We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Erica Rascon a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Erica, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
Imposter syndrome is an inevitable part of being an entrepreneur, especially if your specialty requires ongoing education and personal development. With every new skill learned and all new information gleaned, it may feel “too new” to share. Without self awareness, we can get stuck in a trap of learning more and more to prove ourselves, but then feeling that we still haven’t learned enough to make a positive impact. We might hold back our gifts and not share what we know because we don’t feel like we’re experts yet. This is a disservice to ourselves, our clients, and our prospects.
I’m an herbalist and yoga teacher. Both fields are in a constant state of evolution as our understanding of medicinal plants, our interdependence with the environment, our understanding of our bodies and our spirits evolve. Time honored (tried and true) traditions will always be my anchor, but I try to keep up with the latest developments in both fields. The result is that I have 8 certifications, nearly 2 thousand hours of teaching experience and I still feel that I have so much more to learn! Sometimes, I still hesitate to share what I’ve learned. I still struggle with imposture syndrome.
When I don’t share, I’m withholding potentially life changing and life saving information from people who need it. When I realized this, I began to confront my impostor syndrome little by little. Because the truth is that someone can benefit from the information that I’ve learned. I do my best to present information, empower my clients to research more, and hone my craft!
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I specialize in yoga, which identifies all aspects of our being and aims to integrate them into a beautiful, aligned whole. I don’t just teach yoga for strengthening and stretching anymore. I empower clients to understand themselves as multifaceted beings (physical, mental, emotional, energetic, communal and spiritual beings). Clients are encouraged to hold each part of themselves with compassion and accountability– and grow.
Understandably, that may seem overwhelming! So I started DRWY Yoga for Beginner’s program. It’s completely online and self-paced with options for one-on-one sessions and group support. Through the program, clients learn yoga philosophy, yoga asana (the strengthening and stretching), pranayama (breathing exercises), mindfulness and meditation, as well as community care.
The mind and body are a huge part of the practice. So in addition to yoga asana, I am an herbalist. I use medicinal herbs to help clients address health concerns such as stress, trauma, poor digestion, slow metabolism, ADHD and so much more. When we feel good in our bodies, we have the energy and will to improve in other areas of life.
My services are not quick-fix solutions. I work with clients for the long haul. That’s where lasting results happen!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
1. Self-awareness- understand your strengths, hone them, and celebrate them! Understand your opportunities for growth and compassionately work on growth in those areas. There is no finish line, no due date, so work steadily without feeling like you’re behind in life.
2. Shadow work- this is another part of self-awareness that helps us to understand why we are as we are. Shadow work can help us identify the roots of deep-seated insecurities, limiting beliefs, and conditioning that holds us back. Facing our shadow is the best way to overcome (or at least navigate) those challenges.
3. Support- no one is an island. We all need love and support. Our wellbeing is interdependent upon one another, too. When we refuse to accept this, it is to our detriment.
I think those three lessons were huge catalysts for my growth.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
When it comes to reaching clients, social media is a blessing and a curse. It’s a great way share information and meet new leads for free. But it’s an awful way to try to deep-dive into topics or interact with people who are genuinely interested. Let’s not get into trolls and bots…they’re so irritating.
So much of social media is about aesthetics, politics, algorithms, and other things that aren’t important to yoga and herbalism. But I must navigate them to reach my people.
To overcome those challenges, I rely on harmony between effort and ease. I do my part to be genuine, honest, resourceful, informative, and helpful with my content. I’ve hired help with SEO/SEM and all things business. Then…I trust. I trust Source to help the right people find me and vice versa. I refuse to stress out over it anymore lol.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://deeplyrootedwellness.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericarasconyoga/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EricaRasconYoga
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erica-rascon-83957879/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/EricaRascon
