In 2015, I was faced with a huge life pivot.
I had been working for an early stage startup as their content marketer and growth manager. Truth be told, I was totally burning out from working long hours and an ever-increasing workload, but I found so much peace, joy, and calm from being in nature, playing in my garden, hiking the Cascades, harvesting, and making with my hands that I started to feel better.
But my boss at the time didn't approve—he thought that I was stealing energy from the business. He didn't think I was fully present and that I wasn't giving my best to the company.
Obviously, we didn't see eye to eye—I felt that by working with hands, connecting with nature, and being offline as much as possible when I wasn't working made me a better employee. More productive. Happier. More clear-headed.
Still, we didn't agree and decided to part ways. During the summer of 2015, I made the decision to leave the startup to pursue Lagom Body Co. full time.
It was a huge pivot. It was incredibly difficult. There was a huge falling out between myself and the startup. And, honestly, starting a business and shifting from employee to entrepreneur is challenging—the mindset shift was mentally hard to untangle. It took years to get to the point where I am today.
But, looking back—despite all the challenges—it was 100% worth it. I knew that I needed to follow my heart and follow the path of the plants.
Since 2015, I've launched over 25 organic skincare and aromatherapy products with 12 of those belonging to the permanent collection. I also develop and design seasonal products or products when inspiration hits.
I also attended Portland Herbal School's clinical herbalism program, worked with Rosemary Gladstar's herbalism certificate program, took Formula Botanica's organic skincare formulation course, attended the Breitenbush Herb Conference in 2019.
At the end of 2019, my family and I relocated from the Pacific Northwest to New England. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to continue to craft beautiful plant-based skin & body care products and am always finding inspiration from the land and ecosystem I live within.
I'd love to hear from you—have you ever faced a huge pivot in your life? Has nature soothed your soul when things were difficult? Have you ever started a business?
I recently told the full story about leaving my full-time marketing career to launch Lagom Body Co. in the June magazine for Handmade Seller Magazine. If you're interested, you can read a blip of it here or subscribe to the magazine to read the article in full.
