Meet Holly Pendergast | Style Disruptor and Visibility Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with Holly Pendergast and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Holly, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risk is about betting on yourself.
Risk reaps reward.
Risk comes with failure which gives you the wisdom you need to win.
Risk is how you find out what you’re made of.
Risk is *the* thing that teaches you how to pick yourself back up, learn how to pick yourself, not abandon yourself when you experience rejection, and love the parts of you that you are used to shaming.
So many people talk about self-love, risk is the active practice, the exposure therapy, that teaches you how to love yourself.

Past me, would avoid risks at all costs thinking it kept me cool, safe, and comfortable. In reality, it was failing ahead of time. Opting out of the game altogether. It kept me stuck and small for years, thinking I was living my best life.

Taking risks is the only way you will ever face yourself. To see the parts of you that you do and don’t want to see.
And that can sound straight-up terrifying, which is why I make risk-taking fun while building up your nervous system to be able to take on more and more risk, AND more joy.

Style is the fun-est and fastest way to do this because you get to embody the act of taking a risk. It’s low-stakes to wear a neck scarf and earrings when you would normally not.
The possible risk?
Someone comments. You learn how to handle that attention. (Good and bad.)
The possible reward?
You feel yourself the whole day, you get a pep in your step, and your energy attracts people who hype you up. You get comfortable with visibility and being seen.
You expanded your nervous system, you exposed yourself to risk… and LIVED.
Plus, you’ve expanded your nervous system to experience risk as something fun.

What gets in the way, is people want the evidence, the trophy, the title, in order to feel confident.
It’s backward. You build confidence on the way there, it’s what earns you those things.
We all do it scared. Don’t worry, you get less and less scared until one day, you don’t even flinch at the thought of risk, because you’re so comfortable with yourself.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I’m a Visibility Coach, a Style DIsruptor.

I work with my clients on their mindset and energy, while using style to embody the person they’re becoming.

When you’re my client, you’re not just learning, consuming, and thinking about what’s possible. Instead, you’re integrating the lessons at each session, trying new ideas through style, and getting coached on what comes up for you. 
You walk away a new version of yourself because we do the work, live, together, in real time. We don’t wait til later or mentally conceptualize the work. You do it in the moment.

And, I‘m not your stylist. I don‘t tell you what to wear or how, or what trends are trending.

I do disrupt and shake up how you‘ve been thinking about yourself, dismantle outdated fashion ‘rules‘, question norms, de-center external opinions, help you get comfy with visibility, and encourage you to explore style as an avenue of self-expression.

Side effects include one-of-a-kind style:
Your life looks and feels like an ever-evolving work of art, where you are the masterpiece, highly sought after, turning heads, potentially causing a traffic jam from all the looky-loos.

Impact: This is not a temporary fix to make you look and feel hot, although that will happen, this work will rid you of any ‘pick me‘ energy, leaving you with a permanent sense of high self-esteem, not just bringing the party (so to speak), but being the party, where ever you go.

As I mentioned before, we play with risk. Nuance, the cringe zone, the BIG *YES* ENERGY, is what I call the portal of play where you get to discover part of yourself you’ve kept hidden.

I’m someone who’s walked the walk, as someone who is highly sensitive and used to experience crippling anxiety, I know how hard it is to be brave enough to be seen, without diluting yourself. Now being on the other side, I can tell you… it’s so much more fun over here! I invite you to join me.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
As an avid vintage shopper, I know alllll the spots to scope. This is why I created a Google Maps of 100+ pins of the best places for vintage and thrift shops in LA. Email me for the link! coach.with.holly@gmail.com

I offer my clients what I call a *Bougie Betch VIP Day* where we have a whole day together where we are coaching and shopping together, to explore new ways to amplify the parts of you that are dying to be seen. The dressing room is my favorite place to coach because so much comes up around body, money, what other people would think, doubt, and all the magic of finding the ‘once in a lifetime’ finds, and we make big progress because we’re together IRL.

To answer your question, here is my week-long itinerary for my visiting bestie.

Monday:
Atwater Village. Mid-day. Because mornings are for coffee.
Start the day with Dune, the tastiest Mediterranean restaurant in all of LA. It’s a pickup and eat at the outdoor tables kinda place, super casual, hole in the wall, but it’s not to be underestimated.

Go thrifting at all the shops on Glendale Bl.
Out of the Closet, Goodies, Dressque, Treehaus, all of them. My favorites are pinned in the Google Maps list.
(Again, I’m serious, email me and I’ll send you the link.)

