnerable, and if you're not, like, super confident, which I'm not, I'm still working on that now, and be difficult, for sure. Yeah. One of my favorite videos I saw of you. As I was researching for this was a short video that your sister made of you a few years ago. Remember this?

John R. Miles
But it was great. She goes to the Starbucks and she orders you maka, and then you take her on a day in the life of Sierra. And it was really just interesting for me to see the interplay that the two of you had and how your decisions and what kind of models did you want to use for these shows? How were they going to represent your brand, et cetera. Can you describe that relationship that you have with your sister?

Because it seemed like from watching this, you two were really close and supportive of each other. Oh, we're definitely close. I mean, it was just me and my mom and my sister my entire life. Me and my sister, only a year and three months apart. So we were on top of each other.

Sierra Rogers
We talk every single day. She's one of the hardest working people I know. I mean, we have all of the same life experiences, so we definitely are super close. We still work together. If I have any business advice or questions or need anything, she's going to be there.

And she's the person that I trust the most because she knows me the most and I respect her worth ethic and her honesty. And, yeah, I'm obsessed with her. Yeah. Well, something that caught my eye as I was learning more about your business is earlier in the year, I got to interview Jamie Kern Lima, who I'm sure, and what really struck me is when she made the transition to do it, cosmetics. People were telling her to showcase models who looked beautiful and models who we see on magazine covers.

John R. Miles
And when she made that fateful decision, when she went on QVC and she decided to take the chance that would define who she's become now, she made the decision to really double down on showing women who had flaws, who had imperfections, and how the product was helping them. But it was a risky move, and many people told her not to do it. But similar to that approach, you've taken a similar approach with your brand. What led you down that direction and to double down on it? I just so happen to post a picture.

Sierra Rogers
So this was back in 2012 when Instagram first started, when everyone was smoothing out their skin and over photoshopping themselves. So I made a decision to just not. I said, you know what? I'm just going to put it out there. I have cellulite and throw that out there.

And I got so much feedback, positive feedback about people feeling seen that it was refreshing and that kind of catered my aesthetic. Yeah, definitely. That's how it started.

John R. Miles
Yeah. And maybe you can help the audience by helping them understand your design process. How do you decide which ideas make it from concept to creation when you're designing fashion? In my office, because I have two plus size employees, it's, will it fit me and will it fit someone that is forex and still look good? That's the decision that I have to make.

Sierra Rogers
And a lot of brands don't take that time. They're just like, this is the body type that I want and this is what it's going to fit. But those are the decisions I have to make. Will it fit me and will it fit someone bigger than me and still look sexy, still look good, still make her feel confident? If it answers that question, then it's a go.

John R. Miles
And have you had examples where women who are wearing your clothes have reached out to you and expressed thankfulness, et cetera, for maybe how it's helped their body image? Yeah, definitely. Because our sizing is so inclusive, I don't make you feel bad. Once you go to my site, you're going to have your size and you're going to feel sexy. And it's not going to just because you're bigger.

Sierra Rogers
It's not going to look like grandma clothes or a bunch of prints or I'm not completely covering you up. I'm showing off your body and I'm framing it to make you feel sexy. So, yeah, I've gotten those comments since the very beginning. I get messages all the time. Women stop me in the street.

They tell me how I've me showing my flaws and my imperfections have made them more confident to showing themselves. Because we do have flaws. We do not look. No one looks like these people on tv. Even the people on tv don't look like that.

So it's like, let's stop putting that out there because it's difficult to accomplish. It makes people feel bad about themselves. So it's best to put our flaws out there and be real so we can all see what the world actually looks like. Yeah. And I just have a hypothetical question for you right now.

John R. Miles
These weight loss drugs that people are taking are, I mean, and they are just growing more and more in popularity. But I wonder, do you think it's a help to the body image movement or do you think it's a negative impact to it? I don't like it. I didn't like it from the beginning. I don't like it.

