About IsabelleMcKenzie.com

What dream do you have? What struggle do you face? What baggage are you carrying? What life do you want to build for yourself? How do you want to feel every day?

Powerful questions, right?

This site is full of awesome resources, ideas, online programs and support designed to put YOU back in charge of what’s most important:

your mindset, relationships, health, time, money and freedom.

 … tried to deal with and to the root of your biggest health challenges like sugar and junk food addictions but find yourself falling back into the same-old negative patterns.

… struggled with your mindset and can’t quite break free from the stress, overwhelm, negative self-talk and challenges your facing in your daily life.  

… tried to get in touch with what you truly want and get crystal clear on your goals, perhaps start your own biz, travel the world, or go to University but just can’t seem to lock down where to start.

Just maybe…

… no matter where you are in your own personal journey, you want your life to have a BIGGER impact, to find and live your purpose, to achieve your goals… and maybe you want someone in your corner to share and help you break-through challenges, to crush self-sabotage and negative self-talk and create a life without negative thinking and harmful self-image issues.

You want someone who will put your interests first and communicate with you like a person, someone who’s been through it all too?

In short, I’m here to help in any way I can.

After all, navigating your way to your own personal goals can be tricky, but it gets a whole lot easier with a mentor at your side.

I KNOW this because I’ve lived it (and am continuing to live it!) -  I’m passionate about seemingly unrelated topics, ideas and subjects. I’ve had a very unusual up-bringing (if you’re interested see my full story below!) which has caused some challenges for me, but I’ve fully embraced that I’ll never fit into one particular category …

… and I don’t think anyone ever needs to fit into one ‘box’ either; everyone is unique and special (you included)!

Already excited to get started?! No problem I’ve got your back! Check out my amazing freebies that I created especially for you.  Get actionable, momentum-building advice perfectly paired with what you’re striving to achieve right now.

5] BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE SO FAR

Learning to embrace mindfulness and meditation. Honestly it didn’t come naturally to me but I’m so glad I did it because it helps me break my reoccurring limiting beliefs, and chills out my ‘triple A’ personality!

6] EATING HABITS

Vegetarian but I don’t label my eating habits, and you don’t have to either.

7] HEALTH CHALLENGE

Debilitating hormone imbalance, which is what got me started on my epic journey to learn everything I could on health and wellness, the power of foods to heal and nourish your body, and the importance of identify what you may be consuming that is wrecking your health. #SugarAddiction

8] FAVORITE QUOTE   

‘You are not required to dive onto subway tracks or become a public hero. Your assignment is the piece of the world you touch. All acts of compassion bring the world closer to bliss’-- by Alan Cohen.

This is a reminder to us all the smallest acts of thoughtfulness, kindness and compassion make a difference and an impact.

9] SOMETHING I’M PROUD OF

I pushed through self-doubt, sometimes wishing that I had had a more ‘normal’ educational journey, and feeling not good enough because I had to stop school altogether at 14, to go onto developing systems and schedules that enabled me, within 6 months, to obtain a 1470 SAT score, and then a 1500.

10] MY PASSION

Teaching folks to love their life no matter where they are in their journey, no matter how difficult things seem, or how out of reach their dreams are, not to let fear define them and instead use that fear to invite growth and create a life that actually makes them the happiest person they know.

If you want to learn more about my crazy journey, please put your feet up with a ‘cuppa’ and get reading - but, heads up it’s a longer read!

The backstory ;

how I got started with this. First a little context!

I was born in London, England, but I raised in Florida since around the age of three. I’m am the second child out of 7 (yep, I have six siblings)!

My dad was a highly respected and sought after lawyer in London when he met my mum fresh out law school. From the very beginning, my family has always done things our own way. When they made the decision to have me and my siblings, they made a pact with each other to raise us 50/50 and to always be there for us.

Just before I was born, my parents moved their law firm into the top floor office our newly renovated house, so they wouldn’t have to leave us to work.

Some of my earliest memories are actually of my older brother and I sitting on their office floor playing with our farm animal toys, and listening to my parents’ phones ring.

At the end of 2002 they took a huge risk and gamble, and made the life changing decision to sell everything, quit being lawyers, gave up their security and move to America.

They wanted a more creative and meaningful work life, one that tapped into their interests and skills, one that meant more quality time with us.

From Millions To $5

But then the 2008 world economic crash happened.

We lived at the time in Sarasota, Florida, which had one of the worst house market collapse in America after one of the biggest booms.

My parents lost their business and savings. My parents had been self-made millionaires, and we went from being well off to living on $25 a day. We moved from a 3500 square foot house into the smallest of properties of my parent’s former rental portfolio, an old wooden 1,000 square foot house, and my 3 siblings (I had a toddler brother) and I shared one room. My mum was also pregnant with baby number 5.

I can’t really put into words just how BAD things got; we’re talking hunger, damp and moldy living conditions, no air-conditioning (in the 90+ humid Florida heat), broken down water supply...

It didn’t matter to me though at the time, it just seemed like an exciting move to a new house that had carpet, and my sister and I already stayed in my older brother’s room most of the time anyway. Being a kid, I had no true grasp of the situation. As immigrants, we had no help from the government.

Also because of it, they didn’t have as much time for teaching, so my siblings and I began to teach ourselves, using printouts and some free learning websites. It wasn’t a perfect curriculum, but we were happy to be at home and helping each other.

No food stamps, healthcare, financial aid. We were essentially alone. On top of that, because of the flawed system, we were still stuck living on a 2-year business visa.

