June 4, 2025 • 42 mins
She didn’t just bounce back, she powered up and now she’s lifting more than just spirits.
When Pam was laid off from her tech sales job, she didn’t crumble. She picked up a barbell and started building a new life from the ground up. What started as burnout became strength training. What began with spreadsheets ended with squats. And what could’ve been a breakdown? Became the biggest glow-up yet.
In this episode of Clocked In, Checked Out, we dive into what it really looks like to shift from chasing metrics to chasing meaning. Pam’s story is raw, hilarious, vulnerable, and wildly inspiring. From layoffs to lunges, from rejection to reinvention, this is about rewriting your story one rep at a time.
Pam is smart, driven, and magnetic, the kind of go-getter who makes you believe that starting over doesn’t mean you’re behind. It means you’re just getting started.
We talk about what it really feels like to be laid off after 10 years in tech, and how disorienting it is to lose not just a job but the identity that came with it. Pam opens up about the mental toll of chasing quotas, promotions, validation and how fitness became her emotional anchor when everything else felt unstable. She shares what it was like to walk away from toxic hustle culture in favor of real, human impact, and how the gym didn’t just help her heal, it became her therapy and her stage.
We explore the surprising lessons she brought from sales into her fitness career, and why job hunting and deadlifting might be emotional cousins. Pam reflects on how women in fitness are redefining success on their own terms, the difference between tweaking your résumé and reclaiming your self-worth, and why rest, recovery, and reroutes aren’t setbacks, they’re critical to growth.
🍸 Cocktail of the Week: The Level-Up-tini
Frizzy, citrusy and strong enough to carry you through a career pivot and a deadlift PR.
1.5 oz vodka
0.5 oz Cointreau
0.5 oz fresh lime juice
0.5–1 oz fresh orange juice (adjust to taste)
2 dashes orange bitters
Top with blood orange seltzer
Serve in a coupe or rocks glass. Garnish with an orange slice and sip while mentally rewriting your career goals.
Whether you're navigating job loss, career change, or just figuring out your next chapter — this episode is your reminder that you don’t have to go back to who you were to become who you’re meant to be.
Follow for more chaos, career pivots, and cocktails:
Instagram: @ClockedInCheckedOutPod
TikTok: @ClockedInCheckedOutPod
Got a wild layoff story, gym therapy moment, or quarter-life crisis you need to unload?
Email ClockedInCheckedOutPod@gmail.com or slide into the DMs — and maybe we’ll spiral together on air.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:02):
Hey everyone, you're listening to clocked in checked out where
Spiral gets a spotlight, glow UPS get their moment, and rock
bottoms like me come with a group chat and preferably a
protein bar. I'm Joseph Singh, your host,
your emotional support water bottle, and today your hype man
for someone who logged out of tech and level the fuck up.
(00:24):
My guest today is Pam. She's a former tech sales queen
who made a bold move from metrics to movement, ditching
dashboards for dumbbells and trading chaos for crunches.
Her journey? Funny, raw, and full of reps
Proof that sometimes a real glowup starts when you stop trying
(00:45):
to figure it out and just start lifting heavy things and living
your damn life. Today's episode is called
Glowing Up and Going Heavy from Layoff to Lifting.
Do you love that I? Love it.
That's just for you, baby girl. And yes, we've got a drink in
hand, just like every episode. Today's cocktails called the
(01:05):
Level Up Teeny because she's definitely leveled it up.
It's a little bit of vodka, blood orange, seltzer, lime
juice and a splash of fresh orange, triple SEC and just
enough bitters to remind you you're healing.
It's bright, bold and perfectly citrusy, just like your glow up
Pam. Let's get into it.
But before that, Cheers Pam. Cheers.
(01:28):
Let's do this. Let's do this.
Delicious. It's good, right?
So good. Pam, welcome to the chaos.
All right, so I'm so excited that you're here because not
only are you an amazing person, you are so inspiring.
(01:50):
You're incredible and you've moved a lot of people throughout
the time that I've met you at the gym that we go to and even
before that. So and I found your story to be
very, very interesting and inspiring.
So I really want everyone to really listen to like how you
went from 1 area to another area.
(02:11):
But before we go into that, how are you doing?
I'm doing great. I mean, it's Wednesday, right?
It's Hump. Day.
Hump Day. Yeah, it's a beautiful day.
So excited to like really have you on here.
I'm excited to be here. Joey, you used to work in tech,
but you went to school for something else and then you
ended up in the fitness world, right?
And I think you're you're amazing at everything that you
(02:32):
do, right? But I really want to talk about
where you first started. Let's go back a little bit, All
right, when you went to school, because I know when we were
chatting, I went to SFSU. Yes, you went to SF.
Gators. Go Gators.
Gators. Gators GAY.
GAY capital GAYCORS. OK fun fact by elementary school
(02:59):
mascot was also a Gator. So you've just been all around?
Gay. I know you're.
Gay here, have a gay day. Have a gay day.
Just be gay. Have a gay life.
But not to offend anyone, gay also means.
Happy. Yes.
You went to school for women andgender studies.
What really drew you into that and going into social working?
(03:20):
OK, I mean, to make a long storya relatively short I went to
Community College before I went to SF State and I was the kind
of person when I graduated high school, I was by no means ready
to go off to college intellectually, but mentally,
definitely not. I just was not there.
So I was in Community College for a little while, about four
(03:45):
years, about four years. And I really didn't know what I
wanted to do. My, I mean, I was raised by my
parents to do, to do whatever made me happy.
And like, I guess that's great, but it also just left so many
things unknown for me, right? I didn't know what I was capable
of. I didn't know what I was good
(04:06):
at. Like it just wasn't, it wasn't
something that I focused on. So when I was in Community
College, I took a bunch of psychology classes and somehow
got into the women and gender studies and I loved it.
I loved it. I loved everything about it.
I loved the experience of being around people that were
(04:29):
different than me and hearing their stories.
After I finally got done diggingaround in we do Community
College, I transferred to San Francisco State, lived at home
still and then eventually lived with my now husband.
But at the time boyfriend loved it.
Loved it so much. My plan was to go into social
(04:53):
work, get my masters in social work and specifically I wanted
to work with at risk youth girls.
It was something that I was super interested in.
I was gung ho about it and aftertalking about it and reflecting
with my husband or that time boyfriend, I realized that it
was probably something that I couldn't emotionally take on.
(05:16):
OK, so I'm a really big like I feel what other people feel
like. I take on feelings.
Like I can feel other people's feelings.
You sense the energy you. Know the energy, I feel it and I
have a hard time disconnecting from things.
So it kind of made sense for me not to do it.
(05:36):
Around the same time, around thesame time, I was approached to
do a sales job to sell gift cards to other companies.
So basically business to business sales, something that
they could provide to their employees, gifts, incentives,
prices, what have you. I loved it.
It was cool, but it wasn't your thing.
(05:57):
It wasn't, it wasn't fully my thing.
And I was in San Francisco, you know, the tech, the capital.
The tech was great. I mean, yeah, I mean and and so
I was like, I want to get into tech made my way through a bunch
of different tech jobs and analytics company, a little bit
of medical stuff too. And then the last like 6-7 years
(06:18):
of my career was in clinical trials.
So I sold a software for clinical trials before before
they submit to the FDA. So think like medical device,
biotech, pharma. And yeah, I loved it.
I was good at it. You.
Loved it. OK, let's go back a little bit.
I know you were talking about gender studies and like you
(06:39):
couldn't emotionally take it. Right.
Yes, yes, yes, yes. Why couldn't you emotionally
take that? I think a lot of reasons, my
inability to disconnect from onepart of my life to another.
So I have a very, very hard timenot thinking about what defines
(07:04):
me. So like my work, my career, like
that type of stuff. Really, I take it seriously.
And yes, and, and that's a good thing, but also could be a
double edged sword, right? So after talking to a lot of
social workers and talking to a lot of professors, you know,
they gave me great advice and they're like, you would be great
at this. But this is something that's
(07:24):
you've got to be in a really, really good place mentally to
know that like when you walk outthat door and you can't help
someone, you have to be OK to gohome and be with your family.
So you could disconnect from your work to your personal life.
You would bring it home. Yes.
(07:45):
And you knew that that would affect, yes, where you would go,
it would affect your relationships, would affect
everything. Yes, that's.
All deep. I mean, it is.
I know we're getting a little deep on a.
Wednesday. It's a little deep on a
Wednesday. I mean, I don't mind getting a
little deep on hump day. Oh.
There we go, that's what she said.
But you know, going from what you were talking about from
(08:08):
there was, you know, you mentioned from going from social
you wanted to become a social worker then going into like
corporate sales. Yes, right.
