Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Byrd.
Hi Emily, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Ten years ago, I started my entrepreneurial journey as an independent hairstylist. It was great, I loved what I did behind the chair, the creativity and art of hairdressing, uplifting people one blowout at a time.
But something was missing in my life. There was a disconnect when it came to… connection. Deep embodied connection to my truth, my heart, and the energy of love itself. I started my spiritual journey on a quest to deepen my relationship with the divine. I wanted to connect with and feel the higher intelligence of life as a present source in my own daily existence.
I felt this possibility when I was on my yoga mat… so I started going to yoga retreats, immersions, and teacher training programs. As I was growing in my spirituality, naturally I felt called to teach and share this gift of yoga with others. Through my own spiritual practices, I have been able to navigate myself through deep (ancestral) healing and personal transformation, grow in ways I never even imagined for myself, update and upgrade old conditioning, ways of being, patterns, and belief systems.
Through this experience, I feel elevated and illuminated in my entire existence as a guide to those walking their own path of personal expansion. How could I not want to share this with others?!
I opened my own yoga studio. I owned Community Power Yoga in Durham for 3 years. I’ve taught countless empowering asana classes, and received so many sweaty hugs – enough to last a lifetime! Lost track of how many 1,000’s hours I have led practice for others and the several hundred hours facilitating teacher training programs for individuals ready to share the practice of yoga.
I watched my students transform their lives. I watched them make really big decisions and say Yes to the next bold move, internship, or next-level position in their job. I witnessed teachers I had trained and mentored grow beyond the four walls of CPY and open their own studios. It was an incredibly fulfilling time in my life.
But I wanted to sell my studio. I wanted to pass it on to someone else. Why? I felt my next calling. I wanted to expand how I was serving the world. I was seeing and receiving feedback from my students and teaching team on how impactful what I was offering and guiding them through was in their own lives.
I wanted to bring that to a larger scale. I listened to the whispers of my heart and soul (which, by the way, most of the time those whispers are scary!) I knew wanted to reach people beyond the mat, and not just exclusive to and through the path of yoga.
I launched my online coaching business 2 years ago. I made an expansive investment in a 1 year, 300-hour Coaching Mastery certification program. My coaching craft has hit the next level as a result of that commitment. My clients and I see tremendous results from the work we do together!
I eventually retired from my hair salon and now work with the most amazing entrepreneurs and service providers who want to grow in their relationship with themselves, the divine, and create purposeful impact in their businesses, with their teams, and in local & global communities.
Remember our story happens in stages and phases. Where you’re at now is a byproduct of the choices you made yesterday, last month, and last year. What choices will you make today to propel yourself to where you want to be next year?
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh, yea! The road has been smooth, rocky, downright dark and scary to bright, light and liberating – and everywhere in between. This is the gift of showing up to your path and life’s purpose full-on – you get to experience a life full-on too!
Burnout. When I owned 2 brick and mortar businesses, on opposite sides of town, I was nonstop. I was in the car so much, I hardly had time to eat some days, or was so stressed and stretched that I didn’t remember to eat. I am also the sole parent of my now almost 14-year-old son. I often would be asked, “How do you do it all?!” And most days my honest answer was, “I just do…” But really, how did I do all of that? I was determined, I was fueled by ambition and my commitment to serve.
But I was not taking care of myself and it eventually caught up with me. I became burned out. Being in a state of Burnout is a real, medically recognized condition, prevalent among many women and women in business. We work extra hard, are the caretakers of so many people and in default choose that before our own wellbeing; we have to prove we are good/smart/wise/experienced/supported enough to stand on the ground we claim as our own, which is totally outdated and unjust.
My story is no exception to this. And because I have grown and transformed through this challenge, I offer this wisdom and guidance to my clients in their own journey of preventing burnout by saying “No” to support their greater “Yes.”
Don’t be afraid to “start small”. At the peak of both businesses, my combined monthly overhead for both businesses was substantial. I had a salon suite on the south side of Durham and my yoga studio on the north side. I had a team to pay, I had to pay myself, cover all other expenses and make sure there was enough leftover to roll into the following month.
I didn’t really have a marketing budget and we needed more outreach for the studio to scale to its next level. I was one very strong person holding an extra heavy load. Some months there was abundance, some months there was just enough.
Being in business, especially in the beginning we get to learn to appreciate the small beginnings. Unless you are starting out with a huge following and generous investors, this is the typical story across the board. We start small and authentically grow from there.
Having lived through the experience of building three different businesses from scratch I have transformed my relationship with money and the energy of scarcity. I’ve become resourced from within first and I let the Universe meet me in the same energy outward. And – I only make moves from a place of inspired and aligned action.
As a result of all of my experiences, I have become deeply connected to one of the core pillars of my personal brand: “The Brave Path” Which to me means, I am willing to show up and travel into the unknown. I am ready to speak up for what I believe in, even if I am the only one in the room who does so. I am attuned to and only make decisions from my inner guidance system, even if it may seem a bit crazy or wild on the outside.
