Working with Onnit - A Step In the Right Direction

Since I first read Onnit Founder & CEO, and New York Time's Best Selling Author, Aubrey Marcus's blog post about the life lessons he learned while riding a fire-breathing dragon during an ayahuasca medicine journey in the jungles of Peru, I became very interested in him and his breath of work.

His company, Onnit, a nutritional supplement & fitness company founded in 2010 and now worth over $28 million dollars, focuses on improving athletic performance through what Aubrey refers to as "Total Human Optimization".

"Our mission is to inspire peak performance through a combination of unique products and actionable information. Combining bleeding-edge science, earth-grown nutrients, and time-tested strategies from top athletes and medical professionals, we are dedicated to providing our customers with supplements, foods, and fitness equipment aimed at helping people achieve a new level of well-being we call Total Human Optimization." - onnit.com

Their 10,000 square foot headquarters in Austin, Texas trains some of the world's top athletes using some pretty unconventional means including Onnit's primal kettlebells, battle ropes, sandbags, steel maces, steel clubs, barbells, and provide a multitude of classes including 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu and Bang Muay Thai.

Some of Onnit's pro athletes include UFC Welterweight Champion, Tyron Woodley; Olympic Gold Medalist, Bode Miller; 3x NHL Stanley Cup Winner, Jonathan Toews, as well as other well-known athletes and personalities like comedian, Joe Rogan; and entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk.

Onnit has since become an Inc. 500 company and industry leader with over 250 products ranging from peak performance supplements to foods, fitness equipment, and apparel.

Needless to say, when I found an ad on Craigslist looking for part-time brand ambassadors to distribute samples and educate people on Onnit's brand at Whole Foods across San Diego, I responded to the ad immediately.

In a period of my life that was filled with so much uncertainty around my next career move, I knew the opportunity to work with an inspirational brand like Onnit, even in a small capacity, was a step in the right direction.

Personally, I've spent significant time trying to understand my life's purpose with the hopes of finding a job that furthers myself towards it. I've meditated on it, spent long solo road trips thinking about it, and even ventured to Peru for my own ayahuasca experience in hopes to find my life's purpose and move towards it with all of my being.

In an apt 2017 interview with Forbes Magazine, that I found while researching this blog post, Aubrey gave his top 3 pieces of career advice:

1. You have to have a very clear mission and your mission is what your purpose is; it is your overriding why. If you don’t have a mission, and you don’t really know what you are doing, you are just paddling for no reason. Like, if your mission is to make as much money as possible. That is not a mission; it's just a goal along the way.

2. Focus on the process. You can get so caught up in goals and KPIs and measurements. With every single opportunity you get, just do your best and focus on the process of that and don’t worry so much about the goals. Know your mission and focus on the process.

3. Have fun. Bronnie Ware wrote about Top Death Bed Regrets, finding that people regret that they work too much and didn’t let themselves be happier. Find that balance between career and your own joy and I promise you won’t regret it in the end. When I look back, what I regret most is not enjoying the whole process along the way.

I may have heard this advice on Aubrey's podcast before, or through my own life's journey, but reading it reaffirmed here, leads me to believe I'm on the right path.

Three months later and hundreds of samples distributed, I still feel incredibly grateful to work with a such an inspirational brand that I believe in and led by one of my greatest teachers.

My part-time work with Onnit may be coming to an end as I undertake a full-time position in Central California in the health & wellness space, but I feel confident that my path and Onnit's will cross again soon.

If you want to learn more about Onnit or CEO Aubrey Marcus, check out www.onnit.com. And check out my supplement review of Onnit Alpha Brain here.

Citations:

https://www.onnit.com/about/ | https://www.onnit.com/pro-team/ | https://www.onnit.com/aubrey-marcus/ | https://www.forbes.com/sites/omaidhomayun/2016/04/06/how-aubrey-marcus-built-onnit-into-a-28-million-company-in-5-years/#19ca56226705 | https://www.forbes.com/sites/danschawbel/2017/10/31/aubrey-marcus-how-to-optimize-your-own-potential/#10d504bd6277