E3 Off-Road National Conference with Brittany and Kevin Williams of LiteBrite Nation
Earlier this summer I had the amazing opportunity to attend and write about the E3 Association National Conference. If you’ve never heard of E3, I would highly encourage you to check them out. There are several divisions to E3, but I had the honor of writing about the co-founders of E3 Offroad, Brittany and Kevin Williams, and learning more about all their amazing adventures on their YouTube Channel Lite Brite Nation. They inspired all of us to chase our dreams and live life with passion.
E3 Association recently released a special edition digital magazine featuring just a few highlights from the conference and I am excited to share my contributions with my readers.
And for those of you who prefer to read the digital magazine you can find it posted below this article PLUS a few next steps to make your dreams become reality - don’t miss those at the end.
Living For Your Dreams
How do a firefighter in the Air Force turned Insurance Adjustor and a Biology major turned Animal Caretaker end up with a hit YouTube channel and partners in E3 Offroad? It’s simple. Kevin and Brittany Williams found their passion in life, grabbed onto their dreams, and never let go. Their desire to live life to its fullest every single day is what guides them. As hundreds of E3 members listened in on day two of the 2021 E3 National Conference, this inspiring couple shared with us how they navigate their future and drive their own path forward. And you can too, no matter if your dream is getting debt-free, desiring a more fulfilling life, or even starting your own company.
Always say yes.
When you are given the opportunity to do anything, you say yes, even when you don’t want to. “We've almost never said no in the last several years, especially since we started the YouTube channel and we take as many opportunities as possible. And what you find out when you do that is the more opportunities that you take, the more will present themselves to you. And it suddenly becomes this massive, incredible, mind-blowing, domino effect,” explains Brittany. Kevin adds, ”I'm telling you, it just opens up a whole new world. You meet people that you never would've met if you didn't go.” Living life waiting for new opportunities to happen will leave you waiting forever. But when you dig in and make life happen that is when you begin to find the sweetness of life.
Big risks can equal big rewards.
The couple acknowledges the fact that the younger you are, the more risks you can take. So three years ago Kevin and Brittany quit their jobs and went all-in on their YouTube channel, Lite Brite. They had six months' worth of savings in the bank and devoted every ounce of blood, sweat, and tears into growing their online presence. However, at month six, they felt defeated as they had barely made any progress. That’s when they said yes to yet another opportunity, Jeep Beach. While attending the week-long event they were able to soak in knowledge from friends and fellow YouTubers to make the changes they needed to expand. It worked. That’s when everything began to change, at month seven. From there, Lite Brite Nation grew and grew to the point where Kevin and Brittany are generating more income now than in their previous careers. Brittany explains “sometimes to get that big reward, to get where you want to be in life, there will be risks involved. There will be sacrifices involved. It’s whether or not you're willing to make those sacrifices and take those risks that might determine whether or not you get that reward or you get to where you want to go.”
Never shut up.
With steadfast conviction Kevin tells everyone to speak your goals aloud over and over, “you’re visualizing it. You're saying it. You’re breathing life into it. You're making it be, without it ever being upfront. You're making it happen. It's crazy how that works. It's happened with everything.” Brittany adds, “that also creates accountability because suddenly it's not just you. Your own thoughts and in your own head thinking this. You've now told all these people who are going to help to keep you accountable to that goal. It's going to make sure that you're actually living up to what you say. Otherwise, your friends are going to be like, you're a liar.” Tell everyone who will listen about your goals, dreams, and desires, because you never know at what point your life will shift into full drive.
Tenacity.
Obsess about it. Visualize it. Eat, sleep, and breathe it. Have the tenacity to go after life and your dreams. “That is the first step into making sure it becomes a reality. Because the more effort and the more energy you put into it, the more likely it is to happen. Things aren't just going to fall at your feet,” says Brittany. “Keep going and there’s always a way,” encourages Kevin.
Stay positive.
Though it sounds trite, Kevin and Brittany, encourage everyone to stay far away from toxic negativity and keep the positivity. When you allow negativity to bring you down it will pull you away from the focus of your goals. Repeat that to yourself again. But a conscious effort to hold onto your positivity and show the world what you are capable of will always keep you on top. Surround yourself with your supporters and those that will continue to lift you up. And if need be, don’t be afraid to remove the naysayers from your circle.
Happiness is always the end goal.
The final piece of advice from this power couple might be the most important, find your balance. Never burn the candle at both ends. Brittany explains, “it’s really important to know your limits. Again, you don't want to give up on your goals. You don't want to give up on living the adventure that you want to live. But you do need to know your limits. Because if suddenly that passion that you have becomes work, it becomes a job, or it's no longer something that makes you happy, then what are you doing? Why are you doing it?”
While acknowledging the many cliches that come with their values, Kevin and Brittany explain these life lessons are built from years of experience. The two of them went from being houseless and living in a Jeep to owning three companies, in three years. But at the end of the day, they can honestly say they went for it. They took their dreams and never looked back. As their time on stage came to an end, Brittany reminded us, “it's literally a mindset, just being willing to make the sacrifices you want to make, to get where you want to be. To do the things you want to do and to smile at every possible moment. It takes conscious effort. It takes work. It takes sacrifice. But for us, it has been so worth it. And I know, a lot of you are also living proof that it is absolutely possible. And if you aren't there yet in your life, that goal is completely obtainable.”
Epilogue - After hearing Brittany and Kevin speak last June I was inspired to dream forward. Here’s a little bit of advice I put together that didn’t make it into my E3 article - I hope you feel inspired as well.
Today can be the start of your new journey if you’re ready to put in the work. So what’s the next step? What are your goals and dreams? Your first step must start with a written plan. Writing it down is the most important part! From there you’ll need to ask yourself the hard questions. Do you need to downsize your life and what does that look like? Do you have the financial reserves to make it? Most experts suggest no less than six months reserves. Your financial plan will also need to include your budget and a contingency plan if something goes wrong. Next, you need to look at the logistics of daily life and set your sights on attaining your goals. Whether you start small and create a plan to do three things each day to move you forward. Or you go all in and give it everything you’ve got. You need to create attainable goals to give you direction. Lastly, have you thought through all the big obstacles? You need to fully understand how you are going to tackle those roadblocks. Because if you don’t have a plan, you will reach a point where you will hit a wall and need to find your direction again. If you’re having a hard time getting started, it’s time to map out what your life will look like in the next six months.