Meet Jennifer Lindsey | Content creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer Lindsey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risk and confidence go hand in hand, because risk has a way of fueling your confidence — fueling that belief in yourself — as long as you choose to go for it in life. I’ve just always had the mentality of, “if they can do it, why can’t I?”

Risk has always played a big part in my career and life, going back to 2010 when I was selling durable medical equipment to doctors in my early 20’s, not knowing what the heck I was doing at first. I had been working as a chiropractic assistant when I was twenty, so when the opportunity came up to get into the DME side of the industry, I took it. It was definitely a “fake it til you make it” type thing and to be honest it was scary as hell having to give presentations to doctors about medical equipment you were just learning about. Nothing will boost your confidence like facing your fears, and it’s a given that you gain a little bit more confidence every single time you get through another scary thing.

Fast forward to 2012 ish, and I had landed a different job in the medical field, this time at an old fashioned medical software company with ALL men. It was pure phone sales, something else I hadn’t ever done but I was determined to figure it out. I decided to mimic the head salesman there, put my own womanly spin on things, and before I knew it that job became very lucrative as well. I was the first woman in 20+ years to sell anything. All without a college degree, might I add. Just pure, ridiculous confidence.

When my second son was born in 2014, I decided to become a full time SAHM because I felt that was my new calling. But I still needed something for ME, so I turned my little shopping habit into a full time fashion blog on Instagram. I always had a love for fashion, so I just showed my real “outfits of the day” every single day until brands started to notice me. Eventually my fashion blog turned out to be just as lucrative as the jobs I had in the medical field!

In 2018, I started Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and everything changed. Over time I started posting a lot more about Martial Arts – which you can imagine is a POLAR opposite industry and isn’t all that popular among females. But I needed to follow my heart and took yet another risk by deciding to homeschool and continue on with my Martial Arts journey. Jiu jitsu helped me SO much with every aspect of my life… I was absolutely compelled to share it with the world. So I decided to pivot.

Eventually, Hayabusa, one of the largest combat sport gear brands in the world reached out about a sponsorship. Blew me away and it was in that moment I knew that the risk of following my heart and ditching the fashion blog was worth it.

I’m writing this to tell you that if you want something in life, you’ve gotta be bold and go for it. As long as you’re doing something that aligns with your spirit and you’re being authentic about it — you can’t lose. And if all else fails… just pivot. A much more confident you will end up where you’re supposed to be.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve done some cool things in my life but the thing I am the most proud of is earning my purple belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu last December. Jiu jitsu is incredibly challenging to learn, and the fact that it was my first sport ever in life makes it that much more special to me. It’s heavily male dominated and most don’t make it past blue belt. I’m proud to say that my husband and ten year old son train with me, too! People can take a lot of things away from you, but they can never take away your skills.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If you’re looking to visit the Dallas area, I would checkout our favorite Mexican restaurant in Richardson, Tx., called “Sueño.” Everything from the chips and salsa to the street tacos and drinks… we haven’t found a better spot. Communion co-op is the best spot for a cappuccino and they have some delicious breakfast tacos as well that you can grab with your coffee. Perot and Heard museum are great places to go if you’ve got little kids — lots to do for the whole family and affordable!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Without God I’d be nowhere. I’ve been growing my faith a lot over the past few years due to a very unfortunate personal event in my life and I wouldn’t be able to do any of the things I’m doing today without Him. I also want to thank my second family at Corvo Martial Arts in Richardson, Tx. It’s mine and my family’s home away from home and I’ve found more love and support there than anything else I’ve ever been a part of. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, guys. You know who ya are.

Instagram: @jnzandjits