That's a big shift, right. So like why did you decide to go
into BTBB to B sales in retail? Well, to be quite honest, I was
approached with a job right whenI was about to graduate that was
(08:30):
at the time of a pretty damn good salary considering that my
major wasn't a specific type of trade, it was benefits.
And I was also at the same time having these conversations with
people about social work and about how intense it is.
And it takes truly a special, special person to do it.
(08:53):
So I think I was learning mostlyjust by, OK, I'm going to be an
adult now. Like I'm going to be an adult.
I'm going to work like I'm goingto have benefits.
Like I'm not going to be my parents insurance anymore.
Like this is great. I was already a little bit of a
later graduate too, being that Iwas in college for four years.
So I graduated at 24. I graduated later than you.
(09:13):
OK, OK. Wait but did you get ABS or B29?
Yeah. So it just, it just was a good,
good timing and I'd already at that point made the decision
that social work was something Iwas either definitely not going
to do then, but it was somethingI would maybe look at in the
future. Got it.
Yes. But moving ahead in life, you
(09:35):
went to retail Then after retail, what made you want to
leave the B to B in retail? Well, seeing seeing, I mean at
this time, cuz what I'm trying what year was this?
Oh God, what is time? What was it like 2000, 2011,
(09:56):
That's six years, right, Cuz that's that's what took me to
get my bachelor reverse. OK.
Yeah, and that's OK because it takes everyone.
That's right, it's. Fine, it's fine.
You don't need you need don't need to go to college for four.
Years, it's whatever. And I mean, it's whatever I, I
just was not mature enough to, to, to take that leap of like
moving away and not being taken care.
Of I wouldn't say necessarily you were mature enough, I would
(10:17):
just say you were on a differentpath like me.
That's. Right, That's right.
And everyone's path is different.
It took me 6 years to graduate. College and I but I feel like at
that time it wasn't as accepted as it is now. 100% like now I
feel like we, I mean we're getting better at accepting
people who you know, don't necessarily go went to an ID.
(10:37):
Level exactly. Yeah.
Yeah. So going back, I know you were
in like retail and like B to B, right?
So like what happened after B toB and retail?
What did you think the next logical move was?
Well, I'm, I was good at sales. I was very good at it.
I was good at it at the retail. Establishment.
I mean, I'd buy anything from you.
(10:58):
Hey, that's right. That's right.
That's right. I was good at it and but I
wanted to take it up a notch, right?
Like I wanted to keep selling toother companies, but I wanted to
I wanted to be part of this techcraze that I was seeing in the
city. It was so insane.
I mean, it was insane. I mean, you have all those giant
companies that we don't even need to name.
You already know what they are in the city.
(11:19):
And I was just like, I want to be part of this.
This is this is this is very cool.
You know, I want unlimited PTO. I want free lunch.
I want all that jazz, right? So you went from like, sorry,
retail to corporate because of like the money benefits or
something else you just wanted more?
I wanted more. So I mean, basically I got
approached the job right at the same time that I was already
(11:43):
made the decision not to go intosocial work and I was lured in
by the money. I was lured in by the money.
It was stable. A lot of my other a lot of other
people in my that I graduated with a lot didn't have plans on
what to do. You know, like people don't,
people don't appreciate the arts, OK.
You know, so I mean, it's not like we were doing engineering.
(12:06):
Like it, it was there was there was different paths that you
could do with the women in gender studies major, But at
that time there wasn't a ton in terms of finding a job right
away. And I was very lured by having a
job right away. And I, and I was good at it.
I was good at it, but I was, I wanted more.
I wanted I wanted to make more money because I knew I was good.
You knew you were good at it, solike, did you feel like you were
(12:27):
finally making it when you landed your first tech role?
Or when did you feel like you were finally making it?
That's a really good question. I don't know if I ever felt that
way. If I ever felt that I actually.
Really. I think there was times where I
felt, OK, I'm doing good, but itwas very short lived.
It was very short. How long?
Were you in tech? I mean about 10.
(12:52):
Years, 1010 years, you were in tech and you never felt like you
were making it. You always felt like you were
just like. I just felt any time I did well,
it wasn't. It wasn't good enough.
It wasn't good enough. Why?
Did you feel that way? I think a lot of it is myself,
right? Like I'm hard on myself, but
also in sales. It's it's, it's a very dog eat
(13:16):
dog kind of world. Like it's like you make your
numbers and if you make them, you're good.
If you don't, you don't, you make your numbers.
OK, we'll now make more. So you were feeling discouraged
even though you were hitting your goals.
Yes, yeah. Why?
Because I know you mentioned because.
They they don't care. Like you get the praise and I
(13:36):
loved the praise. I love the praise.
But then it was OK, what's next,What's next?
And I felt like I was running into a dark alleyway that was
just dark and just running in itand running in it, chasing after
something. No end insight.
No end insight. Because when I got the praise
and when I got the money, it felt good, but it was very short
(13:59):
lived. So would you say the pressure
kind of affected your mental health?
Oh, absolutely. The pressure that I put on
myself too, that that, that was me.
Putting it was a combination of both.
Yes, absolutely. Absolutely what the company was
doing and to you, yes. When was the moment that you
realized that you were like donewith tech?
Because before I go into there, yeah, towards the end of your
(14:21):
tech career, I know you were talking about that you found
like fitness, right? So let's talk a little bit about
that. What made you start to like go
more into fitness while at the end of your tech career?
OK so again to make a Long storyshort, when I was working in
tech there was a fitness boutique fitness studio that was
(14:46):
Pilates inspired and it was right after I finished running
marathons. At this time I was running
marathons and I was injured all the time.
I was hurting myself. I need to find something else to
give me that natural high. So there was a fitness studio
nearby, 1 of the offices that I worked and I want to do this.
I was like, this looks kind of easy, but let me do it.
(15:07):
Let me do it. It was not easy.
It was very hard. What class was it?
It was, it was a, like I said, aPilates inspired Pilates.
Pilates. Wait, don't say Pilates.
No, I can't. I can't do Pilates.
No. Well, I couldn't either.
I could not either. OK.
And I went in there thinking I was all cool because I was like,
(15:28):
hey, I've ran 26.2 miles, I can do this.
And I was horrible. I was not good at it at all.
And for me, when I'm not good atsomething, I want to get good at
it. I want to get good at it.
So I got obsessed with it. I became friends with some of
the instructors there that worked at other studios in San
(15:49):
Francisco. And one of them, who's now one
of my best friends, actually, I love that.
She was like, I'm opening my ownstudio in Walnut Creek.
I was like, oh, let me come through on that.
So it it kind of spiraled from there.
I worked at the studio and stillworked in tech, still worked in
(16:13):
tech both. It was a.
Side. Both.
Yes, this was a side hustle and I loved having something where I
could be creative and not so rigid and doing things the
corporate way, but being able tobe creative and express my
creative side, It was very exciting and it was very
thrilling. It was very almost liberating,
(16:35):
too. It was a sense of like, just
like a release for you, right? Because like, tech was so hard,
you had to make your numbers. But when you're exercising and
doing things, it's a different feeling.
Absolutely. And it was like my escape,
right, because I worked from, I mean, this was pre COVID days
and you know, I worked from homemost of the time.
(16:57):
And it was exciting for me to get out and be able to like be
myself. So when and to not have a
script, right? To just just be myself and do
something different outside of what was of what I was told to
do. Yeah.
So when did like fitness stopping a routine for you while
(17:18):
in tech and start becoming like more of a lifestyle and what
shifts did you start to notice? A lot of things happened.
Well, I started to, to, I kind of backtrack a little bit.
My last 6, I think I said the 6-7 years I was in the longest,
the sector that I was in the longest was a software for
(17:38):
clinical trials 100%. And I was good at that to start.
I was really, really good. And then you know, I sort of not
do as well, sort of not do as well.
And then I would get on myself, I get frustrated and then I
would come back and start doing really, really well and I felt
really good. And again, going back to what we
talked about earlier, I was starting to feel really defeated
(17:59):
with the goals right there was starting to a lot of companies
were coming out that were selling the same software that I
was selling. And so this is no disrespect to
tech. I love tech.
It makes our lives easier. Some people are great at tech.
It was moving so fast or it is moving so fast still that there
(18:22):
was no differentiators. And as a salesperson, it's very,
very, very hard when you're trying to go after these larger
companies, these bigger whales, and they want to work with
someone that they've known at a different company for 10-15
hundred. Percent.
But if you don't know how to separate the company that you're
at from another company, they'regonna go with them because
(18:45):
there's no differentiation between the companies.
They're all doing the same. Thing yes and actually towards
the end of my career like what before I got laid off I I
remember talking to a guy at A at a big company that shall
remain nameless and I said hey, because what it was selling was
a software that needed is not like a nice to have like they're
gonna buy the software whether it's with the company I was at
(19:08):
or if it was at another company.I said, hey, like, how do you
pick a vendor like for your clinical trial data, you know,
before you submit to the FDA? And he said, honestly, whoever
comes to me first. Oh wow, so there was no
targeting? And I just was like that, that
was one of the like light bulb moments where I was like, how,
(19:31):
like, how am I going to get intothese big accounts if it's just
that like who gets there 1st? 100% right?
