There is one quote I hold very near and dear to my heart and think about all the time. I first read it on my way to a wellness retreat in Costa Rica, after walking across the airport to get a book to read as I waited for my flight. When I got to the bookstore, I almost bought the first book I picked up, but something inside of me said “no keep looking,” so I continued to carefully look through piles and piles of books. Then, I came across “Brand with Purpose,” and I knew it was the one, so I proceeded to check out of the store. I paid for the book and a beautiful floral bookmark and made my way back to my gate, walking past a vibrant sunrise, and found a seat to begin reading. I opened the first page, and there it was. The quote was included in the foreword and it brought tears to my eyes. My whole body became overcome with emotion and I had this strong feeling that I was exactly where I was supposed to be.
The quote can be attributed to Princess Sarah Clubberson (who is freaking amazing by the way – check out this Ted Talk to learn more about her incredible story!), and it reads as follows, “As we honor ourselves, we can inspire others to honor themselves. And then, what kind of difference can we make in the world?”
As I sat in the airport full of emotion, I thought about all of the women that inspired me, and the impact I could potentially have on someone else by honoring myself and following what feels true to me at my core….
What a gift, right? Through being ourselves and following what we truly desire, we can inadvertently shift a stranger’s entire world by showing them what’s possible. From that moment forward, I vowed to listen to myself first and foremost and follow the paths that feel really good for me.
So without further ado, in honor of International Women’s Day, this blog post will share a bit more about my story and the women that inspired me along the way. Without their influence, I don’t know if I’d be where I am today.
This is my way of thanking them for their impact on my life, and my hope is to inspire at least one person to go claim what is already theirs to claim.
Opening my eyes
For most of my life, I was consumed by limiting beliefs. I was too scared to even consider dreaming big because I thought “who am I to do big & cool things? I’m nobody special.” It sounds sad to reflect on, but it’s the truth. I had very little faith or trust in the beautiful gifts that lived inside of me, and I thought wildly successful people were either lucky & born into wealthy families, or had some extraordinary innate talent. Now, I know that’s far from the truth, and understand the successful people I admire simply dared to dream big and actually took (messy) action on those dreams.
My first step to coming to this realization was becoming friends with a beautiful human named Petya (TYA) ♥️ She is such a go-getter and I couldn’t help but be amazed by all of the big ideas she had and went after. Whether it was experimenting with drop-shipping, starting an Etsy store, trading stocks, or chasing her ultimate dream of being a singer, I was so impressed by her unwavering belief in herself & dedication to living her best life. Simply having her as a friend changed a lot for me, and I am honored to highlight her in this piece.
When asked who or what inspired her, she shared that it was her parents’ courage when moving from Bulgaria to the United States with the dream of providing new opportunities for her and her brother. She also shared that meditation had a huge impact on empowering her to believe in herself, and if she could give a past version of herself advice, it would be that “everything will be okay.” She believes life is short so there’s no time to waste thinking about your dreams, you need to go after them and be your own cheerleader.
Beginning to invest in myself
After opening my eyes to the possibility of more through conversations with my friend Petya, I started to take a hard look at my career. I worked in PR and was really unhappy with the role I was in. I dreamed about being an influencer and making a living off of social media, but it never felt realistic. Then, I came across Christina Galbato, and her story really resonated with me. She also started out in PR but longed for more, and rather than staying in her stable 9-5, she took a chance on herself to pursue her dreams of being a travel influencer & blogger. Today, she has her own empire and has been featured in several top-tier publications such as Bloomberg, CNN, and Forbes.
Personally, I thought this was SO cool because I desperately wanted to stop pitching other experts & become the expert myself. She showed me it’s possible to use the skills I’ve learned throughout my career and put them towards the things that actually excite me, so I decided to buy her Influencer Bootcamp Course. And, to be honest, this was a big moment for me. The course was around $600 and it felt like a lot, but I knew I wanted to change something in my life so I went for it. It was the first real investment I made in myself, which prepared me for larger investments I would soon make.
Now that Christina has built her empire, she’s learned “you never know unless you try.” If she never tried to follow her dreams, she’d likely still be in her PR role, unhappy with the life she built for herself. Today, she can confidently say she has a flourishing business that empowers other women to succeed and owns multiple rental properties – all because she took a chance on herself.