Sierra Rogers
I think that health from the inside is more important because I've learned that even like a skinny person versus like a skinny person would be super unhealthy inside. Like you could have all type of medical issues. It's about starting taking a drug just as a quick fix. I don't trust it. I think the old school way of eating the right foods and moving your body, even if you don't like the gym.

I hate the gym. I prefer to walk or stay active in my regular life. So just take care of your body in the way that you're supposed to. Those quick fixes, I don't think they're smart. I don't think they're a good idea because you end up getting the weight back and it's just like a.

I don't trust it. Personally. I'm not a doctor, but I don't trust. Yeah, I'm always just worried about the long term implications because there's so much we don't know about how these things are going to impact people. And it's starting to come out that there are some negative side effects about them.

John R. Miles
So to me, the jury is really still out. I've seen it really help some people lose weight, but the vast majority of people that I've seen who take it, once they get off it, put the weight back on. Oh, 100%. I have a few friends that were on a Zipik last summer that have gained all the weight back. It's because you have to train yourself to eat right, eat correctly.

Sierra Rogers
So if you don't have a routine with anything, you're going to go back to the way that you were. Unless you're going to be on these drugs your entire life. And who wants that? Easier said than done. I can't tell someone that needs that quick fix like you don't.

I don't want to be the person, don't do this. If you need a quick fix, then very well. But you need to create a lifelong routine. That's the healthiest way to do it. No, 100%.

John R. Miles
And it's interesting because I interview a ton of medical professionals and behavior scientists on this podcast. And what I have come to the conclusion now that I'm 460 episodes in and that it's behavior change, that's really the future of medicine. It's you becoming the CEO of your own journey and understanding that it's your lifestyle choices, meaning what you put in your body, the sleep that you get, etc. That are going to dictate your health span. Yeah.

Sierra Rogers
And it feels better too. If you're anything like me, accomplishing the goals feels good. So if I change my eating habits for a week, and I start to feel like I lost a little weight. Like, yeah, I did that. You know what I mean?

Like, it's not just a quick fix. It's working hard and accomplishing those goals. It feels good to take that into your own hands. And it's much more healthy, by the way. Yeah, absolutely.

John R. Miles
Well, in your book, the outsider advantage, you discuss as a key component how you turn disadvantages into assets. And I was hoping you might be able to expand on that concept because it's one of the most profound things in your memoir, I guess. With me, my main disadvantage was being poor. So I've used that trauma and I've used that experience of basically being able to make a way out of no way. You gave me $50.

Sierra Rogers
I feel like I can either flip that or I can survive off that because I'm so used to surviving on so little. So that has definitely become. Being poor or having that type of background has brought a lot of skills in me right now. Yeah. I have a friend, Rory Vaden, who has this saying that we are best positioned to serve the person we once were.

John R. Miles
Do you think that rings true for you? Oh, definitely. I'm hoping that I'm serving people like me, that. I mean, that's the whole point of this book I'm serving. I wish I would have had a mentor like me when I was growing up.

Sierra Rogers
I wish I would have had this book when I was making my way through LA and feeling insecure and feeling like nothing was going to work for me. So, yeah, I definitely agree with that. Definitely serving the person that I once was. And for someone who's out there who might have been a person that you used to be, and they feel like they're an outsider, what advice would you give to them on how they take that first step to invoke change? What do you have?

Stop thinking about what you don't have. We know what you don't have. What do you have? What natural skills do you already have that you feel like? You feel like that other?

The world may view a lot of the things that you're going through as disadvantages or limitations, but a lot of the things that have happened to you have really prepped you from where you are. People go to school for stuff that you already know how to do. People are getting hired every day and they're putting things on resumes for skills that you naturally have. It's just about opening yourself up and figuring out what you're good at and then using those things as skills to conquer your dreams.

John R. Miles
And I know one of the areas when you're starting out a business that's really important is creating your personal brand image and then the image and branding for the company. And you've done a really great job at this. As I was doing research, you're up to over 2 million followers. What are some of your biggest pieces of advice for others, if they're starting from scratch, on how you do this? Because that gap can seem huge.