Like I, it was just one of thosemoments where I was like, wow,
OK. Like I don't know if this is for
me. And that's when you started to
think more about what your career.
(19:51):
Path yes, yes, yes and my husband, boyfriend at the time
was for years and years and years telling me, listen,
Pamela, you're so good at fitness, like why don't you make
this like a full time thing? I was like, no, no, no, sat up
and I was lured in again by the benefits of tech and the things
that. Are sold to you in a way right?
Like the unlimited PTO and. The lunches, yes.
(20:12):
Which is all great stuff, but a lot of that stuff, and again,
this is just my experience, camewith a lot of strings attached.
It wasn't just there for you. Right, so fitness opened up new
possibilities for you. It opened my mind.
It opened my mind to other things that I was good at
besides selling. Before we get any deeper, if you
(20:34):
don't mind me asking you yes, and you can say no.
Yeah. How old were you when you were
making the shift from tech to fitness?
35 Almost 36. See and that's OK.
And it was scary. It is scary because you because
going back to like, earlier in the conversation, you were
saying that like, you didn't know what you wanted to do,
(20:56):
right? Because when you go to college
at such an early age, you you'reliterally like by 22, I need to
go to school. This is I need to graduate by
like 22. This is what I need to do,
right? And it's OK to make a career
change. And that's exactly what you did.
Yeah. Going from tech to fitness
because you found. And I don't want to put words in
(21:19):
your mouth. Absolutely.
You found passion. I don't want to say like,
passion and fitness because I feel like always say that.
No, it's true, though. But you found you're trying to
escape something. Yes, I feel yes.
And because your friend opened you up to new possibilities, you
found fitness. Yeah.
And then what was that transition like for you?
(21:41):
I mean, again, this like going from tech sales to fitness was
not like a decision that I made overnight, right?
Like it was a big thing. I was very scared because again,
age is relative, right? But I was relatively older to
make make career change, right, and I felt like I'd put all this
into tech sales that at some point I was gonna make it
(22:03):
meaning. And when I say make it, I mean
get that big count, get that bigass account that the one that's
gonna like. Everyone dreams of yes.
Like. Super.
Huge big account that's gonna skyrocket my career and all
these companies are gonna come after me and it's gonna be
amazing right So it it never happened though, right so.
(22:25):
Did you did you feel like it never happened or in your?
No, it really never. Happened or like for you it
like? No, it really never happened.
It really never happened. It really never happened.
And the reason it never happenedwas, I mean, many reasons, but
like a lot of things in sales are it's a boys club, right?
(22:48):
It's a boys club. And if you're not one of the
boys and then they're not with you, they're not with you.
And then when they're not with you, they're against you
inadvertently or obviously. So I just couldn't do it
anymore. I just couldn't do it.
(23:09):
Oh, yeah. I was just like, I can't.
I can't pretend to be one of theguys.
I can't pretend to like their jokes.
They're like, I can't. I was tired of it.
And it was the IT and I and I was struggling.
I was getting burnt out and I was caring less and less, less
and less. And what happened was I got laid
off. I got laid off, right, right at
(23:30):
COVID, right at, or I mean, a little after COVID because I'll
be honest, the company I was at was actually thriving during
COVID because we were selling a software for collecting data
remotely from, from, from subjects, or should I say
patients. I hate saying subjects from
patients. Yeah.
And that was because the clinicswere closed, right?
There was no, there was nothing going on.
(23:51):
There was nothing going on. So these people, these biotech
companies, device companies are like, how else are we going to
collect data but doing it at home, right?
And this is obviously not for like life ending studies, but
other studies, right? So we were actually doing pretty
well, but I, I was struggling. I was struggling big time and
(24:11):
getting laid off while it was pretty devastating because it
sucks to. Be laid up.
It's a really fucking shitty feeling.
It really fucking. Sucks you've been there the
last. Like 3 months.
Yeah, it fucking sucks. Yeah, getting getting laid off,
getting fired, getting canned, whatever you want to fucking
call it. It sucks.
It sucks really bad because it'sa, it's a form of rejection,
(24:35):
right? It's a form of rejection.
And for someone like me, who, who at that time even more so,
put so much of my identity in what I did for work, it was
truly like life shattering. Like it was just like, it, it,
it was, it was horrible. It's heartbreaking.
It was, it truly was. And talking to my husband, he's
(24:57):
like, let's do it, let's do it. Let's get you into fitness.
You're so good at it. You're so good.
At it you are. You're fucking incredible at.
It but I love it so much. I love it so much.
And I was approached by someone at another fitness center.
Yeah. That came into the fitness
studio that I was teaching at and was like, hey, we're opening
(25:19):
up a fitness studio. Excuse me.
I burped. We're totally fine.
We opened a fitness studio, and I think you would be great
there. And I was like, oh, really?
And, like, it did a lot for my confidence, right.
It made me feel good that peoplearound town had heard of me and
were like, hey. I mean, a lot of people know of
you, Pamela, even before where you were currently work.
(25:41):
I knew you from like. I know.
Those like. Those other students?
Yes, yes. Yes, yes, yes.
So I was, I, I felt good. It felt good to hear that when I
was feeling so down. Yeah.
So I want to say like the stars all aligned right, like
everything kind of came togetherat the at the right.
(26:02):
Time. So I was like.
OK. Yeah, I'm happy to work at, at,
at, at this newer establishment,which was really hyped up and
very, very like the place to be.And while there I was like,
well, you know, I really want todo this fitness thing a little
more. You know, I like, I have the
encouragement of my husband. It was like, you can, you can go
(26:23):
into another tech job. I had people that I could go
work with like I had like it wouldn't be hard for me to get
another tech job, right? Let's do this more.
So there's personal training at this facility establishment.
I mean, from what I see, you're a fucking hustler.
Well. Yeah, you kick ass at this
(26:46):
facility and everyone fucking loves you.
I didn't mean to cut you off. No, but like, but like I have to
say that because everyone loves your energy, your vibe, your
classes, you hustle, you're going from one client to
another. You're just on it all the time.
So like when you got to this place, right at this time, you
(27:07):
had already left tech, tech had already like.
Tech left me and I left tech. It was.
It was a mutual break. It was a mutual departure, I.
Mean at first I didn't see mutual it sound like full on
fucking rejection adorable, but it it I mean it.
But that but that was OK. That was totally OK, right?
Totally. OK, so then you found fitness.
Yeah, right. And then what do you love about
(27:30):
it? I love everything.
I mean so much about fitness. I love right now I'm working
harder than I've ever worked in my life in a different way, but
I feel like I'm not working as much as I want.
Do you think your life would be different if you were in tech
right now? If I were in tech right now,
yeah, absolutely. Percent, without a doubt.
(27:51):
I'm doing something now that I feel like I didn't know when I
was younger what my purpose was.I didn't know.
I just knew that I wanted to be happy, right?
And that's how I was raised. Like my parents raised me to do
what makes you happy, right? You know, like, there wasn't a
lot of pressure in terms of schooling.
And I feel like at this point inmy life, and, you know, I'm
(28:13):
going to, I'm almost 38. I'm finally doing what I was
meant to do. And do I not want to work
sometimes? Yeah, right.
Working is hard. Like there's, there's times I
don't want to work. But what I will say is I know
that I'm in the right place thatI'm supposed to be because
sometimes time isn't even there.Like time.
(28:34):
Like I don't I lose track of time.
You do? Yeah, we all do.
We all lose track of time when you're like on the go when
you're. Hustling and happy, yeah.
Like, I'm happy, I'm happy, and I'm seeing the impact.
And that's the most important thing.
Let's take a look. You're happy.
Cheers. Cheers.
Cheers to happiness, Pam. It's not happiest.
Cheers. To do.
You want a lollipop before we get into the next air, my next
(28:54):
segment? I do not want to say no to
Sweet. Thank you.
So much well, Pam. Love it so good.
We've talked about some, like, serious things.
We sure have. We, we went really deep.
We sure did. Let's lighten it up a little
bit, right? You went from sales, then you
(29:15):
went into like the corporate world where you were like laid
off. Then you found your passion in
the fitness world, right? You're at this amazing gym.
You do some incredible things. I see you everyday hustling,
right? What makes you come in every
day? You.
What makes you come in every? Day Well, first of all, that's a
great question. So I just want to give you a
(29:36):
Gold Star for that question because that's a great question,
but. I'm not a Gold Star gay.
Not yet. I mean, there's lots of reasons
that that bring me into work every day.
