Entrepreneur, International Speaker, and Fitness Expert Keyon Clinton is a leader in the community. Clinton has transformed his life from all facets, and now he’s inspiring and motivating others to do the same. Clinton believes in no ceilings regarding one’s potential, and he’s making sure others adopt the same mantra every day.
When did you understand that there was an anointing over your life to serve and inspire others?
Over ten years ago, God spoke to me and told me I was called to speak to nations all over the world. Being a young teen, I didn’t believe it. It wasn’t until 2015 when I spent nine months in Benton Harbor, Indiana alone where I accepted my calling to serve and inspire others. Through my isolation process, it was frustrating, challenging, and forced me to get outside my comfort zone to find my identity, but I figured it out. In nine months, a mother gives birth to a child, and God was birthing me for what he was preparing me for when I came back to Detroit in 2016.
In 2017, you went through a physical transformation by losing over 50 pounds in just six months and winning the 2018 Lenda Murray Bodybuilding Competition. Explain the mental, physical, and dietary changes you had to master to transform yourself into a bodybuilder.
I believe that if you look good, you’ll feel good. If you feel good, you’ll produce better results in life. In 2017, I knew it was time for a change within my look. I took the D.I.Y. approach, like most people would and failed miserably. I would go to the gym 2-3 times a week but still, eat whatever I wanted and never saw results. After being frustrated by failing, I had an intervention with myself and decided to get a trainer. Mentally, I had to force myself into changing my habits. It wasn’t just about going to the gym, but also the things I listened to, the content I watched, and the people I hung around. Fitness is not just about the gym because if you’re around unmotivated people, you will indirectly inherit their insecurities. So, by hanging around a new group of motivated people, I was about to shift a paradigm within myself to stay committed.
Physically, I had to push myself harder than ever to surpass my physical limitations. My trainer was a professional bodybuilder, and I told myself if I was going to pay for a trainer, I wanted the best. It was a challenge having to lift weights I’ve never lifted before, but I was determined to get the job done. Once I started to see the little physical progress, I fell in love with the process. There’s no secret that nutrition plays a massive role in your physical transformation. At first, I didn’t like being on a strict nutrition regimen because I was used to eating whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. Then, I realized it didn’t make a lot of sense to work out six days a week and put my body through all the pain to cheat on my diet. Food is fuel, and I’m able to increase my productivity levels in life because I have the right nutrients inside of me. I also wanted abs, and I knew only nutrition and cardio would get me there.
Talk about your debut book, “Healing The Living Dead,” and your non-profit organization, F.A.M.I.L.Y.
“Healing The Living Dead: Habits That Will Shift You From A Morgue Mentality To A Forbes Mentality,” is an accurate depiction of my life. I was born into an atmosphere where many people don’t survive. I was physically alive but mentally and morally dead. I had no purpose or agenda growing up, and I lacked the mentorship and guidance that would have pushed me in the right direction. From drugs, gangs, and violence, I was able to turn my life around and go to college, get a degree in electrical engineering, become an international speaker, best-selling author, founder of my non-profit organization F.A.M.I.L.Y., and the creator of the 1% Better lifestyle brand. In my book, I talk about how I did it, the adversity I dealt with along the way, and I leave practical habits on how to develop a growth mindset during a dead situation. I’m excited to know that I have books in various countries and continents across the world.
In 2014, I created my non-profit organization F.A.M.I.L.Y. (Forget About Me, I Love You!), where we focus on at-risk youth and provide them with the tools and resources to help their personal, professional, and career development. Growing up, I always wanted a huge family, but I never got it, so I created my own through F.A.M.I.L.Y. Family is not only biological but through relationships, and I’m grateful that over the years, I’ve built some unique relationships with people. Currently, we have a partnership with eight high schools in the city of Detroit and three colleges in the state of Michigan. We also have an initiative where whenever 250 books are purchased, we adopt an entire school. Our goal for 2020 is to adopt 50 schools all over the world and impact thousands of youth to live the lifestyle they truly deserve.
When we think of 1%, we associate the connotation with elite-level men and women of the world. What made you decide to build your brand around people becoming 1% Better?
Truthfully, everybody wakes up with aspirations to be better than they were yesterday. Whether its spiritually, mentally, physically, financially, or emotionally, the goal is to increase daily in these aspects of your life. As I was going through one of the most challenging times in my life in 2017, I found myself saying things like all progress is good progress, one step at a time, and get better at one thing today. From this, I realized that every day I wake up, I wanted to get at least 1% Better.
You can’t give 100% every daily. This is a myth because, as humans, life happens, and we get fatigued. Still, if we continue to live intentionally, say our daily affirmations, write out our daily goals, and execute one thing at a time, we will adopt the 1% Better mindset of continuous growth. If you start today, one year from now, you will increase the efficiency in your daily operations by 365%. That means you’re going to think on a different level, move on a different level, and win on a different level. My ultimate goal in life is to continue growing. There’s no ceiling for the person I’m becoming because I’ll continue to read, invest in training, find mentors to take me to the next level, and do whatever it takes to stay sharp.
As an international speaker, how do you prepare for each presentation? Are there certain rituals or practices you spend time doing before an event?
Speaking is my gift, so with every engagement, I make sure I do my due diligence to provide the most inspirational moment that I can. I study the target audience to ensure I know who I’m speaking in front of. I always identify the problem that I’m going to solve by providing a relatable solution for the audience to apply. I always prepare, practice, and rehearse to make sure I’m delivering an impactful and life-changing experience for the audience. I pray before my presentations with my team, and I always engage with the audience to receive their energy. This is how I stay prepared and ready to go.
Every Sunday, you pray for yourself, and all your followers on social media. Tell us about the presence of God in your life.
God is my source, and everything else is a resource. God has been watching over me and kept me out of harm’s way even when I didn’t deserve his grace and mercy, so I made a promise to him that I’ll always exalt him with every opportunity I receive. We live in a world where there’s war, death, and negativity all around us, so I decided to pray for people and send positive energy to my followers. The feedback that I receive is so amazing, and I’m grateful that my prayers are helping people get through their week. I am who I am because of my God, and I’ll always acknowledge him in my testimony.
At one point, the zip code of 48205 was considered the worst area to live in the City of Detroit. Knowing that you come from this neighborhood, how do you push yourself internally to strive for greatness every day?
I realized that no matter how dark your past is, you can make your future as bright as you want it to be. Being from 48205 and hearing about all the negative statistics, I use it as fuel to become great. I also understand that there are young people from my neighborhood who look up to me as inspiration and hope for them to make it out of the hood. I didn’t have any role models growing up, so I became the man I’ve always wanted to see and learn from. I take pride in my zip code because I know it gave me the tenacious mentality and mental fortitude to persevere through any adversity that presents itself. My life is more significant than my own self-gratification, so I will not let the people down. I’m willing to be that person that will change the trajectory of kids’ lives who come from 48205.
For more information, visit Keyon Clinton’s website.
About Post Author
