“Coming Out” of the Spiritual Closet
One Foot in the Spiritual World, One Foot in the Corporate One. Overcoming the Stigma Around Spirituality in Corporate America.
Days before the world shut down due to the pandemic, I quit my high-profile job as the global head of communications for a large advertising agency. Before anyone had even conjured up the terms “Great Resignation” or “Quiet Quitting,” I had decided to be very intentional about the business I was building and the next chapter in my life. As I started my own consultancy, The Good Advice Company, I worked with my executive coach to really examine my client offerings, what I love to do, and what work no longer brought me joy. But it was one session that changed everything for me… the one where he asked me, “Are you more scared of accepting or rejecting who you truly are?”
I thought, “Well, that feels like a trick question! And what does that have to do with work?!”
For two years, I’ve kept this question posted on the wall in my home and office, but the answer has stayed the same: I’m more scared of accepting my true self. Aren’t we all? I’ve been living as the “rejected” version of myself my entire life and people really like her. She’s built businesses and a brand for herself that thrives in corporate America. If I show up as my authentic self to the world, there’s no going back. But how can I encourage my clients to be true to themselves if I’m not doing the same?
So, today I leap with abandon like I advise everyone else to…
Every boss I’ve ever had has told me that I have great intuition, but I never expected that it would become a sixth sense. For the last 20+ years, I have been defined by my career in communications, but I’m finally sharing a side of me only those who know me or those who have been referred to me actually see. I am publicly and professionally “coming out” as an intuitive medium and advanced Akashic Record reader.
What are the Akashic Records? Karma is a commonly understood concept. In fact, the eastern idea of karma is a major facet of the Akashic Records — a richer opportunity to understand our place in the world through an intuitive spiritual lens. Widely thought to be derived from Tibetan monks, the Akashic Records are our shared resource throughout the history of this universe all stored through energy — a library of our soul’s journey. In the Akasha, every thought, idea, and action from the past, present, and future is stored ad infinitum. The Records are basically a record of what will happen, is happening, or has happened. The Records, unlike any other intuitive tool, can articulate one’s soul and life purposes.
Yes, this is now the part where I expect everyone to go, huh? And who cares?
But, the thing I’m most proud of is that I have found a way to combine my corporate self and authentic self while tapping into my spirituality and gut intuition. And when I do, I help people identify and connect with their soul’s purpose and actualize it in their everyday lives. It’s wild. And it works. And I’ve never loved my job more.
What if I could tell you what your life’s purpose is and how you can actualize it? Like everyone else in the world right now, I have been seeking as many ways as possible to make sense of my existence. Will I leave an impact on the world? Am I finding my joy in my job and personal life? Do I just leave it all behind and go on my own “Eat, Pray, Love” or Cheryl Strayed “Wild” adventure? And the truth is, whether you’re someone who fully believes in intuitive guidance or not, I have seen how this practice helps people think more deeply and broadly about their lives, their purpose, and the deeper meaning of their time on this earth. So, if you’re a person who is seeking out personal growth through new experiences, this is meant for you. And if you’re a person who loves a crystal, positive thinking, and believes that all hell breaks loose while Mercury is in retrograde, this just might be for you, too.
Now, did I just wake up one day and exclaim, “I’m a Medium!” No, no I did not.
A few years ago, an extreme case of corporate burnout led me to seek out every Eastern and Western medical appointment and spiritual experience LA has to offer. From a past life regression in Topanga Canyon to allergy shots twice a week for 2 years, I was willing to try it all. But one week, three people all told me to meet Helen Vonderheide who, at the time, was one of the 10 Elite Akashic Record teachers in the world. I had had a string of unexplained paranormal experiences happen in my life, but after attending her class, something clicked for me. I started seeing, feeling and knowing things that I couldn’t possibly know. So much of my intuition was now making sense. Everything I had experienced through dreams, guided meditation, and those moments of just “knowing” was now making sense.
