Meet Paige Zen.

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Paige Zen.. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Paige below.

Paige, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Not by avoiding it—but by walking straight through it.

I didn’t wake up one day suddenly confident or sure of myself. I earned that trust—in myself—through experience. Through showing up again and again, even when I was unsure. Through getting things wrong, learning from it, and doing it better the next time. And, still, it rears its head every once and awhile.

It took falling into the wrong rooms with the wrong people, and learning the hard way about character, boundaries, and who I wanted to be surrounded by. It took being dragged through the mud publicly to really start to see myself.
It took surrounding myself with the right people—those who saw my heart and reminded me of who I am when I forgot.
It took therapy—real work, deep inner honesty, and healing old stories that told me I wasn’t enough.

Imposter syndrome didn’t disappear overnight.
It just got quieter every time I chose to believe in myself more than my fear.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

At the heart of everything I do is a desire to create spaces where people feel safe enough to be radically themselves—and supported enough to grow, heal, and reconnect with what really matters.

I’m the founder and director of PlayThink, Kentucky Yoga Festival, The Goddexx Gathering, and Kentucky Mushroom Festival, as well as the creator of transformational retreats both locally and internationally. These events live at the intersection of movement, mindfulness, creativity, and community, and are rooted in the belief that nature and connection are medicine.

Whether it’s someone dancing barefoot under the stars, crying in a sound bath, laughing over breakfast in the woods, or learning to make mushroom tinctures by hand—I’m interested in creating real experiences that help people remember who they are.

What makes this work special is that it isn’t about perfection or performance. It’s about belonging. It’s about community care. It’s about holding space for joy and grief. It’s about weaving people back into relationship—with themselves, each other, and the land.

Everything I do is held in the spirit of invitation, not expectation. You don’t have to be a “yoga person” or a festival regular to belong here. You just have to come as you are and be open to the journey.

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?

Looking back, the three most impactful qualities in my journey have been:

1. Emotional resilience and centered-ness
Things won’t always go as planned—whether it’s a last-minute storm, a difficult relationship dynamic, or a financial challenge. Learning how to stay grounded in the chaos, how to feel deeply without spiraling, and how to come back to center has been everything. For anyone starting out: build your emotional toolkit. Therapy, somatic work, breath, meditation—whatever helps you regulate your nervous system, that’s the work.

2. Relationship discernment
Not everyone who claps for you is in alignment with your vision. Learning to recognize character, to trust my gut when something feels off, and to surround myself with people who are kind, dependable, and honest has changed everything. I used to think I had to do it all with whoever showed up. Now I know that who you build with matters just as much as what you’re building.

3. Willingness to begin before I was ready
I moved through imposter syndrome not by waiting to feel “qualified,” but by doing it anyway. Every event, every offering, every retreat has taught me something. You don’t need permission to start—you just need a heart that’s willing to learn. Nike had it right – Just do it.

For those just starting out: take care of your nervous system, trust yourself more than your doubt, and surround yourself with people who see you clearly and kindly. Growth will come—but you don’t have to do it alone.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

Yes—I’m always open to aligned collaboration, especially with folks who are grounded in integrity, creativity, and heart-centered service.

I love working with people who understand that what we’re building through our festivals and retreats is more than an event—it’s culture-shifting work. I’m looking for collaborators who value authenticity over aesthetics, who aren’t afraid of doing the inner work, and who believe in the power of community care, nature, and embodied healing.

This could be:

Facilitators and educators who offer workshops in movement, mindfulness, earth-based living, or radical self-expression

Artists, musicians, and performers who create with soul and presence

Photographers, designers, and storytellers who know how to capture energy, not just images

Healers, makers, herbalists, and mystics with gifts to share in vendor or immersive spaces

Or brand partners who are values-aligned and want to co-create something meaningful

If you’re reading this and feeling that little heart nudge—I’d love to hear from you. You can reach out through my website, social media, or email me directly at [email protected]

We’re building something real here. And we need real people to build it with.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://playthinkfestival.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/playthinkfest/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/playthinkfest

Image Credits

Headshot: Hilary Nichols
Event Photos: Erica Chambers