Stride Stories: The journey of entrepreneur & extreme athlete Kenyon Salo
[Kenyon is a serial entrepreneur and extreme athlete who believes in risk-taking for success. One of his weekend activities is skydiving for the Denver Broncos.]
Stride: Tell us about yourself, Kenyon.
Kenyon: I’ve always been the kid who tried to jump his bike the farthest or go the biggest on the snowboard jump. That whole time, while I was pushing myself physically, I was also working as an entrepreneur. I was starting businesses – some succeeded while others failed. I realized during that time there is a path for each of us to find what we are most passionate about. Right now, The Bucket List Life is driving everything I’m doing.
Stride: How does the Bucket List Life work?
Kenyon: The inception for The Bucket List Life came during a dark period. I was thinking I need to find something that really fires me up. This idea wasn’t about me checking off bucket list items, it was about helping others do so. Maybe in that process of helping others, I would check off bucket list items I didn’t know I had.
The Bucket List Life is a concept of morals and values… a way of thinking and living life. It’s not a company and doesn’t drive revenue. But that platform allows me to do my speaking and training engagements where we teach the concepts of the “create more, share more, live more.” I’ve found people’s biggest desire is to have time, location, and financial freedom, with a solid foundation of health. You can’t go check off your bucket list of life without a strong foundation of health.
Stride: How have you approached the idea of failing and overcoming in your career?
Kenyon: I found there is an important risk vs reward aspect to life – I believe the folks who have the greatest success are the ones willing to put it all on the line, whether it’s extreme sports or the business world. We know there is a possibility of failure with everything we do, but what is failure really? It’s just something we learn from. We say, Ok I am going to learn from that and adjust, so that success happens next time. That’s the key: being willing to fail and know it’s ok! Out of every failure comes a story and a learning process, and those things are absolutely valuable.
Stride: What would you say you struggle the most with on the business side of the freelance lifestyle?
Kenyon: Figuring out how to monetize. Monetization of a passion is one of the hardest things to do. People might say, “What you’re doing is amazing! You’re going to be super successful!” But when you ask them to open up their wallet, you get another story. Maybe you need to create something the world doesn’t know it needs, but you know they need it. That transition is tough.
Stride: How do you push through that transition? What’s your formula for turning your passions into financial sustainability?
Kenyon: I have found that if you never quit, a solution will eventually reveal itself. It may not be in the original way that you imagined, but it will indeed be the best way. In the meantime – while you are waiting for the eventual success of your passion monetization – it is good to have a form of residual income. For me, that is a health and wellness company I found, called Isagenix. For eight years it has provided me with a financial wealth vehicle, in addition to a solid foundation in health. I continue to create and follow my passions with this income.
Stride: What is your favorite thing about the lifestyle you’ve created?
Kenyon: Learning about someone else’s story. Everyone has a story that could be made and scripted into a movie, that is inspiring and powerful to someone out there. I love to ask strangers, “What’s something on your bucket list that haven’t done yet?” It’s an easy question to open with because I can find out who they are and what really fires them up. Another question I often use is, “Can you share with me something that not many people know about you?” It’s amazing how people open up because they realize somebody is ready to listen to me. They just unload. Sometimes I'm teaching, sometimes I’m learning. It’s really powerful.
Stride: How did you find out about Stride Health?
Kenyon: A friend referred me. I haven’t had health insurance since I was 18. That’s 25 years. I’ve been a professional snowboarder, professional skydiver (Kenyon is a professional Skydiver for the Denver Broncos), base jumper, adventure athlete, and I decided this is the year I’m going to get health insurance. It was so simple with Stride! I was amazed. I’m a busy and productive person and I thought I don’t have time! Then with Stride I went click… click… click… and I had health insurance!!
Stride: What is your biggest health concern for America?
Kenyon: Improper nutrition and obesity. It’s terrifying to see how fast unhealthy foods are affecting our population. When people have a strong foundation in health, everything else starts to fall into place, and when they don’t things fall apart.
Stride: What are you most proud of in your life journey?
Kenyon: Definitely my ability to help others, and that starts with the people who are closest to me. I look for that first and I know that at the end of my life, I will be saying that time that I donated, volunteered, and gave to others first was most fulfilling.