Once the pandemic started, the world became quiet and messages from my guides and the Akasha became louder. The word spread that I was doing readings for friends and people within my network. Within 9 months, I completed nearly 100 readings for executives at some of the most iconic, influential and well-known brands in the world — all via Zoom. Everyone was looking for the same things: purpose, meaning and answers. Clients shared that my readings helped them feel relaxed and inspired, and that they have seen tangible results after our sessions. Everything from the legacy they wanted to leave in the world, to unlocking blocks around love and abundance, to simply seeking permission to leap into the unknown professionally, personally and spiritually.
Through most of 2020 and 2021, I was consulting on marketing and communications for major brands, startups and creative agencies by day — and zooming away doing readings for friends, colleagues and referrals by nights and on weekends.
It was like having two full time jobs. Until they collided in a beautiful way.
As I was building my own brand focused on wellness, burnout, purpose and PR — people started asking if I could help them with their personal brands. Having worked with C-suite executives and clients throughout my career, I figured, “Why not give it a try?” So, I took everything I had learned from my own experience and created a workshop that resulted in a brand platform, modernized bio, and thought leadership plan. Mid-zoom during one beta session with a very open-minded and spiritually grounded executive, her “guides” came through. Embarrassed about what was happening, but unsure how to share this information with her, I took a leap of faith…
“So, fun fact, and something I don’t share with many people I work with, but I’m a Medium, and an advanced Akashic Record reader. I am so sorry, but I’m super distracted right now because your guides are coming through in a major way and have some things they’d like me to share with you. If you’re not into this, I totally understand, but figured I should ask.”
Thankfully, my confession was received well. “Oh my God! I love this stuff and read tarot myself. What are they saying?”
I shared the messages from her guides to her surprise and delight. I then told her a little bit more about my readings and we scheduled a session for a few weeks later. From there, my methodology was born. Everything came together in a way I had never planned. In fact, I did everything I could to keep my corporate life and spiritual life separate. “But, sometimes, you have to practice what you preach. I had to listen to what my own guides were telling me.”
For the last year, I have been working with top executives at Fortune 500, startups, individual entrepreneurs and consultants on building their personal brands. I start each session with an Akashic Record reading and pair that with behavioral data and 20+ years of strategic communications expertise to help my clients identify, articulate and communicate their life’s meaning and soul purpose. Even if my clients aren’t spiritual (more than half have never had any kind of intuitive reading before), it’s helped them open up to what’s available and uncover the most powerful and authentic version of themselves. I’ve done hundreds of readings (with mostly corporate C-Suite leaders). My readings alone have a 3+ month waitlist.
We’re in a time of great awakening where people in power are looking to actualize their purpose. In a 2021 McKinsey study, nearly ⅔ of US employees said that COVID-19 has caused them to reflect on their life’s purpose and people who live their purpose at work are more productive, healthy, resilient and likely to stay at the company than people who don’t.
To be a successful and impactful leader today, you have to be true to who you are and what you have been through. I’ve worked with clients to share their experiences — from a now-sober CEO to a dyslexic executive to a C-Suite mother of an autistic child — which has led to a significant change in their approach to leadership. Real people, sharing real stories that are relatable, educational and impactful. Could you imagine what the world would be like if everyone did this?
Until today, I haven’t felt comfortable sharing my secret, offering and my own authentic purpose with the world, but it’s time. I’m proud to be able to do this work and be a part of the movement overcoming spiritual bias in the corporate world. And it works — from clients with significant salary increases, earned media placements and paid speaking engagements — to people who are simply happier in their lives. Focusing on being known for WHO they are and the impact they are making on the world vs WHAT they do. And they all prove the same thing: Living your purpose always leads to joy and success. And finding your life’s purpose and then living it is all that really matters, right?
What I realized through my own process is that we are all our own worst enemies and harshest critics, out of fear of being our authentic selves. And I know there are so many who can relate. But as I’ve come slowly out of the spiritual closet over the last few years (and today, very publicly) I have yet to be met with anything but acceptance, intrigue and questions. Lots of questions.
The best part? I found my purpose by helping others’ find theirs. Every day. I hope everyone in the world finds this joy at some point in their life, too. And if I can help you in that process, even better.
