Ashley Law | Speak Up Buttercup
Episode 71
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In this episode of #RedBullBoothTalks, Skyler’s guest is Ashley Law, a former NFL Cheerleader who suffered from anorexia and bulimia, and now uses her experience to empower women. Today Ashley is a public speaker promoting positive body image and working to break the stigma surrounding eating disorders.
Ashley sat down with Skyler to talk about her journey and share insights into how she is building her business as a public speaker, appearing at hospitals, colleges, and other venues nationwide.
To even get this far, she had to overcome two fears that most of us share: opening up about her personal struggles, and – speaking in public. Here Ashley offers some tactics which helped her improve her public speaking.
Another major step for anyone starting a new career is getting their first gig and recognizing their value. Ashley told Skyler how she realized she had something valuable to offer and used it to market herself.
Ashley Law officially founded her company, Speak Up Buttercup, only a few months ago, but she had been working towards this goal for years. It all started when she was giving a talk at a hospital where she had been treated herself.
In 2009 Ashley was hospitalized for anorexia and bulimia, and, she admits today, almost lost her life. “I had to go through Intense therapy, learn about self-confidence, learn to love myself,” she says. After getting out of the hospital, she put her life on hold for more than two years: she took a break from school and used that time just to learn how to take care of herself. Then, the same hospital that helped her, asked her if she would come and speak to other patients there about her experience. She found it very rewarding and gradually came to realize how many women could benefit from honest talk about body image and other issues she was discussing at her workshops.
That’s when she decided to take her speaking engagement to the next level.
Today she speaks at hospitals and colleges across the country. She shares her experience and educates female athletes and cheerleading teams, spreading eating disorder awareness and helping women feel more confident in their bodies.
Meanwhile, Ashley also became president of a female-only Phoenix chapter of Toastmasters, a public speaking organization, where she encourages others to develop public speaking skills.
What’s next for her? In April she will be running an online body confidence course. And for the past five years she’s been working on a book which she plans to publish soon.
“Five years from now I hope to have a few like-minded people on board who will help spread the message and take away the stigma from eating disorders and encourage others to go after their dreams.”
Links:
Ashley’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speakupbuttercup_
Ashley’s website: https://speakconfident.org
Toastmasters: https://www.toastmasters.org/