I think the main thing is havingan impact on people's lives.
Yeah. And that's not something that I
got from tech. What was cool about tech and you
know, the last 6-7 years of my career was again selling for
(30:00):
clinical trials and working withcompanies that were creating
drugs that were life saving for people with cancer.
That was cool. But I didn't really get to see
see the effects of that everydaywhen I work with people, I get
to see it. I get to see them come in and
tell me I waited all day to do this all day.
(30:21):
And it's such a huge responsibility to be the best
part of someone's day. But nothing makes me happier
than truly being at service. And that's what it comes down to
for me. I love fitness.
I love everything about it. But ultimately what makes me the
happiest is being at service. So I don't see myself not in
(30:43):
fitness in the future, but I also could see myself not
fitness, right? I'm I'm trying to keep things
open and not identify solely with one thing because there's
things that are out of your control, right?
Well, The thing is, the industrythat you're in, you're actually
making an impact in people's lives, right?
(31:04):
You are. When people see their bodies
change, it makes them feel good.It makes them feel better.
Yes. I mean, you know, I can speak
from experience, right? Being at a gym the last year and
a half, right? Like the people that are around
you, your trainers, your coaches, they make a huge impact
(31:25):
and you're making an impact on everyone's life.
Like you really are, right? Like it's inspiring.
It's amazing because you're the one who gets to do that, not
anyone else. I mean, there are other
trainers, but like, you get to do that for people who chose to,
like, train with you and be withyou.
Yeah, that must be a fucking amazing.
(31:47):
I mean. Feeling it, it really is.
And it's a big responsibility too.
It is, right? It's a big responsibility, but
it's a responsibility that I I welcome and that I want to take.
It's a different kind of challenge that I felt in tech.
This is a challenge that I feel like I can, I can do.
Yeah, I can do. And being at service to people
(32:08):
and helping people and being that part of their day where I
mean, you know, some people are working all day long 1214 hours,
right? I mean, parents doing, working
from home do shuffling the kids back and forth, all that stuff.
Being able to have people come in and truly be like, oh, I can
(32:31):
be myself around you. That to me, like, there's no
greater, greater gift than I could get than that.
Do you have any clients who has who have ever said anything to
you that you're like, yeah, Thisis why I meant to be here?
Tonight. Yeah, yeah.
What was one quote that someone said to?
You one quote actually I have one.
(32:55):
I, I trained 1 gal who she's in tech and she's scared about
getting laid off. And she goes, Pam, you know what
scares me the most about the possibility of getting laid off?
It's not losing my job because, you know, I'm the, she's not
really happy at the job, but she's like not being able to
come see you and not having the,the finances to do so.
(33:18):
And that just touched me so, so much because it goes beyond the
fitness, right? It goes beyond all of that,
right? It goes, it goes so much deeper
than that. Yeah.
And for her to say that like, I like, I, I didn't know that I
impacted her that much. You know what I mean?
Like, I knew I had an impact on her life.
She liked working with me. I like working with her.
(33:39):
But when she said that, I just really was like, wow, like.
You're like, I felt that. Yeah, like I did, and it made me
choke up. I mean, I love some deep
conversations with my clients. I mean, I love connecting with
people and I love bringing people together.
So another thing that makes me really, really happy is bringing
(33:59):
people that I work with together.
Yeah, right. So having some clients that
don't know each other, but then bringing them together like
nothing get like that just fucking makes me so happy,
right? We're just bringing random
people. Together because.
You never know. They would never, outside of
fitness, interact. With one another 100%.
But it brings them together, so I love that.
(34:21):
I love that we're gonna get intoPam's power moves now.
OK, I'm gonna ask you. We're gonna go rapid fire.
Let's do it. OK.
Are you ready? Do it.
I don't. Know ready let's.
Make it happen, OK? What's more traumatic, leg day
or being CC D on a dramatic e-mail that you didn't start?
(34:45):
They're both pretty good. Good.
One I mean being CC D on an e-mail that didn't I mean.
I've been there, yeah. Me too pretty.
Fucking good. I have to go with that.
You don't have to go with that one, all right?
Toxic trait. Toxic trait?
Too much caffeine? Really.
(35:06):
Yeah, mine's cardio until I forget about him.
Yeah. So what's more?
What's more painful burpees are quarter four sales goal that's.
A good one. Q4 sales goals are fucking
burpees. Q4 sales goals.
OK, biggest ick. Biggest Dick Ick Oh, sorry,
(35:31):
sorry I I was like biggest Dick me I'm I'm I'm a spoken for a
woman. OK, who?
Do you think I me too spoken fora man?
Biggest ick? Or Dick.
Or Dick. That's for another podcast.
Should be continued. Biggest ick just, you know,
(35:52):
assholes. People that are inconsiderate,
dude. People that think what they're
doing is more important than you.
People that just are so in themselves that they don't
realize that everybody else's life sucks too, and that they're
not the only ones. Yeah, and you're not alone, so
don't be an asshole. But I like assholes.
Well, there's not too. There's not too.
(36:14):
Jim, red flag. Jim, red flag.
Do you mean gym red flag? Help me understand.
Like a red flag at the gym. Like I don't like how people
don't put their weights back where they were.
Or grunting as if you're giving birth to a kettlebell.
Yeah, yeah. When you're on Rep one exactly
now and it's 30 lbs. OK, sorry heavyweight
(36:35):
subjective. I would say mostly people that
try to do like super sets duringthe busy time at the gym.
Don't block off 1 machine for you know what I mean?
Don't do. That it's a shared.
Space and you can't do that but let people know that they can
work in with. You 100% work.
In with you. I agree with you.
(36:56):
Clean up your sweat little wipe,just just a little wipe.
So we've got to look at it, you know, unless.
You're hot, don't clean it up. Yeah, well, unless you're, you
got to be like real hot. Like you don't clean.
It for a sweat Pam so. It's a badge of honor.
Cookies are a salad. Seriously.
(37:20):
Obviously cookies. What kind of cookies?
I do like crumble, crumble, crumble should be illegal.
That's, I mean, it's so good. Like it should be illegal.
Like there's, there's something,I don't know what's in it.
It's more than sugar and butter because how does it stay soft
like that? Like for a long time?
(37:40):
Oh, that's what she said. Sometimes I say so.
No, but like literally like theystay soft. 100.
Percent. They're so delicious and they're
too good, and I can take down that little Fort.
Same. I agree with you.
Like it's nothing. Me too.
She's an eater. She's a growing girl.
I'm a eater, too. That's right.
That's right. And I love me some cookies.
I can tell you right now. I can tell what my husband calls
(38:02):
a cookie. What?
Should we go next? Next question.
Next class favorite. Cocktail.
Usually anything with vodka, butI'm not a huge cocktail person.
Like I like cocktails, like thisis a special occasion, right?
But I I don't like the act of drinking but I like being drunk
(38:23):
in buds. Feel like shots, shots, shots,
shots, shots, shots. Shots yes because I don't enjoy
drinking but I enjoy being drunkin buds.
So we gotta get you drunk quick.That's right, it's.
Like 4 shots in one glass just pound it.
Down and there you go, bend. Over and just like do it.
That's right, she said. She'd date.
Oh I love that with a cookie. There you.
(38:43):
Go yeah, feed me a cookie, give me four shots and just take me
down. I.
Mean. That's it.
That's it. I love that.
Yeah, I'd tell my husband he wonthe jackpot, right?
Oh my God, he did. He.
Won the jackpot glass for Oh my God that was me when I was like
19 but now I'm like 40. I'm old.
I'm not a girl. I'm not.
(39:03):
Speaking all right. That's a great song that's
about. What's a functional workout that
belongs in jail? Anything correlated?
Correlated. Correlated, so get your ass in a
plank, OK? You teach Pilates and other
things that's correlated in. A plank.
Get your ass in a plank. My ass is always in a plank.
That's right. It is planks, any it's
(39:26):
stretching, honestly, that that those are the they're the things
that nobody likes to do. I like stretching.
They don't give you they don't give you the most intense burn.
So anything that's core related because it's going to help with
low back pain, things like that.Your favorite gas station snack?
No, all of them. All of them I.
Love me some gas station snacks.What if that I like Nerds?
(39:47):
I like beef jerky, I like Gardeto's.
Just the crouton. Looking things, the fried things
you. Know those?
Yeah. And listen, I can be a little
bad in terms of soda. I only drink Diet Coke, so
there's that. But once in a while, I do like
me a Mountain Dew red coat. Love that.
(40:08):
What's your favorite sex position?
Oh my. Gosh, can you impress me for all
this? I love it.
Oh my God, you can be on prep too, don't worry.
What's my favorite? Yesterday I told Hannah like in
last week's episode, I told Hannah Missionary and she was
shocked. Did.
You really say? Missionary I did.
