Meet Ellie Frost

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ellie Frost a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ellie, so many exciting things to discuss, we can’t wait. Thanks for joining us and we appreciate you sharing your wisdom with our readers. So, maybe we can start by discussing optimism and where your optimism comes from?

It’s a layered question, and the answer is both spiritual and practical.

At the deepest level, my optimism comes from a connection to something beyond this dimension—a place I can only describe as a vast, loving presence. It’s like a radiant cloud that embraces every part of you, even the darkest corners, and gently fills them with peace, clarity, and unconditional love. When the weight of the world feels heavy, I can close my eyes, breathe, and return to that space. It’s my inner sanctuary. I visit it to refill, recharge, and recommit to my purpose—bringing a little more of that place into this one, through the way I live, speak, and serve.

On a more earthly level, I’ve learned that perspective is the most powerful tool we have in this reality. Everything we experience is filtered through the lens we choose to wear. And choice—how we choose to interpret events—is one of the few true freedoms we have. Optimism, for me, isn’t about denying pain or pretending things are perfect. It’s about remembering that I have the power to shape how I relate to what’s happening. Every moment holds the potential to be transformed simply by how I choose to see it.

When something feels “bad” or “wrong,” I try to pause and ask—am I labeling this based on fear, disappointment, or attachment to a specific outcome? Am I trying to control things that are outside of my control, rather than focusing on my internal response? Because the truth is, we rarely see the full picture. What feels like a setback might be saving us from something worse. Maybe leaving late meant I avoided an accident. Maybe I didn’t get invited because the version of me in that room would’ve betrayed everything I’ve worked to heal. Maybe my heartbreak was the only thing big enough to crack me open and let the real me escape. Maybe what I called failure was my soul pulling the emergency brake on a life I was never meant to survive.

I don’t believe everything happens for a reason—I believe everything happens, and we are the ones who give it reason. That’s the gift. That’s the power. And that’s where my optimism comes from.

Not from blind positivity or bypassing pain, but from a deep spiritual anchor—and a soul-level commitment to choose the most empowering meaning available in each moment. Because how I choose to interpret my experience shapes who I become.

It’s how I stay in alignment with the light I came here to carry. It’s how I honor the miracle of being alive in a dimension where choice is the most sacred currency we hold.

This ability to choose—to create meaning, to alchemize pain, to frame darkness in the shape of growth—that is the spiritual gold we can’t take with us when we leave here. It’s unique to this life, this body, this strange and beautiful earth walk.

So I choose to live in a way that reflects that gift. I choose to let what breaks me also build me. I choose to tell stories that remind me the light never leaves, it only waits to be claimed.

That’s not just optimism. That’s devotion to the light.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

Backcountry Beauties was born by accident—but its shaping has been deeply intentional. What started as a way to bring a few women together for backcountry adventures quickly grew into something much more—a vibrant, evolving community/app of women finding strength, joy, and healing in wild places. It turns out, there was a hunger for connection that went far beyond the trailhead.

We’re not about ego, performance, or perfection. We’re about creating space—space to be real, to be challenged, to be celebrated. Through peer-led ski tours, river trips, backpacking weekends, and community events, Backcountry Beauties gives women the chance to show up just as they are, and discover just how capable they’ve always been.

Backcountry Bonds, our nonprofit branch, grew out of that same spirit—rooted in a desire to improve communication, education, and connection across the broader backcountry community. It’s coed, collaborative, and focused on shifting the culture from one of silent assumptions to one of shared language, mentorship, and mutual support. From terrain management meetups to risk communication workshops, our goal is to build the kind of backcountry culture where no one feels isolated—no matter their gender, experience, or identity.

What excites us most isn’t just the trips—it’s the transformations. We’ve watched women go from “I could never do that” to leading their own lines, mentoring others, or building their own outdoor businesses. We’ve seen strangers become sisters in a matter of days. And we’ve witnessed how quickly the backcountry becomes a mirror—reflecting back not just who we are, but who we’re becoming.

What’s next?

A new season of community-powered float trips
The launch of backcountry mentorships to build skill and connection
More coed education events with Backcountry Bonds
And a digital coed platform in the works to support partner matchmaking, skill progression, and community growth

At its core, this work is about so much more than adventure. It’s about rewriting the story of who belongs out there—and reminding each other that we were never meant to do this alone.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I can trace so much of my growth to a few core commitments I made over the years—each one born from noticing a gap in myself and choosing to lean into it with intention. At various times in my life, I’ve taken a full year (or more) to focus on developing a specific skill I felt was lacking. That level of commitment—to reshaping yourself on purpose—has been one of the most transformative patterns of my life.

1. Deep Listening
One of the most impactful years I ever gave myself was a two-year stretch where I intentionally stopped speaking as much and chose to just listen. I wanted to learn how to really hear—not just to respond, but to understand. That meant slowing down, sitting with people, and holding space long enough for the second thing they said… the one that usually held the truth.
What I discovered is that life-changing insights often come in the form of a single sentence, spoken casually by someone who may not even realize what they’ve just handed you. But if you’re not listening—truly listening—you’ll miss it.
Advice: Treat conversations like treasure hunts. Don’t assume you know what someone means. Ask one more question. Let silence linger. You’ll be shocked what surfaces.

2. Ping Pong Productivity
I built my own system for getting things done that I jokingly call Ping Pong Productivity. It works like this: I allow myself to bounce between projects, but only within the same category—work to work, house to house, fun to fun. This lets me follow my natural flow without losing momentum.
It might look chaotic from the outside (and yes, I’ve spent whole seasons glued to my laptop), but it allows me to move a lot of things forward quickly without losing mental efficiency from constant task-switching across unrelated areas.
Advice: Find a rhythm that honors how you naturally operate—but add enough structure to avoid spinning your wheels. Systems aren’t cages; they’re trampolines. Build one you can bounce on.

3. Instant Action to Avoid Mental Clutter
One of my superpowers is this: I know myself well enough to admit that if I don’t do something right away, there’s a good chance I will forget completely. So I’ve trained myself to act on tasks the moment they arrive. Big or small—send the email, schedule the meeting, write the note, answer the message. That quick execution clears space in my mind and prevents my mental to-do list from turning into a traffic jam.
Advice: Don’t store what you can solve. If it’ll take five minutes or less—do it now. Make immediacy your default setting and see how much freer your mind becomes.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

Right now, the biggest challenge I’m facing is untangling the belief that I have to constantly be working in order to be worthy of success. It’s a deep, inherited pattern—one that whispers that rest is laziness, that stillness is failure, and that my value is measured by output.

At its core, this isn’t just a productivity issue—it’s an identity wound. I’m actively deconstructing those internal stories that tell me I have to earn my right to abundance, joy, or peace. That I’m only “allowed” to receive when I’ve proven my worth through hustle or hardship.

The work I’m doing now is quiet but radical:
It’s sitting still and feeling the discomfort.
It’s saying no to urgency when my nervous system wants to say yes out of fear.
It’s letting myself receive without rushing to “give back” or perform in return.
It’s choosing to trust that I am enough—not because of what I produce, but because I exist.

This season of unlearning is about transmuting any last traces of lack into embodied abundance. Not the kind you manifest on a vision board—but the kind you become by remembering your inherent value, even when you’re doing absolutely nothing at all.

It’s a shift from survival to sovereignty. And it’s one of the hardest and most important things I’ve ever done.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://backcountrybeauties.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/backcountrybeauties
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bcbeauties
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/backcountry-beauties

Image Credits

Ellie Frost