And this is where I learnt an extraordinary, life changing lesson.

When I talk within my site - via a blog post, Podcast, workshop, course or to clients about having to find your sacred space to find your self-worth, to grow, heal, to find what motivates and inspires you to take action and reconnect to your soul, those words are coming from a deep and powerful place.

Why? Because by identifying it, you find your power, and your own internal moral compass and GPS system - and that’s your first step towards real contentment and happiness no matter what life throws at you.

Health, mindset, personal connection and financial abundance are not topics that stand on their own.

Each are intertwined, and are a pillar for cultivating the life you want to live and experience, one where we can feel joy, one where we can feel really good, one where we attract the success, happiness and well-being we want with ease.

Despite the hardship, and despite the shame, fear and pain that I now know they were going through, my parents were always open and honest about the situation with us, and always worked to get us out of the situation.

It simply made us closer, and we still made sure to have breakfast and dinner together despite the financial strain, and that and the almost co-op style homeschooling between us siblings brought us all strength, unity and deep emotional and physical resilience.

Keeping Priorities Straight

We still made our health a priority despite the means. We had no health coverage so we knew it was important to work with what we had.

We learned how to make everything from scratch, from toothpaste to vinegar spray for cleaning. We worked with our $25 a week budget for groceries, still managing to keep it as healthy as possible.

As the years went on, I had more siblings, and the already older house got smaller, and worn down (there were now 9 of us in all – 7 kids, mom, and dad). One the two bathrooms didn’t work, the kitchen sink was broken, and the air conditioner was bust, so we lived in the sweltering Florida heat. It was wet and moldy. We lived in conditions most westerners will never know.

Despite the circumstances, we still managed to be happy. We were together.

It cost nothing to play sports together, or sit and talk, both of which we loved to do as a family. It taught me the power of resilience, gratitude, love, and staying steadfast.

My Choice.

Eventually, I decided that my parents needed my help.

So at 14, I stopped school altogether to help my parents’ business full time. It was a difficult decision to make because I felt that I would get ‘left behind’ my peer group, and that I would be judged for not keeping up my education.

What I didn’t realize at the time was that it turned out to me an incredible and powerful educational opportunity of its own.  

I learnt from the ground-up how to create a business. I started with website design, branding and social media image creation.

I helped my parents work on, create and execute expos, conventions, festivals and events, and in so doing worked with some of the biggest companies in the USA such as the Home Depot, World Wrestling Federation, Medieval Times, Orlando Magic, National Lung and Heart Institute, Orlando City Soccer, Wholefoods Market.

My parents created programs for families promoting sustainable health, spiritual well-being, as well as how to deal with financial issues, and I got to help my parents teach them in organizations like YMCA, Girls Inc. and Boys & Girls Club of America.

Despite having been key in producing high profile events, and having the opportunity to have met celebrities, influencers, folks from all walks of life that have done incredible things, I was still suffering from nagging self-doubt and anxiety.

What I didn’t realize at the time was that the combination of stopping my education, issues of feeling rejected by extended family, and the trauma of feeling powerless from having lived so poor, had created a lack of self-worth, negative thinking, harmful self-image issues, self-sabotage and a fear-based belief system.

Living with this constant struggle and anxiety led me to treat my body as the enemy.

I would over exercise, then treat myself to a sugar treat. Frustrated at myself I would then enforce restrictions on my diet, I was in a cycle of depriving myself then binging.

I felt more and more boxed in working within the family business, but I felt disloyal and guilty for wanting to go back to my school work and to participate in sports.

I self-medicated with food, especially anything with sugar, and my weight started to creep up, only making me feel worse.

I simply didn’t feel good.

My parents were trying desperately trying to reach me. Finally, at around my 18th birthday I confided in them that I wanted to go to University. I felt such a sense of relief.

My Challenge

Now, being newly 18 and not having any AP, A-Level, or IB test scores, I felt I was running very short on time, as it was basically my equivalent senior year. None of my local schools offered any AP program without full enrollment, and without a formal education or transcript, I decided that getting a high SAT score was the best way to stand a chance.

At this point, I had no idea where to start. I hadn’t done any full time ‘schoolwork’ since I was 14, and had no teachers, no books, and no resources.

I took my first SAT practice test, and started from there. I studied every day, making myself learn advanced math and writing skills for hours. I worked as hard as I could for months, developing systems and schedules to maximize my time. I ending up raising my initial practice score (which was 1070) to a 1470 in the actual test, in about 6 months.

Eventually I got that up to a 1500/1600, managed to get 740+/800 on 3 subject tests (including a foreign language) in the space of a year, and be accepted to my choice universities - all from scratch.

As Bessel van der Kolk so powerfully states in his wonderful book, “The Body Keeps The Score”:

Now it’s YOUR turn.

I want YOU to experience and feel that very same freedom, not for a moment but as YOUR consistent reality, and that’s why I run a mission-driven business that serves my community and makes me feel profoundly grateful each and every day.

YOU DO have the power to change or mold your life into the life that YOU want, and to keep an amazing balance between work and money, and healthy happy relationships with family, friends and our community.

So. The only question I have now is:

Are you ready to take your next step - and join me on this journey?

To capture your dreams, become the hero of your own story and create a fulfilling, adventurous, out-of-this-world life?

To become the happiest person you know?

I’m shoulder to shoulder with you all the way. Don’t know where to start?

I’ve got you.

No matter how you feel, wherever you are in your life right now, you have the power to change your reality.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my site, I genuinely appreciate it … and you.

I’m looking forward to catching up with you on the inside.