(40:29):
For your favorite position, yeah.
You can be in missionary. Missionary is like when a guy's
what I'm. Trying to wait.
Wait. Yeah.
Explain what missionary is. It's when a guy's on his back
with his legs up and the other guy's on top of them.
All right, Pam, that was a lot of reps, emotional and
otherwise. Huge shout out for Pam for
(40:52):
logging off, levelling up, and proving that your purpose might
just be hiding somewhere betweena layoff and a deadlift.
Please subscribe, rate and review or send it to someone
who's been laid off and just like left on red because that's
a shitty feeling. It fucking.
Sucks. It just it does suck.
(41:13):
Until then, hydrate or don't hydrate.
Cry in lower case and whatever you do, don't open that.
Thanks for applying e-mail afterfucking 10:00 PM.
It's never good news. Don't do it.
Trust me when you're off the clock.
But beyond that, what exactly? I love you so.
(41:36):
Much I love you more. e-mail me at
clockedincheckedoutpod@gmail.comor slide into my DM.
Clocked in checked out pod on IG.
Pam always be sliding in. I might just read it on the air.
And yes, fake names are absolutely on deck.
Until next time, clock out, log off, and spiral responsibly.
(41:58):
Thanks for watching, bye.
Hey everyone, you're listening to clocked in checked out where
Spiral gets a spotlight, glow UPS get their moment, and rock
bottoms like me come with a group chat and preferably a
protein bar. I'm Joseph Singh, your host,
your emotional support water bottle, and today your hype man
for someone who logged out of tech and level the fuck up.
(00:24):
My guest today is Pam. She's a former tech sales queen
who made a bold move from metrics to movement, ditching
dashboards for dumbbells and trading chaos for crunches.
Her journey? Funny, raw, and full of reps
Proof that sometimes a real glowup starts when you stop trying
(00:45):
to figure it out and just start lifting heavy things and living
your damn life. Today's episode is called
Glowing Up and Going Heavy from Layoff to Lifting.
Do you love that I? Love it.
That's just for you, baby girl. And yes, we've got a drink in
hand, just like every episode. Today's cocktails called the
(01:05):
Level Up Teeny because she's definitely leveled it up.
It's a little bit of vodka, blood orange, seltzer, lime
juice and a splash of fresh orange, triple SEC and just
enough bitters to remind you you're healing.
It's bright, bold and perfectly citrusy, just like your glow up
Pam. Let's get into it.
But before that, Cheers Pam. Cheers.
(01:28):
Let's do this. Let's do this.
Delicious. It's good, right?
So good. Pam, welcome to the chaos.
All right, so I'm so excited that you're here because not
only are you an amazing person, you are so inspiring.
(01:50):
You're incredible and you've moved a lot of people throughout
the time that I've met you at the gym that we go to and even
before that. So and I found your story to be
very, very interesting and inspiring.
So I really want everyone to really listen to like how you
went from 1 area to another area.
(02:11):
But before we go into that, how are you doing?
I'm doing great. I mean, it's Wednesday, right?
It's Hump. Day.
Hump Day. Yeah, it's a beautiful day.
So excited to like really have you on here.
I'm excited to be here. Joey, you used to work in tech,
but you went to school for something else and then you
ended up in the fitness world, right?
And I think you're you're amazing at everything that you
(02:32):
do, right? But I really want to talk about
where you first started. Let's go back a little bit, All
right, when you went to school, because I know when we were
chatting, I went to SFSU. Yes, you went to SF.
Gators. Go Gators.
Gators. Gators GAY.
GAY capital GAYCORS. OK fun fact by elementary school
(02:59):
mascot was also a Gator. So you've just been all around?
Gay. I know you're.
Gay here, have a gay day. Have a gay day.
Just be gay. Have a gay life.
But not to offend anyone, gay also means.
Happy. Yes.
You went to school for women andgender studies.
What really drew you into that and going into social working?
(03:20):
OK, I mean, to make a long storya relatively short I went to
Community College before I went to SF State and I was the kind
of person when I graduated high school, I was by no means ready
to go off to college intellectually, but mentally,
definitely not. I just was not there.
So I was in Community College for a little while, about four
(03:45):
years, about four years. And I really didn't know what I
wanted to do. My, I mean, I was raised by my
parents to do, to do whatever made me happy.
And like, I guess that's great, but it also just left so many
things unknown for me, right? I didn't know what I was capable
of. I didn't know what I was good
(04:06):
at. Like it just wasn't, it wasn't
something that I focused on. So when I was in Community
College, I took a bunch of psychology classes and somehow
got into the women and gender studies and I loved it.
I loved it. I loved everything about it.
I loved the experience of being around people that were
(04:29):
different than me and hearing their stories.
After I finally got done diggingaround in we do Community
College, I transferred to San Francisco State, lived at home
still and then eventually lived with my now husband.
But at the time boyfriend loved it.
Loved it so much. My plan was to go into social
(04:53):
work, get my masters in social work and specifically I wanted
to work with at risk youth girls.
It was something that I was super interested in.
I was gung ho about it and aftertalking about it and reflecting
with my husband or that time boyfriend, I realized that it
was probably something that I couldn't emotionally take on.
(05:16):
OK, so I'm a really big like I feel what other people feel
like. I take on feelings.
Like I can feel other people's feelings.
You sense the energy you. Know the energy, I feel it and I
have a hard time disconnecting from things.
So it kind of made sense for me not to do it.
(05:36):
Around the same time, around thesame time, I was approached to
do a sales job to sell gift cards to other companies.
So basically business to business sales, something that
they could provide to their employees, gifts, incentives,
prices, what have you. I loved it.
It was cool, but it wasn't your thing.
(05:57):
It wasn't, it wasn't fully my thing.
And I was in San Francisco, you know, the tech, the capital.
The tech was great. I mean, yeah, I mean and and so
I was like, I want to get into tech made my way through a bunch
of different tech jobs and analytics company, a little bit
of medical stuff too. And then the last like 6-7 years
(06:18):
of my career was in clinical trials.
So I sold a software for clinical trials before before
they submit to the FDA. So think like medical device,
biotech, pharma. And yeah, I loved it.
I was good at it. You.
Loved it. OK, let's go back a little bit.
I know you were talking about gender studies and like you
(06:39):
couldn't emotionally take it. Right.
Yes, yes, yes, yes. Why couldn't you emotionally
take that? I think a lot of reasons, my
inability to disconnect from onepart of my life to another.
So I have a very, very hard timenot thinking about what defines
(07:04):
me. So like my work, my career, like
that type of stuff. Really, I take it seriously.
And yes, and, and that's a good thing, but also could be a
double edged sword, right? So after talking to a lot of
social workers and talking to a lot of professors, you know,
they gave me great advice and they're like, you would be great
at this. But this is something that's
(07:24):
you've got to be in a really, really good place mentally to
know that like when you walk outthat door and you can't help
someone, you have to be OK to gohome and be with your family.
So you could disconnect from your work to your personal life.
You would bring it home. Yes.
(07:45):
And you knew that that would affect, yes, where you would go,
it would affect your relationships, would affect
everything. Yes, that's.
All deep. I mean, it is.
I know we're getting a little deep on a.
Wednesday. It's a little deep on a
Wednesday. I mean, I don't mind getting a
little deep on hump day. Oh.
There we go, that's what she said.
But you know, going from what you were talking about from
(08:08):
there was, you know, you mentioned from going from social
you wanted to become a social worker then going into like
corporate sales. Yes, right.
That's a big shift, right. So like why did you decide to go
into BTBB to B sales in retail? Well, to be quite honest, I was
approached with a job right whenI was about to graduate that was
(08:30):
at the time of a pretty damn good salary considering that my
major wasn't a specific type of trade, it was benefits.
And I was also at the same time having these conversations with
people about social work and about how intense it is.
And it takes truly a special, special person to do it.
(08:53):
So I think I was learning mostlyjust by, OK, I'm going to be an
adult now. Like I'm going to be an adult.
I'm going to work like I'm goingto have benefits.
Like I'm not going to be my parents insurance anymore.
Like this is great. I was already a little bit of a
later graduate too, being that Iwas in college for four years.
So I graduated at 24. I graduated later than you.
(09:13):
OK, OK. Wait but did you get ABS or B29?
Yeah. So it just, it just was a good,
good timing and I'd already at that point made the decision
that social work was something Iwas either definitely not going
to do then, but it was somethingI would maybe look at in the
future. Got it.
Yes. But moving ahead in life, you
(09:35):
went to retail Then after retail, what made you want to
leave the B to B in retail? Well, seeing seeing, I mean at
this time, cuz what I'm trying what year was this?
Oh God, what is time? What was it like 2000, 2011,
(09:56):
That's six years, right, Cuz that's that's what took me to
get my bachelor reverse. OK.
