Earn Your Happy 388: Turning Surviving into Thriving with Monique Bryan
Realness Wins in Storytelling
- Monique struggled to condense her life story into a 10-minute talk for Bliss Project.
- With encouragement to be real and messy, she delivered a heartfelt talk that deeply moved listeners.
Facing Breast Cancer Diagnosis
- Monique discovered her breast cancer diagnosis via a shocking and emotional two-week process.
- She initially denied and postponed chemotherapy, struggling to accept her illness.
Permission to Feel Fully
- Feel all your emotions during illness without judgment to heal properly.
- Don't prioritize others' feelings over your own while recovering.
In This Episode You Will Learn About:
- Why Monique is so passionate about helping women live their purpose
- How she established boundaries and let other people take care of her when she was sick
- Speaking your truth in a way that allows you to maintain your relationships
- Showing up, even if you don’t feel you don’t have anything important to contribute yet
Resources:
- Instagram: @moniquebryan_co
- Twitter: @MoniquebryanTO
- Learn more: moniquebryan.com
- Learn more: The Bliss Project
Show Notes:
Monique Bryan shows up in such a beautiful way. She is a speaker, a personal branding expert, a triple positive breast cancer survivor. She also helps successful women entrepreneurs package and sell their genius and unlock the lucrative world of personal brand building. Monique draws widespread admiration for her passion, hustle and unshakeable commitment to helping women showcase their expertise and pitch with confidence. She gave a Tribe Talk at the Bliss Project this year, and I’m so excited she could join me on the podcast to share her story with you all.
Question Highlights:
- What was your experience preparing for the Tribe Talk?
- Was there any parts that you were like, ‘Oh, my God, if I don't share this, will they understand?’
- What were the reminders that you had to tell yourself to get through cancer treatment?
- How do you accept help or ask for help?
- What does that first step of being able to speak your truth look like?
Guest Bio:
Monique Bryan is based in Toronto and runs her own branding consultancy. Monique has a BA in Fashion Design from Ryerson University and spent time studying abroad in London at the University of Westminster.
Upon returning to Toronto, Monique landed a design position for national retailer Le Chateau and worked her way up to Product Manager for all of ladieswear, becoming the youngest executive at the company. She quickly learned the ins and outs of manufacturing and global sourcing from working with their partners across Asia. But it was her frequent trips to India where she discovered her love of jewellery design and in 2010 she launched a jewellery company, landing her line in retailers across Toronto and New York.
This began her crash course in entrepreneurship and where she discovered her true love for business and marketing. So, when she was offered a chance to head up an accelerator program helping entrepreneurs jump-start their business five years later, she jumped at the chance. Partnering with global brands such as Paypal, Burberry, and Toms Shoes, Monique thought she had found her calling. But before she had a chance to decide, she discovered a lump in her left breast that changed her life forever.
Over the next year Monique underwent eight rounds of chemotherapy, surgery and 21 rounds of radiation, documenting the entire journey through her uncensored and very real account, on her blog, “Surprise, It’s Cancer!” Her blog was discovered by the writers at “Entrepreneur Magazine” and Monique was featured in the October issue in 2018. Today Monique has built a loyal following through her 10K + followers, speaks at events and conducts workshops while running her brand consultancy.
Earn Your Happy is a production of Crate Media