I bring all of me to my business, whether someone likes it or not. I commit to a life of antiracism and creating equity and opportunity wherever I can, whenever I can within my own company and community. It means I am a leader on my own path, one that has never been walked before and I understand the risks that come with that.
I’m willing to take the risks because I know this is what it takes to be a leader in business, a conscious entrepreneur, and truly make a difference in the world.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Spirituality and Business Coaching for Entrepreneurs?
I am a Mastery Coach that focuses on spiritual growth, personal development, and expansive, conscious entrepreneurship. I facilitate deep, transformational work with clients in private coaching packages, and group and mastermind programs.
My activating offers include VIP Days for individuals and in-person retreats in gorgeous, sacred locations. My 2 signature workshops, “Clients, Confidence & Connection” and “Presence, Practice, & Purpose”, for salon/spas and yoga studios are beneficial in team development and business expansion. All of my offers are unique and have my signature framework of transformation, embodiment, and expansion built-in.
I am known for my ultra-loving presence paired with direct and intuitive, empowering insight that I offer everyone I connect with. Sometimes spirituality can feel a bit too “woo” or gurus can be totally unapproachable. I keep it real, I am an open-hearted, bright light here to be a guide.
From mantras and meditation to moving my booty on the dance floor – I am authentic and relatable, love to laugh, and have a good time as we deeply transform ourselves and the world around us!
The development of a personal brand is ever-evolving and so essential for all of us to be in a relationship. Whether you are in business or not, you have a personal brand! I absolutely love the work of personal branding, claiming, communicating, and living by my pillars of authenticity and truth.
This is something that is easily overlooked in the beginning stages of business – I like to approach personal brand work a little bit differently with my clients. Just like in all the work I do, we move from the inside out. I can promise you the external results are going to be amazing.
Whether we are in a private coaching package together, have a VIP day or workshop on the books, or are just discussing your business over coffee – we’ll get to the desired destination, but we are going under the hood first. You’ll love yourself, your life, business, and process so much more that way.
Trust me.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Ask for help! It’s okay to not know it all, actually – none of us know it all.
Be willing to grow into your edges to create new results. What got you here won’t get you there. Being in business can be “scary” but really, it’s just you meeting your growth edges. It’s important to ask for help when you feel lost, overwhelmed, or stuck. It’s essential to transform your relationship with whatever is blocking you, keeping you stuck and feeling small, broke, or burdened.
Consider that everything within us is trying to serve us: whether it’s your self-doubt, imposter syndrome, procrastination, or always the anxiety of overwhelm – that part of you wants something for yourself. What might it be? Protection? Wanting you to do well? Wanting to make sure you are being authentic? Not wanting you to take on too much? When we start to look at our life and all of life through loving, compassionate lenses, the world starts to change.
We realize how part of this great web we are all in. The struggle and pain points you have now within your life, relationship and business have been felt before, and overcome. Instead of looking at what someone else does and trying to force that square peg to fit into the grid of round holes that make up your business, discover your own design.
When things get hard, ask yourself: How can I use this for my freedom and growth? Since the Universe is loving and kind, there is something here for you to get from the experience of what you’re going through. Invest in the help you need. I lost count of how many online courses I invested in, some of which are still at 20% completed. I didn’t think I could afford a private coach in the beginning, but when my first coach helped me see that hiring them would help me generate more revenue in my business, you could literally see the lightbulb turn on.
I can’t impart enough emphasis on how my life changed when I started working with coaches and mentors who either had a solution I was seeking and/or had the kind of business I wanted to create. Having that direct guidance and accountability truly shifted everything for me, and it can for you too. When looking for a teacher, go by how it feels when you are in their energy. Do you feel seen, heard, connected with? Do you feel like they value you and your presence? Or are you just another in the crowd?
Do they really speak to what it is you need or is their story relatable? What have they overcome/produced that you admire and want to emulate in your own way? Do they meet you where you are or push by or through you? In this day and age, there is someone for everyone, I can almost guarantee it. Start by putting the desire out in the ethers that you are looking for support in ______ and then step into inspired, aligned action on your quest.
You will find who and what you are looking for. Trust your wisdom. Trust your gut. Trust the soul whispers. Trust your inner guidance system.
Take care of yourself. Eat nourishing food, move your body, and stay hydrated. Stop drinking so much alcohol and overloading your body with substances, this just clouds your energy field. Enjoy the pleasures in life, yes – but cherish your body as the sacred vessel you get to travel life in and create from – is how you’re treating your body the same way you would treat a church or spiritual sanctuary? Your body has the same capacity, honor it.
Pace yourself. Be patient. Practice deeply loving yourself along the way. Your beautiful business is your life’s work, not a season. Enjoy the ride! If you aren’t in enjoyment and pleasure, something needs to shift. Discover those necessary changes (Hint: Start from the inside and then move out) and always be willing to pivot.
Impermanence is the only thing that is absolutely permanent in this life – don’t hold so tight, you are growing and expanding, loosen that grip!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: emilymbyrd.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emily.mbyrd/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/msemilybyrd
- Other: https://medium.com/@emilymbyrd
Image Credits
Jaimee Johnson, Fit Girl Photography, and Lucinda Smith