Yeah, and that's OK because it takes everyone.
That's right, it's. Fine, it's fine.
You don't need you need don't need to go to college for four.
Years, it's whatever. And I mean, it's whatever I, I
just was not mature enough to, to, to take that leap of like
moving away and not being taken care.
Of I wouldn't say necessarily you were mature enough, I would
(10:17):
just say you were on a differentpath like me.
That's. Right, That's right.
And everyone's path is different.
It took me 6 years to graduate. College and I but I feel like at
that time it wasn't as accepted as it is now. 100% like now I
feel like we, I mean we're getting better at accepting
people who you know, don't necessarily go went to an ID.
(10:37):
Level exactly. Yeah.
Yeah. So going back, I know you were
in like retail and like B to B, right?
So like what happened after B toB and retail?
What did you think the next logical move was?
Well, I'm, I was good at sales. I was very good at it.
I was good at it at the retail. Establishment.
I mean, I'd buy anything from you.
(10:58):
Hey, that's right. That's right.
That's right. I was good at it and but I
wanted to take it up a notch, right?
Like I wanted to keep selling toother companies, but I wanted to
I wanted to be part of this techcraze that I was seeing in the
city. It was so insane.
I mean, it was insane. I mean, you have all those giant
companies that we don't even need to name.
You already know what they are in the city.
(11:19):
And I was just like, I want to be part of this.
This is this is this is very cool.
You know, I want unlimited PTO. I want free lunch.
I want all that jazz, right? So you went from like, sorry,
retail to corporate because of like the money benefits or
something else you just wanted more?
I wanted more. So I mean, basically I got
approached the job right at the same time that I was already
(11:43):
made the decision not to go intosocial work and I was lured in
by the money. I was lured in by the money.
It was stable. A lot of my other a lot of other
people in my that I graduated with a lot didn't have plans on
what to do. You know, like people don't,
people don't appreciate the arts, OK.
You know, so I mean, it's not like we were doing engineering.
(12:06):
Like it, it was there was there was different paths that you
could do with the women in gender studies major, But at
that time there wasn't a ton in terms of finding a job right
away. And I was very lured by having a
job right away. And I, and I was good at it.
I was good at it, but I was, I wanted more.
I wanted I wanted to make more money because I knew I was good.
You knew you were good at it, solike, did you feel like you were
(12:27):
finally making it when you landed your first tech role?
Or when did you feel like you were finally making it?
That's a really good question. I don't know if I ever felt that
way. If I ever felt that I actually.
Really. I think there was times where I
felt, OK, I'm doing good, but itwas very short lived.
It was very short. How long?
Were you in tech? I mean about 10.
(12:52):
Years, 1010 years, you were in tech and you never felt like you
were making it. You always felt like you were
just like. I just felt any time I did well,
it wasn't. It wasn't good enough.
It wasn't good enough. Why?
Did you feel that way? I think a lot of it is myself,
right? Like I'm hard on myself, but
also in sales. It's it's, it's a very dog eat
(13:16):
dog kind of world. Like it's like you make your
numbers and if you make them, you're good.
If you don't, you don't, you make your numbers.
OK, we'll now make more. So you were feeling discouraged
even though you were hitting your goals.
Yes, yeah. Why?
Because I know you mentioned because.
They they don't care. Like you get the praise and I
(13:36):
loved the praise. I love the praise.
But then it was OK, what's next,What's next?
And I felt like I was running into a dark alleyway that was
just dark and just running in itand running in it, chasing after
something. No end insight.
No end insight. Because when I got the praise
and when I got the money, it felt good, but it was very short
(13:59):
lived. So would you say the pressure
kind of affected your mental health?
Oh, absolutely. The pressure that I put on
myself too, that that, that was me.
Putting it was a combination of both.
Yes, absolutely. Absolutely what the company was
doing and to you, yes. When was the moment that you
realized that you were like donewith tech?
Because before I go into there, yeah, towards the end of your
(14:21):
tech career, I know you were talking about that you found
like fitness, right? So let's talk a little bit about
that. What made you start to like go
more into fitness while at the end of your tech career?
OK so again to make a Long storyshort, when I was working in
tech there was a fitness boutique fitness studio that was
(14:46):
Pilates inspired and it was right after I finished running
marathons. At this time I was running
marathons and I was injured all the time.
I was hurting myself. I need to find something else to
give me that natural high. So there was a fitness studio
nearby, 1 of the offices that I worked and I want to do this.
I was like, this looks kind of easy, but let me do it.
(15:07):
Let me do it. It was not easy.
It was very hard. What class was it?
It was, it was a, like I said, aPilates inspired Pilates.
Pilates. Wait, don't say Pilates.
No, I can't. I can't do Pilates.
No. Well, I couldn't either.
I could not either. OK.
And I went in there thinking I was all cool because I was like,
(15:28):
hey, I've ran 26.2 miles, I can do this.
And I was horrible. I was not good at it at all.
And for me, when I'm not good atsomething, I want to get good at
it. I want to get good at it.
So I got obsessed with it. I became friends with some of
the instructors there that worked at other studios in San
(15:49):
Francisco. And one of them, who's now one
of my best friends, actually, I love that.
She was like, I'm opening my ownstudio in Walnut Creek.
I was like, oh, let me come through on that.
So it it kind of spiraled from there.
I worked at the studio and stillworked in tech, still worked in
(16:13):
tech both. It was a.
Side. Both.
Yes, this was a side hustle and I loved having something where I
could be creative and not so rigid and doing things the
corporate way, but being able tobe creative and express my
creative side, It was very exciting and it was very
thrilling. It was very almost liberating,
(16:35):
too. It was a sense of like, just
like a release for you, right? Because like, tech was so hard,
you had to make your numbers. But when you're exercising and
doing things, it's a different feeling.
Absolutely. And it was like my escape,
right, because I worked from, I mean, this was pre COVID days
and you know, I worked from homemost of the time.
(16:57):
And it was exciting for me to get out and be able to like be
myself. So when and to not have a
script, right? To just just be myself and do
something different outside of what was of what I was told to
do. Yeah.
So when did like fitness stopping a routine for you while
(17:18):
in tech and start becoming like more of a lifestyle and what
shifts did you start to notice? A lot of things happened.
Well, I started to, to, I kind of backtrack a little bit.
My last 6, I think I said the 6-7 years I was in the longest,
the sector that I was in the longest was a software for
(17:38):
clinical trials 100%. And I was good at that to start.
I was really, really good. And then you know, I sort of not
do as well, sort of not do as well.
And then I would get on myself, I get frustrated and then I
would come back and start doing really, really well and I felt
really good. And again, going back to what we
talked about earlier, I was starting to feel really defeated
(17:59):
with the goals right there was starting to a lot of companies
were coming out that were selling the same software that I
was selling. And so this is no disrespect to
tech. I love tech.
It makes our lives easier. Some people are great at tech.
It was moving so fast or it is moving so fast still that there
(18:22):
was no differentiators. And as a salesperson, it's very,
very, very hard when you're trying to go after these larger
companies, these bigger whales, and they want to work with
someone that they've known at a different company for 10-15
hundred. Percent.
But if you don't know how to separate the company that you're
at from another company, they'regonna go with them because
(18:45):
there's no differentiation between the companies.
They're all doing the same. Thing yes and actually towards
the end of my career like what before I got laid off I I
remember talking to a guy at A at a big company that shall
remain nameless and I said hey, because what it was selling was
a software that needed is not like a nice to have like they're
gonna buy the software whether it's with the company I was at
(19:08):
or if it was at another company.I said, hey, like, how do you
pick a vendor like for your clinical trial data, you know,
before you submit to the FDA? And he said, honestly, whoever
comes to me first. Oh wow, so there was no
targeting? And I just was like that, that
was one of the like light bulb moments where I was like, how,
(19:31):
like, how am I going to get intothese big accounts if it's just
that like who gets there 1st? 100% right?
Like I, it was just one of thosemoments where I was like, wow,
OK. Like I don't know if this is for
me. And that's when you started to
think more about what your career.
(19:51):
Path yes, yes, yes and my husband, boyfriend at the time
was for years and years and years telling me, listen,
Pamela, you're so good at fitness, like why don't you make
this like a full time thing? I was like, no, no, no, sat up
and I was lured in again by the benefits of tech and the things
that. Are sold to you in a way right?
Like the unlimited PTO and. The lunches, yes.
(20:12):
Which is all great stuff, but a lot of that stuff, and again,
this is just my experience, camewith a lot of strings attached.
It wasn't just there for you. Right, so fitness opened up new
possibilities for you. It opened my mind.
It opened my mind to other things that I was good at
besides selling. Before we get any deeper, if you
(20:34):
don't mind me asking you yes, and you can say no.
Yeah. How old were you when you were
making the shift from tech to fitness?