Sierra Rogers
I got lucky. So as I started, me, I'm like, because I'm not a super confident person, I need proof. So when I first got my first comment, oh, my gosh, sierra, you showing your flaws has helped me. You know what I mean? You making clothes that fit body types like mine helped me.

That's when my brand was born. Listen to your audience. They will tell you, like, what your brand is and go from there. It's great. It's great to start off with your brand, but if your audience disagrees with it, then you don't have a business, but your audience will tell you and you just have to take the journey from there.

John R. Miles
And what do you do when you reach those points? I know, I've been there when you're putting out post after post, and I was talking to Tim Denning, who's like a master in this, and he tells me, if you want to make a difference, you got to post on Twitter and threads at least four times a day. You've got to do two LinkedIn posts, you've got to do Instagram, and you can't miss a day. And it just sounds like it's so much. It's so much.

Sierra Rogers
Yeah, it's so much. It's stressful, social media, stressful. I have to do it because I have a business that survives off of it, but it is stressful. I don't think there's one because the algorithm is so messed up, even on Instagram, I'm sure. Or if you have an Instagram, you can put out the best content in the entire world and follow all the rules and no one sees it.

Just don't get down on yourself. Know that you still put out good content. Don't let social media define you. But it's definitely hard. I have no rules for that.

Social media has Instagram. The app is different. Now. In the beginning, when I first started Instagram, if you posted something, your friends would see it, your followers would see it, you would see people that you follow. But now it can be a definitely a very stressful thing.

I am not the expert on that. We may want to cut this, but social media stresses me out, honestly. No, it stresses me out, too. And I'm there with you, and it's just so hard to post every single day, but you have to do it. And so, yeah, to me, I've got.

John R. Miles
I got the content and I keep putting it out and it's just so interesting because pieces of content that I think are going to play so well get nothing. And then things that you don't expect to take off, and I can never figure out what's working and what isn't at times. It's not up to you. It's the algorithm, it's what's happening. The pieces that you think are great are still great.

Sierra Rogers
It's just the app is not showing it, and it's not your fault. They're still great. So sometimes I repost. I mean, a lot of the influencers that I. I know they'll literally take that down and they're like, oh, wasn't the right time?

Repost in an hour or repost it tomorrow because it's great content and it should be seen or boosted. I mean, you'd have to pay for it. But, yeah, it's still great content. I wouldn't view it as less than the other or this just so happened to maybe wasn't the wrong time to post it. So, Sarah, are there any future projects that you're currently working on that you're excited about besides the book?

I'm hoping to get a physical store for babes because I think I love online shopping, but I. I'd like to have somewhere where people can actually try on the clothes. It's a moving backwards. I know everything's going e commerce, but I'm missing. I don't want to call it the old days when people used to walk in stores and try on things, but I'm hoping that's next for me, at least, for my company at least.

John R. Miles
So if that was the case, like, in your mind, five years from now, where would you imagine babes being if you could create it exactly the way you want it to unfold? I'd like to go into maternity because I feel like babes has been such a trajectory of my own life. So if I start a family or if I have kids, I want it to grow with me. So while I'm pregnant, I want a maternity line. When I have kids, I would like to start a kids line.

Sierra Rogers
So that's what I see for the next five years, wherever my life takes me, I want to take babes. Okay? And I know, looking back, there are so many lessons that I would have told my younger self, which is part of the reason I wrote my book for my younger self, in the form of dedicating it to my two kids and people who are coming up in their careers. Looking back, what would you tell your younger self about the journey ahead that you've had to face?

Stop comparing. There's no traditional path. There's a lot of hardship to come. There's a lot of hardship that you face, but you can handle it because you've been through it all already. You've already got all the skills and all of the.

You've already learned all the lessons to get you through what's coming in the future. You have a unique perspective, the way that you want the world to look like. So if you stay true to that, and if you do that quicker than what I did, we can become successful much quicker and move to LA quicker. You can do it. Stop being so hot on yourself and be yourself when you get there.

