We had the good fortune of connecting with Sara Spencer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sara, what do you attribute your success to?
The most important factor behind my success is ensuring that my it was actually defined by me. If pursuing a perceived “successful” income, quota, or status, my business was instantly removed from my unique talents, inspiration and art. I often found myself spinning my own wheels, feeling stuck and in a rut. My success greatly depends on the joy, excitement and enthusiasm that comes through my work. Ditch the non-essentials, delegate the mundane, and focus on what truly lights you up and energizes you. The “success” will follow.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My purpose is to support the cultivation of wellness and joy in creative, individual and customized ways. Looking at the physical health, mental, and emotional wellness of individuals and supporting them in walking themselves home to themselves is my goal, and that process looks completely different for every client I work with.

My knowledge runs deep, and a lot of what I provide includes the many details and depth I’ve lived and accumulated to educate and empower others in their personal, relational, and career goals. I don’t have a “program” that only shares one way, technique or skill set. I’m a vault, ready to hold one-on-one creative space to truly hear and honor my clients, and then support them in self-led discovery, development and breakthroughs.

I’ve spent decades learning and evolving into the resource I am today. I would say the only truly difficult aspect of my professional development was keeping patience and trust in my process. So often I would get distracted with side projects, or focus on the financials, and the joy and magic of my creative process would be sucked dry. Burnout would ensue, loss of confidence, self doubt – I had to learn (rather recently) how to trust the process, and follow what I felt internally as correct vs. what the “norm” and “shoulds” in business were often taught as. It isn’t the most glamorous or inspirational journey, but I do feel it’s the most relatable. I’ve really had to evolve into coming back home to myself, and now I help others do the same. That is truly a priceless and fulfilling opportunity, and the most potent medicine our world needs today.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If I had a friend come and visit, my goal actually wouldn’t be to hit as many places as possible, or go to the fanciest restaurants. As boring as it may seem, I’m the friend that likes the one-on-one, deep dive, let’s get in nature and have the rest of the world melt away type gal. It may be packing up a chest full of local fruits and nourishing cheeses, and having a beach day, napping in the Santa Cruz sun, letting the most intimate but mundane details of life be shared through casual conversation. I’m not one to overplan or over schedule. Low, slow, and un-rushed is my love language. “Hustle” and “grind” don’t work for me. My friends know this, and they seem to love that about me and enjoy the individualized attention.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My biggest shout out goes to my partner and dear friends who create the space and container for my self-studies, experimentation and self-paced creative process. I’ve had a handful of mentors who have greatly influenced my access to source Human Design materials, to scientifically-backed research to essential oil uses and protocols and to physiologically focused wellness for foundational health. I’ve been fortunate to have had access to my graduate studies in Counseling Psychology, amazing opportunities to work over 15 years in public education, and to parent my two amazing sons. It’s the accumulation of all these topics and experiences that has made it possible to weave together these different fields into the supportive services I offer today. My life would not be the same without each of them, and I could not be nearly as helpful to others in the comprehensive way I am if any of them had been different.

Website: www.youressentialdesign.com

Instagram: @essentiallydosara

Image Credits
Sprinkles Bravo Photography

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