35 Almost 36. See and that's OK.
And it was scary. It is scary because you because
going back to like, earlier in the conversation, you were
saying that like, you didn't know what you wanted to do,
(20:56):
right? Because when you go to college
at such an early age, you you'reliterally like by 22, I need to
go to school. This is I need to graduate by
like 22. This is what I need to do,
right? And it's OK to make a career
change. And that's exactly what you did.
Yeah. Going from tech to fitness
because you found. And I don't want to put words in
(21:19):
your mouth. Absolutely.
You found passion. I don't want to say like,
passion and fitness because I feel like always say that.
No, it's true, though. But you found you're trying to
escape something. Yes, I feel yes.
And because your friend opened you up to new possibilities, you
found fitness. Yeah.
And then what was that transition like for you?
(21:41):
I mean, again, this like going from tech sales to fitness was
not like a decision that I made overnight, right?
Like it was a big thing. I was very scared because again,
age is relative, right? But I was relatively older to
make make career change, right, and I felt like I'd put all this
into tech sales that at some point I was gonna make it
(22:03):
meaning. And when I say make it, I mean
get that big count, get that bigass account that the one that's
gonna like. Everyone dreams of yes.
Like. Super.
Huge big account that's gonna skyrocket my career and all
these companies are gonna come after me and it's gonna be
amazing right So it it never happened though, right so.
(22:25):
Did you did you feel like it never happened or in your?
No, it really never. Happened or like for you it
like? No, it really never happened.
It really never happened. It really never happened.
And the reason it never happenedwas, I mean, many reasons, but
like a lot of things in sales are it's a boys club, right?
(22:48):
It's a boys club. And if you're not one of the
boys and then they're not with you, they're not with you.
And then when they're not with you, they're against you
inadvertently or obviously. So I just couldn't do it
anymore. I just couldn't do it.
(23:09):
Oh, yeah. I was just like, I can't.
I can't pretend to be one of theguys.
I can't pretend to like their jokes.
They're like, I can't. I was tired of it.
And it was the IT and I and I was struggling.
I was getting burnt out and I was caring less and less, less
and less. And what happened was I got laid
off. I got laid off, right, right at
(23:30):
COVID, right at, or I mean, a little after COVID because I'll
be honest, the company I was at was actually thriving during
COVID because we were selling a software for collecting data
remotely from, from, from subjects, or should I say
patients. I hate saying subjects from
patients. Yeah.
And that was because the clinicswere closed, right?
There was no, there was nothing going on.
(23:51):
There was nothing going on. So these people, these biotech
companies, device companies are like, how else are we going to
collect data but doing it at home, right?
And this is obviously not for like life ending studies, but
other studies, right? So we were actually doing pretty
well, but I, I was struggling. I was struggling big time and
(24:11):
getting laid off while it was pretty devastating because it
sucks to. Be laid up.
It's a really fucking shitty feeling.
It really fucking. Sucks you've been there the
last. Like 3 months.
Yeah, it fucking sucks. Yeah, getting getting laid off,
getting fired, getting canned, whatever you want to fucking
call it. It sucks.
It sucks really bad because it'sa, it's a form of rejection,
(24:35):
right? It's a form of rejection.
And for someone like me, who, who at that time even more so,
put so much of my identity in what I did for work, it was
truly like life shattering. Like it was just like, it, it,
it was, it was horrible. It's heartbreaking.
It was, it truly was. And talking to my husband, he's
(24:57):
like, let's do it, let's do it. Let's get you into fitness.
You're so good at it. You're so good.
At it you are. You're fucking incredible at.
It but I love it so much. I love it so much.
And I was approached by someone at another fitness center.
Yeah. That came into the fitness
studio that I was teaching at and was like, hey, we're opening
(25:19):
up a fitness studio. Excuse me.
I burped. We're totally fine.
We opened a fitness studio, and I think you would be great
there. And I was like, oh, really?
And, like, it did a lot for my confidence, right.
It made me feel good that peoplearound town had heard of me and
were like, hey. I mean, a lot of people know of
you, Pamela, even before where you were currently work.
(25:41):
I knew you from like. I know.
Those like. Those other students?
Yes, yes. Yes, yes, yes.
So I was, I, I felt good. It felt good to hear that when I
was feeling so down. Yeah.
So I want to say like the stars all aligned right, like
everything kind of came togetherat the at the right.
(26:02):
Time. So I was like.
OK. Yeah, I'm happy to work at, at,
at, at this newer establishment,which was really hyped up and
very, very like the place to be.And while there I was like,
well, you know, I really want todo this fitness thing a little
more. You know, I like, I have the
encouragement of my husband. It was like, you can, you can go
(26:23):
into another tech job. I had people that I could go
work with like I had like it wouldn't be hard for me to get
another tech job, right? Let's do this more.
So there's personal training at this facility establishment.
I mean, from what I see, you're a fucking hustler.
Well. Yeah, you kick ass at this
(26:46):
facility and everyone fucking loves you.
I didn't mean to cut you off. No, but like, but like I have to
say that because everyone loves your energy, your vibe, your
classes, you hustle, you're going from one client to
another. You're just on it all the time.
So like when you got to this place, right at this time, you
(27:07):
had already left tech, tech had already like.
Tech left me and I left tech. It was.
It was a mutual break. It was a mutual departure, I.
Mean at first I didn't see mutual it sound like full on
fucking rejection adorable, but it it I mean it.
But that but that was OK. That was totally OK, right?
Totally. OK, so then you found fitness.
Yeah, right. And then what do you love about
(27:30):
it? I love everything.
I mean so much about fitness. I love right now I'm working
harder than I've ever worked in my life in a different way, but
I feel like I'm not working as much as I want.
Do you think your life would be different if you were in tech
right now? If I were in tech right now,
yeah, absolutely. Percent, without a doubt.
(27:51):
I'm doing something now that I feel like I didn't know when I
was younger what my purpose was.I didn't know.
I just knew that I wanted to be happy, right?
And that's how I was raised. Like my parents raised me to do
what makes you happy, right? You know, like, there wasn't a
lot of pressure in terms of schooling.
And I feel like at this point inmy life, and, you know, I'm
(28:13):
going to, I'm almost 38. I'm finally doing what I was
meant to do. And do I not want to work
sometimes? Yeah, right.
Working is hard. Like there's, there's times I
don't want to work. But what I will say is I know
that I'm in the right place thatI'm supposed to be because
sometimes time isn't even there.Like time.
(28:34):
Like I don't I lose track of time.
You do? Yeah, we all do.
We all lose track of time when you're like on the go when
you're. Hustling and happy, yeah.
Like, I'm happy, I'm happy, and I'm seeing the impact.
And that's the most important thing.
Let's take a look. You're happy.
Cheers. Cheers.
Cheers to happiness, Pam. It's not happiest.
Cheers. To do.
You want a lollipop before we get into the next air, my next
(28:54):
segment? I do not want to say no to
Sweet. Thank you.
So much well, Pam. Love it so good.
We've talked about some, like, serious things.
We sure have. We, we went really deep.
We sure did. Let's lighten it up a little
bit, right? You went from sales, then you
(29:15):
went into like the corporate world where you were like laid
off. Then you found your passion in
the fitness world, right? You're at this amazing gym.
You do some incredible things. I see you everyday hustling,
right? What makes you come in every
day? You.
What makes you come in every? Day Well, first of all, that's a
great question. So I just want to give you a
(29:36):
Gold Star for that question because that's a great question,
but. I'm not a Gold Star gay.
Not yet. I mean, there's lots of reasons
that that bring me into work every day.
I think the main thing is havingan impact on people's lives.
Yeah. And that's not something that I
got from tech. What was cool about tech and you
know, the last 6-7 years of my career was again selling for
(30:00):
clinical trials and working withcompanies that were creating
drugs that were life saving for people with cancer.
That was cool. But I didn't really get to see
see the effects of that everydaywhen I work with people, I get
to see it. I get to see them come in and
tell me I waited all day to do this all day.
(30:21):
And it's such a huge responsibility to be the best
part of someone's day. But nothing makes me happier
than truly being at service. And that's what it comes down to
for me. I love fitness.
I love everything about it. But ultimately what makes me the
happiest is being at service. So I don't see myself not in
(30:43):
fitness in the future, but I also could see myself not
fitness, right? I'm I'm trying to keep things
open and not identify solely with one thing because there's
things that are out of your control, right?
Well, The thing is, the industrythat you're in, you're actually
making an impact in people's lives, right?
(31:04):
You are. When people see their bodies
change, it makes them feel good.It makes them feel better.
Yes. I mean, you know, I can speak
from experience, right? Being at a gym the last year and
a half, right? Like the people that are around
you, your trainers, your coaches, they make a huge impact
(31:25):
and you're making an impact on everyone's life.