John R. Miles
So another part of the book that I enjoyed reading is you wrote that I'm addicted to getting things for free. Even now, I get this nauseous feeling in my gut when I have to spend actual money. So I was determined to build this business as inexpensively as possible. How have you learned to run a business like that where you're basically trying to stretch things as far as they can go? Because oftentimes we want to pour so much money into something, but it really is a balance to build something and to try to do it in as cost effective manner as we possibly can.

Sierra Rogers
Me, because of my trauma and because I don't want to go back to being poor, I'm always thinking, I'm about to be poor if I have a bad sales day or if I make some wrong money decision, my trauma is telling me, oh, you're about to be poor, or you're going to be homeless, or that insecurity pops up. So I try to always either live at my means or below my means. I never live above my means. And I know that sounds crazy, and I know a lot of people do it. Just me personally, that's just how I move.

I always have to be set up for a rainy day. I make. I stretch things as far as they can go. My sister is like, yeah, you made it. You can buy, like, better toilet tissue for your house.

And I'm like, yeah, but what's going in the toilet? Let me just save my money. That's just my personality that's how I've made it this far, and that's how I build a savings account and build a business, and I managed to pay my employees. Whether I have a bad sales day, bad sales month, I'm always prepped up. Okay.

John R. Miles
And then one thing that I liked also about the book is you were talking about the time where you were living in your mom's car, basically. And you say you don't look begrudgingly at your years of living in a vehicle. Instead, you look at it, at what you learn from that phase in your life. And you said it was an intentional and active choice to take ownership of the lens. I chose to view who I am, where I've come from, and what I'm capable of becoming.

And it really made me think of the story of Hilary Swank, the actress, because I'm not sure if you knew this, but she and her mom lived in a van when they first moved to LA, and she was going to audition, and she finally got her breakthrough role, which she won an Oscar for, but it literally paid her, like, $3,500. Wow. And hearing her talk about it, she says, if it wasn't for those humble beginnings and learning that viewpoint, she wouldn't be the actress that she is today. Do you think it's the same thing with you? Oh, yeah, definitely.

Sierra Rogers
Even hearing, like, how much she got paid, any other actress would probably been like, oh, that's not enough for me. But she's like, know what? I'm like, living in this van. I need to make a way. So she was hustling.

Those type of people are just built different. If you've ever lived in your car, been homeless, or been through anything at all, like, you're just built different. You're a hustler. You're ready to conquer life. So there's no, I'm not surprised.

That is, like, when you tell me your background makes the most sense, because she's an incredible actress. I think you're talking about boys don't cry. As her first role, I'm trying to remember what her first role was. Yeah, yeah, that was the first role. Amazing.

So it makes the most sense. Like, she's a hustler. Like, that background has sharpened you, and it has made you, like, just. You're just built different, and you're ready to handle anything. So, yeah, I look at that lens proud.

Like, not proudly, but not. We were safe. Like, when people say, oh, you lived in your car? I'm like, well, at least we had a car. My mom always made me feel safe and children adapt.

My mom made it fun. We always had somewhere to go during the day. We had food, the windows rolled up, the heat worked in the car. Yeah. I looked back on it.

At least I was lucky enough to have a mom and a sister, and I was safe. Yeah. Sierra, one of the things that I've loved about this discussion and about your book is we often look at the zip code that we're born into, the family who raises us. And some people get stuck by that. I mean, it can be a completely negative thing that people have a difficulty breaking out of, or sometimes it immediately positions them to go to an Ivy League school.

John R. Miles
But I've really come to the fundamental belief that those zip codes and that early upbringing don't define you if you're willing to make the choices, to live your life differently. And so for those listeners who are dreaming big but are facing obstacles maybe because of that zip code or family that they were born into, what final words of encouragement could you offer them. If you have a family? Because luckily I was support. My mom supported me.

Sierra Rogers
But I know a lot of people that are with families that don't support them or that feel like they need to go on some sort of path that they are either not capable of. It's not possible, or they're just not interested in. But you're, like, carving out your own life with respect to your family and where you came from, because obviously, like, they built you. Thank you for raising me, whoever you are. That definitely doesn't define you.

