A New Pair of Shoes

Running your own business is no easy feat. There are so many different facets to the daily grind that I could not have foreseen when I decided this was something I wanted - and needed - to do.

I had reached a point in my life where I was ready to pull back from Broadway and start building something that felt more sustainable…and less taxing on my body. During the pandemic, there was time. Broadway shut down, I was teaching limited yoga classes online - I had room to breathe and to dream. After taking the leap and attending the Institute for Integrative Nutrition’s health coaching course, I thought I knew what it would take to start a business.

I got my first real taste of the work this would require when we began building the website and business model that GroundWell would launch with. Hours spent on FaceTime (aka COVID), defining what I stood for and what services and ethos I wanted to offer. That initial model has shifted dramatically over time, but the root of why I began it in the first place still remains:

To meet people where they are.

To offer an intentional, intelligent, and deeply human experience.

To bring ease.

I’ve realized recently that I was holding myself back - that after experiencing the loss of my fiancé just a week after launching GroundWell, some part of me was holding a quiet grudge against this dream. I couldn’t fully separate that heaviness from its inception, even as I continued to move forward, heal, and stay dedicated to the work.

This past month, I received two pieces of advice that feel especially timely.

The first: learn to love your brand. Sit down with it. Look at it. Believe in it. Because it is beautiful. What I have built is extraordinary. To create anything from a place in your heart, with intention, is a feat. What they were really saying was - believe in this, and let yourself dream again. Go wild. Dream big.

The second, from my dear friend Katie, which I love just as much: drink your own Kool-Aid. In a world of comparison and constant noise, believe in yourself. Believe in what you’re offering. Believe in the possibility of what’s to come. Drink it in. Fill up. Ask for seconds - thirds. Because if I don’t, no one else will.

I suppose I’m sharing this for anyone starting something new and feeling overwhelmed or nervous. Or for anyone walking a similar path.

Which brings me to another piece of advice I received years ago:

Make sure you’re walking through life in the right pair of proverbial shoes. If things feel hard - if you’re constantly running into walls - look down. Have you outgrown them? Are you trying to run a marathon in shoes that no longer fit?

Often, that realization alone is enough to spark a much-needed shift in perspective…and maybe even a change in direction.

At the end of the day, we’re all doing the best we can in this life. I am content to still be finding my footing - but you better believe I’m doing so in the most fabulous pair of new shoes.