We were lucky to catch up with Rochelle Sugawa recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Rochelle, so great to have you on the platform. There’s so much we want to ask you, but let’s start with the topic of self-care. Do you do anything for self-care and if so, do you think it’s had a meaningful impact on your effectiveness?
It can be hard to make time for self care as a small business owner, especially because my business also feels like a life calling. But I have learned over the past 5+ years in business that I cannot serve others in Brown Bruha unless I am caring for myself in the right way.
That means having boundaries with clients (having contracts!), social media and e-mails, taking breaks from work (throughout the day and also having full days off from anything business-related), eating well, paying attention to discomfort and pain in my body, and being uncompromising about my quality time with myself and my loved ones.
This has helped me to recover from burn out and to look forward to showing up for my community and my clients, even in the more mundane business tasks like bookkeeping. Prioritizing my own needs has also made it easier to create, write, and conjure up workshops, classes, and other new psychic and intuitive development offerings.
The more I nourish myself, the more I flourish, and the more I flourish, the more my business flourishes.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My goal with Brown Bruha, is to support folks to unapologetically own their inherent intuitive and psychic abilities. I dream of a world where the spiritual and the unseen is held in as high of a regard as the tangible and the logical (again—like it was before capitalism). The majority of my clients are BIPOC and women of color because many of my clients and students come from cultures that have lost their native spiritual traditions due to colonization.
I inherited my abilities from my Filipino family through our matrilineal line and do my best to translate them to the needs of folks seeking authentic and reliable connection to Spirit in 2024. I have been sensitive to spirits my entire life but started seeing clients in 2019. I am also a licensed attorney by day in my other life.
My favorite offering in Brown Bruha is my psychic development membership community, Spiritfound, which is designed to help you become a more connected and confident spiritual being. I also offer psychic development classes, mentorship, and readings! You can learn more and join at https://www.brownbruha.com.
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?
The most important qualities for me to develop have been self-awareness, humility, and perseverance. As we progress, we make mistakes, which is how we learn. It is normal to mess up in business, especially if you are doing something no one around you has done before. As long as we do not take it personally, are open to it, and have a process to reflect, these experiences can help us grow.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
When I feel overwhelmed, I try to settle my nervous system. It is difficult to get things done or make decisions when my stress level is high. Taking a break to tend to myself, if possible, helps me to clear my mind so I can create a plan and move forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.brownbruha.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brown.bruha
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brownbruha
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/brownbruha
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brownbruha
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