You can carve out your own version of success. You can raise your family different. You can have your own path. It's about just looking ahead. Okay.

John R. Miles
And then for the listeners who want to know more about you and your brand, where are the best places for them to go? They can go to sierrarogers.com, and everything's there. You can shop there. You can get my book there. Yeah.

And the last question is, someone picks up your memoir and reads it, what is the most important thing that you want them to take away from it? There's nothing I can give you. There's nothing that you need to go and get. You already have everything that you need inside of you that you're already built with to help you find success. And I just want to shine a light on that.

Sierra Rogers
That's all I want to do. Okay. Well, Sarah, thank you so much for being here. It was truly an honor to have you. Thank you so much.

John R. Miles
What an incredible honor that was to interview Sarah Rogers. And I wanted to thank Penguin Random House and Sarah for the honor and privilege of joining us on today's show. Links to all things Sarah will be in the show. Notes@passionstruck.com dot please use our website links if you purchase any of the books from the guests that we feature here on the show. I have a whole list of recommended books on the Passionstruck website under Passion struck podcast that you can also check out from all the interviews that I've done over the last three and a half years.

Videos are on YouTube at both our main channel at John R. Miles and our clips channel at Passion struck clips. Please go and join over 250,000 other subscribers who tune in to our episodes. Weekly advertiser deals and discount codes are in one convenient place@passionstruck.com. deals please consider supporting those who support the show.

If you want daily doses of inspiration, then please join me on the social platforms at John R. Miles, where I post daily quotes, reels and inspirational videos. If you want to join our passion struck challenge, you can do so by signing up for our weekly newsletter live intentionally. And if you want to find out where you sit on the passion struck continuum, then go to passionstruck.com and sign up to take the passion struck quiz. It'll take about ten minutes of your time and consist of 20 easy questions.

You're about to hear a preview of the podcast interview that I did with James Ray, the visionary leader who transformed Ashley Stewart against all the odds. From his humble beginnings as a high school teacher to becoming the self described least qualified CEO of a struggling fashion retailer. James story is one of resilience, innovation, and the transformation of the power of kindness. All of us are thinking these macro things, big policy, big changes, and it's hard to do that. You can't do that if you don't do small acts in your personal life.

You have to get into the habit of doing that. So we want all these great things policy wise changes, but we need to just focus on what we control in our personal lives. And to start with that, I think a lot of the quote problems will actually go away. Remember that we rise by lifting others. So share this show with those that you love and care about.

And if you found today's episode with Sierra inspiring, then definitely share this episode with family and friends. In the meantime, do your best to apply what you hear on the show so that you can live what you listen. Until next time, go out there and become passion strong.

Nissan Pathfinder
From muddy jungle paths to snowy trails to rolling sand dunes, the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder is ready to take you to some of the most phenomenal destinations on earth. In a pathfinder, it's more than just the arrival the real excitement comes from the ride to get there. With seven drive modes, Pathfinder's available intelligent four wheel drive is built for some of the most epic journeys. So chase bigger, better, more exciting adventures in the 2024 Nissan Pathfinder intelligent four wheel drive cannot prevent collisions or provide enhanced traction in all conditions. Always monitor traffic and weather conditions.

Capella University
Imagine earning a degree that prepares you with real skills for the real world. Capella University's programs teach skills relevant to your career so you can apply what you learn right away. Learn how Capella can make a difference in your life at Capella, Eduardo.

Ciera Rogers on Why You Don't Need to Fit in to Win EP 470

Primary Topic

Episode Summary

Main Takeaways

Episode Chapters

1: Introduction to Ciera Rogers

2: Discussion on "The Outsider Advantage"

3: Practical Advice for Entrepreneurs

4: Overcoming Barriers

5: Conclusion and Takeaways

Actionable Advice

About This Episode

People

Companies

Books

Guest Name(s):

Content Warnings:

Transcript