Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Valerie Quinones. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Valerie, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
I believe I get my resilience from my mother and grandmother. Both of them were single mothers, my mother had help from her mother raising my brothers and myself. My grandmother was very creative and my mother was able to smile in the face of adversity. They were both ambitious. The combination instilled a tenacious mentality in the home. If we didn’t have something as kids we had to get creative and not allow our environment or external circumstances to throw us off focus.
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?
I currently work as a licensed massage therapist. I’m also a creative and when I’m not helping people on their healing journey, I’m in a studio coming up with creative movement as an outlet or taking a dance class for inspiration.
What’s special about holistic health practices like massage therapy and creative movement is that it’s available to any and everybody who seeks it. It can be a form treatment or a luxurious experience.
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 believe the three qualities I had that were most impactful in my journey were my strong work ethic, ability to think outside what is considered to be the norm and just being student of life. I was taught that there is always room for growth. Always something new to learn and someone to learn from.
The advice I’d give is to keep a student mindset. Learn as much as you can. Do your research, apply the knowledge and see where it takes you. Whether you succeed or fail, you’ll find a lesson in the experience that helps you and your brand to evolve. Persist.
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
My biggest area of growth is learning to discern what is worth investing my energy into. Whether it be professional or personal. Learning how to bow out gracefully when something is no longer conducive to a goal I want to achieve has been something I’ve been practicing more of. It’s ok to take a pause and refocus. You can sew seeds all day long but if the soil is not fertil, whatever blooms will whither quickly or not grow at all. You have to find the right environment that will nurture your dream and bring it into fruition.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.zensoulution.com
- Instagram: @Zen_soulution and @Valquin360
Image Credits
Dante Cutley