Get dinner at either Hail Mary, the bessssst sourdough pizza place, ever. OR Momed, about a half mile away still in Atwater, and get the whipped feta, avocado hummus, with their ridiculously incredible sourdough, super soft, warm pitta bread, AND their iconic specialty, muddy, coffee that comes with a dark chocolate square

Tuesday:
Burbank, Magnolia Street.
THIS is where Hollywood, gets and leaves their vintage wardrobes for film and TV, and experienced vintage shoppers like me.
(Again, I pinned the cream of the crop shops for you on Google Maps.)

Non-negotiable shops are:
Playclothes Vintage. It’s giant and has every era you would possibly think of.
Catnip Coalition. For my fellow cat-obsessed person. Plus they have a couple of adoptable shop cats to pet.
Jackie Robbins Leather. The most beautiful hand-made leather purses and her collection of leather jackets and pants are out of this world. It should be a museum. It’s a sacred place.

Coffee: The Palm Coffee Bar, Romancing the Bean Cafe, or Three Sisters Coffee.
Dinner: Adana, Middle Eastern food, get the chicken thigh kabab or falafel plate, yogurt dip, hummus, all the things.

Wednesday:
Head to Palm Springs with the perfectly curated Spotify playlist.
Get comfy at our bougie boutique hotel. Eat dinner at the hotel.
There are a TON of mid-century hotels, and boutique hotels, my fav! Colony Palms, Ace Hotel, Saguaro, Parker, Arrive, etc.
Dinner at Boozehounds.
A night time jacuzzi moment is a must.

Thursday:
Coffee: Ernet Coffe, Koffi, Arrive Hotel’s Coffee Shop.
Get an aura photo taken across the street.
Head to Palm Desert to shop the stripe and stop by Thriftology, a fabulous vintage spot with the most incredible costume jewelry selection.
Back to Palm Springs for pool hopping. You can get a day pass to pretty much any pool so you can enjoy the different vibes.
Lunch: Anya’s Kitchen
Dinner: Azucar Palm Springs

Friday:
Hit some thrift shops on the way out of Palm Springs (Did I mention I have a curated list of Google Maps Pins for you?)
and Mojave Flea Trading Post has a ton of curated boutiques in one massive place. There’s one in Joshua Tree, too.
If we’re feeling energized, squeeze in Wasteland in Highland Park.
Dinner in Eagle Rock: CaCao Mexicatessen
The green mole enchiladas are to die for and a ton of great tacos and burritos. Get a marg, too.

Saturday:
Hot Yoga at One Life Yoga on Lake St. in Pasadena.

Bagels at WAKE AND LATE: Rip and dip bagels are soft and glorious, get a coffee, too. Go early, they run out! Actually should prob do this on a weekday to ensure you secure the bagels.
Roam around Colorado Blvd. enjoy the architecture, stop by Crossroad Trading (a gently worn second hand shop) and get a blended Spanish Latte at Urth Cafe.
Or roam Vroman’s Bookstore with Tepitos Coffee (get a pastry too).

Dinner: Have a picnic-style dinner on the grass and visit the Griffith Observatory for the view. Whole Foods prepared section, quick and easy.

Sunday:
Loop Espresso Club for coffee and a brown sugar pop tart and morning bun (basically, it’s a cinnamon roll and a croissant that had a baby).

Find a bank to pull out some cash because we’re going to Rosebowl Flea market.
(It’s the second Sunday of every month and we would plan her visit *completely* around this date.)

Lunch/Dinner (because you will be so full): Breakfast burritos at Lucky Boy on Walnut St. in Pasadena.
Get yourself a chocolate milkshake, too. They’re the BEST.

And that’s a wrap!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I like to say, that behind every strong, brilliant, successful woman… there’s probably a cat who has been by her desk-side through it all.

In all seriousness, I have chased down mentors, worked for free, and done anything to gain wisdom. I have so many mentors to thank, most of them don’t know I exist because they are authors, podcasters, and masterminders. I take a holistic approach so some are business-oriented, some are focused on energy work, etc. As a coach, I know how important it is to be coached, which is why I have invested tens of thousands of dollars into coaches, here are some of my heavy-hitter mentors.

My favorites: Regena Thomashauser, Joe Dispenza, Glennon Doyle, Martha Beck, Byron Katie, Esther Perel, Abraham Hicks, Alexander James, Lexi Beal, Eyenie Schultz, Brooke Castillo, Denise DT, Cesar Millan
And so many more, including my partner, T.
Oh, and Beyonce and Megan thee Stallion for the vibes. Ha!

Website: https://coachwithholly.com/

Instagram: @coach.with.holly

Image Credits
Pavel Oshen Denisenko
Merle Ginsberg
Olivia Steuer
Kelsey Christine