A Woman of Substance and Strength
Born in Stade, Germany, Joana Hinsch is a fantastic fitness and body transformation coach. Her interest was inclined toward fitness and working internationally. After graduating from school she became a shipping agent. The idea of being in touch with people from different countries and cultures got her hooked. Working as a shipping agent turned out to be the most unfulfilling job for her. At that time, she was very unhappy and bored and looked for something outside that gave her the feeling of success.
She found balance in having a gym routine. Over time the success she saw with weight loss became excessive. It turned into an eating disorder and anorexia. The situation with her job also took a toll on her mental health. She worked in the industry for almost 9 years until she started suffering from anxiety and panic attacks. She knew she needed to make a change but she was too afraid to take the leap.
In 2021 she moved abroad to work for a foreign company, which was her biggest dream since she was a child.
It turned out that being in a foreign country didn’t fix the struggles she dealt with internally. She didn’t see the point in doing something that was not fulfilling. After 9 months she got quit on her job. “I took this as a sign from the universe to take a leap of faith, follow my passion and help other women who struggle with body image or weight loss,” she expressed.
She coached people for 2.5 years for free at that time already because she was passionate about helping others.
In her opinion corporates do not make adequate efforts towards improving the facilities for women workers. “I can only speak from my own experience working a corporate job before and I would say that women still have a disadvantage when it comes to job roles or opportunities because they don’t get enough acknowledgment for their skills as men,” she added.
The strategies that can help women achieve a more prominent role in their organizations are assertiveness, equanimity, self-consciousness and self-confidence. Good communication skills and being emotionally intelligent also empowers them to great extent.
“As a woman leader, the most challenging barrier in my career is overcoming my own limiting beliefs. You can learn every skill but skills don’t bring you forward if you don’t believe in yourself and what you do,” she says.
One of her biggest inspirations in entering the fitness world is Lauren Simpson. She saw a transformation post of her a few years ago, from skinny to strong to WBFF world champ. “I understood that I need to eat and lift heavy if I want to look toned and be healthy. I got more into fitness and nutrition, started educating myself, and with that I developed the vision of helping other people feel better in their skin because I knew how hard it is to feel uncomfortable,” she added.
In terms of being a successful business owner, she looks up to Dr. Chris Spearman and Charlie Johnson.
“I want to learn from the best in the industry!”
On Saturday morning, 11 she is either in the gym or in front of her laptop. “There’s always work to do! But I love it and I wouldn’t trade it for the world,” she expresses. Her ‘me time’ is in the gym or swimming or the sauna.
Discipline, Determination, Persistence, and Visionary are some of her biggest strengths. She says that before something can manifest in your reality, you first must create a vision in your mind! And as long as you don’t quit, you’ll get there eventually! She defines her weakness as a lack of patience.
“I’m passionate about helping other people succeed. If I can put a smile on someone’s face by helping them become a better version of themselves, feeling better in their skin, improving their quality of life and their longevity, that is worth more than anything for me!” she adds. Her biggest dream would be to compete at the biggest bodybuilding show in the world one day (Mr.Olympia)
Her mantra for growth, development, and success is to ‘invest in yourself.’ She advises buying the lessons from other people’s mistakes rather than trying to figure it out on your own. Invest in people who’ve already achieved what you want to achieve. Invest money to make more money. Money comes and goes. Time doesn’t. She also says that there’s always someone that knows it better than you, put your ego aside and ask for help. If you have a vision in mind – be bold enough to pursue it!
“I’d rather fail 1000 times than live a mediocre life that’s unfulfilling just because it’s safe. Dare to dream big. Do what scares you!” she concludes.