Like you really are, right? Like it's inspiring.
It's amazing because you're the one who gets to do that, not
anyone else. I mean, there are other
trainers, but like, you get to do that for people who chose to,
like, train with you and be withyou.
Yeah, that must be a fucking amazing.
(31:47):
I mean. Feeling it, it really is.
And it's a big responsibility too.
It is, right? It's a big responsibility, but
it's a responsibility that I I welcome and that I want to take.
It's a different kind of challenge that I felt in tech.
This is a challenge that I feel like I can, I can do.
Yeah, I can do. And being at service to people
(32:08):
and helping people and being that part of their day where I
mean, you know, some people are working all day long 1214 hours,
right? I mean, parents doing, working
from home do shuffling the kids back and forth, all that stuff.
Being able to have people come in and truly be like, oh, I can
(32:31):
be myself around you. That to me, like, there's no
greater, greater gift than I could get than that.
Do you have any clients who has who have ever said anything to
you that you're like, yeah, Thisis why I meant to be here?
Tonight. Yeah, yeah.
What was one quote that someone said to?
You one quote actually I have one.
(32:55):
I, I trained 1 gal who she's in tech and she's scared about
getting laid off. And she goes, Pam, you know what
scares me the most about the possibility of getting laid off?
It's not losing my job because, you know, I'm the, she's not
really happy at the job, but she's like not being able to
come see you and not having the,the finances to do so.
(33:18):
And that just touched me so, so much because it goes beyond the
fitness, right? It goes beyond all of that,
right? It goes, it goes so much deeper
than that. Yeah.
And for her to say that like, I like, I, I didn't know that I
impacted her that much. You know what I mean?
Like, I knew I had an impact on her life.
She liked working with me. I like working with her.
(33:39):
But when she said that, I just really was like, wow, like.
You're like, I felt that. Yeah, like I did, and it made me
choke up. I mean, I love some deep
conversations with my clients. I mean, I love connecting with
people and I love bringing people together.
So another thing that makes me really, really happy is bringing
(33:59):
people that I work with together.
Yeah, right. So having some clients that
don't know each other, but then bringing them together like
nothing get like that just fucking makes me so happy,
right? We're just bringing random
people. Together because.
You never know. They would never, outside of
fitness, interact. With one another 100%.
But it brings them together, so I love that.
(34:21):
I love that we're gonna get intoPam's power moves now.
OK, I'm gonna ask you. We're gonna go rapid fire.
Let's do it. OK.
Are you ready? Do it.
I don't. Know ready let's.
Make it happen, OK? What's more traumatic, leg day
or being CC D on a dramatic e-mail that you didn't start?
(34:45):
They're both pretty good. Good.
One I mean being CC D on an e-mail that didn't I mean.
I've been there, yeah. Me too pretty.
Fucking good. I have to go with that.
You don't have to go with that one, all right?
Toxic trait. Toxic trait?
Too much caffeine? Really.
(35:06):
Yeah, mine's cardio until I forget about him.
Yeah. So what's more?
What's more painful burpees are quarter four sales goal that's.
A good one. Q4 sales goals are fucking
burpees. Q4 sales goals.
OK, biggest ick. Biggest Dick Ick Oh, sorry,
(35:31):
sorry I I was like biggest Dick me I'm I'm I'm a spoken for a
woman. OK, who?
Do you think I me too spoken fora man?
Biggest ick? Or Dick.
Or Dick. That's for another podcast.
Should be continued. Biggest ick just, you know,
(35:52):
assholes. People that are inconsiderate,
dude. People that think what they're
doing is more important than you.
People that just are so in themselves that they don't
realize that everybody else's life sucks too, and that they're
not the only ones. Yeah, and you're not alone, so
don't be an asshole. But I like assholes.
Well, there's not too. There's not too.
(36:14):
Jim, red flag. Jim, red flag.
Do you mean gym red flag? Help me understand.
Like a red flag at the gym. Like I don't like how people
don't put their weights back where they were.
Or grunting as if you're giving birth to a kettlebell.
Yeah, yeah. When you're on Rep one exactly
now and it's 30 lbs. OK, sorry heavyweight
(36:35):
subjective. I would say mostly people that
try to do like super sets duringthe busy time at the gym.
Don't block off 1 machine for you know what I mean?
Don't do. That it's a shared.
Space and you can't do that but let people know that they can
work in with. You 100% work.
In with you. I agree with you.
(36:56):
Clean up your sweat little wipe,just just a little wipe.
So we've got to look at it, you know, unless.
You're hot, don't clean it up. Yeah, well, unless you're, you
got to be like real hot. Like you don't clean.
It for a sweat Pam so. It's a badge of honor.
Cookies are a salad. Seriously.
(37:20):
Obviously cookies. What kind of cookies?
I do like crumble, crumble, crumble should be illegal.
That's, I mean, it's so good. Like it should be illegal.
Like there's, there's something,I don't know what's in it.
It's more than sugar and butter because how does it stay soft
like that? Like for a long time?
(37:40):
Oh, that's what she said. Sometimes I say so.
No, but like literally like theystay soft. 100.
Percent. They're so delicious and they're
too good, and I can take down that little Fort.
Same. I agree with you.
Like it's nothing. Me too.
She's an eater. She's a growing girl.
I'm a eater, too. That's right.
That's right. And I love me some cookies.
I can tell you right now. I can tell what my husband calls
(38:02):
a cookie. What?
Should we go next? Next question.
Next class favorite. Cocktail.
Usually anything with vodka, butI'm not a huge cocktail person.
Like I like cocktails, like thisis a special occasion, right?
But I I don't like the act of drinking but I like being drunk
(38:23):
in buds. Feel like shots, shots, shots,
shots, shots, shots. Shots yes because I don't enjoy
drinking but I enjoy being drunkin buds.
So we gotta get you drunk quick.That's right, it's.
Like 4 shots in one glass just pound it.
Down and there you go, bend. Over and just like do it.
That's right, she said. She'd date.
Oh I love that with a cookie. There you.
(38:43):
Go yeah, feed me a cookie, give me four shots and just take me
down. I.
Mean. That's it.
That's it. I love that.
Yeah, I'd tell my husband he wonthe jackpot, right?
Oh my God, he did. He.
Won the jackpot glass for Oh my God that was me when I was like
19 but now I'm like 40. I'm old.
I'm not a girl. I'm not.
(39:03):
Speaking all right. That's a great song that's
about. What's a functional workout that
belongs in jail? Anything correlated?
Correlated. Correlated, so get your ass in a
plank, OK? You teach Pilates and other
things that's correlated in. A plank.
Get your ass in a plank. My ass is always in a plank.
That's right. It is planks, any it's
(39:26):
stretching, honestly, that that those are the they're the things
that nobody likes to do. I like stretching.
They don't give you they don't give you the most intense burn.
So anything that's core related because it's going to help with
low back pain, things like that.Your favorite gas station snack?
No, all of them. All of them I.
Love me some gas station snacks.What if that I like Nerds?
(39:47):
I like beef jerky, I like Gardeto's.
Just the crouton. Looking things, the fried things
you. Know those?
Yeah. And listen, I can be a little
bad in terms of soda. I only drink Diet Coke, so
there's that. But once in a while, I do like
me a Mountain Dew red coat. Love that.
(40:08):
What's your favorite sex position?
Oh my. Gosh, can you impress me for all
this? I love it.
Oh my God, you can be on prep too, don't worry.
What's my favorite? Yesterday I told Hannah like in
last week's episode, I told Hannah Missionary and she was
shocked. Did.
You really say? Missionary I did.
(40:29):
For your favorite position, yeah.
You can be in missionary. Missionary is like when a guy's
what I'm. Trying to wait.
Wait. Yeah.
Explain what missionary is. It's when a guy's on his back
with his legs up and the other guy's on top of them.
All right, Pam, that was a lot of reps, emotional and
otherwise. Huge shout out for Pam for
(40:52):
logging off, levelling up, and proving that your purpose might
just be hiding somewhere betweena layoff and a deadlift.
Please subscribe, rate and review or send it to someone
who's been laid off and just like left on red because that's
a shitty feeling. It fucking.
Sucks. It just it does suck.
(41:13):
Until then, hydrate or don't hydrate.
Cry in lower case and whatever you do, don't open that.
Thanks for applying e-mail afterfucking 10:00 PM.
It's never good news. Don't do it.
Trust me when you're off the clock.
But beyond that, what exactly? I love you so.
(41:36):
Much I love you more. e-mail me at
clockedincheckedoutpod@gmail.comor slide into my DM.
Clocked in checked out pod on IG.
Pam always be sliding in. I might just read it on the air.
And yes, fake names are absolutely on deck.
Until next time, clock out, log off, and spiral responsibly.
(41:58):
Thanks for watching, bye.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!