Deciding to go all in
After taking the Influencer Bootcamp Course, I learned more about social media but still wasn’t ready to take a leap of faith toward my dreams, because I didn’t have clarity about what that would actually look like. However, what I did know was that I was really drawn to the coaching industry.
Mental health has always been a theme in my life & the desire to constantly grow and live a better life has fueled me in many ways; so when a girl I went to elementary-high school with (Lauren Taibi AKA @thewellbeing_) started posting content about her healing journey, it made me feel so seen. I was so tuned into her content and loved watching her do her thing and share her wisdom, so when she opened her first women’s empowerment coaching container, I knew I needed to be a part of it. The investment was around $2,500 (making the $600 online course seem like nothing), but I knew I wanted to make a change in my life and believed this investment would propel me closer to my desired reality. The program was so good that I invested in Lauren two more times that same year. Each of these investments taught me that we need to take risks to make meaningful changes in our lives and how liberating it is to step out of our comfort zones.
Lauren’s own inner transformation inspired her to share her learnings with the world, and she really admires her mentor Ashae Sundara for showing her what’s possible and how you can always lead with love.
If Lauren could give advice to her past self it would be “slow down, there is no rush and you are worthy just as you are,” because a lot of her journey has been about understanding there is nothing she needs to do to be worthy.
She also said, “to anybody thinking of creating their own business, I honor you so deeply for your commitment to what you can feel from within, because that is an initiation. I believe this is what differentiates the people who live to their fullest potential and get the most out of life versus the people who don’t. If you follow this call, I see you and honor you, and encourage you to seek support from others who are on this same path, because it’s really a unique way of life. Don’t think you have to do it all alone, because you can – but you don’t have to.”
Immersing myself
Once I was all-in on the idea of starting my own business, I started to look for people on Instagram who were doing something similar to what I wanted to pursue, and I found Kaylee Phillips and Melissa Ruiz. Both of these women inspired me and showed me it doesn’t matter what your background is or how old you are – if you are courageous enough to go after your dreams and stay true to yourself, you have the potential to reach your wildest desires.
Aligned with KP
Kaylee Phillips really impressed me because she literally started her business right out of high school! She graduated in 2020, started college completely virtually, and missed out on all of the high school senior year festivities, so things were looking a bit bleak. She was so bored in her college classes that she began looking online for alternative paths to success, and from there, she really didn’t let anything stop her. She started out as a virtual assistant, then pivoted to being a social media manager and eventually found herself as an alignment mentor. She believes one of the reasons she found success as early as she did was because she was able to master the art of detachment. So many people say you should wait until you have it all figured out to start a business, but Kaylee claims the opposite. You should start when you have the freedom of being young. As a 19-year-old, Kaylee did not have many personal expenses, so she was able to completely detach from the outcome of her program launches. She knew she didn’t need clients to survive, so she did her thing without expecting or clinging to a particular outcome and the results were incredible.
Melissa Ruiz
During this time, I also came across Melissa Ruiz’s Instagram page and I was immediately hooked. She mentors business owners using yoga philosophies, and let me tell you, whenever Melissa Ruiz speaks I am captivated. I’ve told my husband she is like my priestess. I feel so inspired and lit up anytime I tune into her. She consistently trains her brain for success and preaches the key to success is being yourself.
I truly believe that when we align ourselves with the things that are meant for us, the path of least resistance opens up, and this is why I love listening to Melissa speak. She reiterates my beliefs back to me in such a powerful and concise way that it helps me become more grounded in who I am. She also speaks with such love and passion that it is palpable.
We are the sum of our influences
In Austin Kleon’s book “Steal like an Artist” he shares that we are simply a mashup of our influences. It is my honor and privilege to be considered a mashup of the women mentioned above, along with others. Through my work, I hope to inspire others to use their work as a way to express who they really are at their core & that’s why I love branding so much!
Aside from my professional inspirations, the women I call family and friends consistently inspire me to be a better person each and every day and I love them dearly.
Happy International Women’s Day loves, go claim what’s yours ❤️
Love & light🙏🏻✨💓
Amanda
