Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rebecca Hawkins. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Rebecca thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
My business evolved from a beautiful and completely unplanned fusion of my personal life journey, my passion for integrated trauma informed healing through mindfulness and yoga, and my 30 years of business experience.
I was in a corporate job with a Fortune 100 company as a Culture Enablement Consultant in HR/Organizational Effectiveness during and following the pandemic. Our company built out a personal resilience program to help employees navigate the growing trend of burnout and languishing that was being experienced by the workforce. The response was amazing as employees felt heard and seen and equipped with tools to boost self-compassion and self-care for greater productivity and thriving at work.
During that time, I also attended a large HR conference where I heard then CHRO of Patagonia talk about their “regenerative” vs “depletive” approach to managing their employees. It was a lightbulb moment for me as I realized how organizations truly miss the mark when they all too often see their employees simply as a “resource” to be mined or harvested for maximum performance instead of human beings who need and deserve to be invested in and grown.
Shortly thereafter, the executive leadership at the organization I worked for took a turn as the pandemic faded into the background, and we saw a surge of dehumanizing practices such as layoffs and forced “return to office” tactics. I watched across the corporate landscape as I saw a massive divergence between companies who were doubling down on maintaining remote work and flexibility for their workforce vs those heavy handedly implementing RTO mandates that made no sense. It seemed like fear based, industrial revolution command and control cultures were still taking the main stage, but smarter, future focused, human centered companies were fighting back. I knew, then, that I wanted to do more to support what I saw as the the “human centered movement” in the workplace.
When my role was ultimately eliminated during that shift in our corporate culture, I saw it as an invitation and an opportunity to leverage my expertise to help other companies put their employees first and Regenerative Workplaces was born.
As a yoga instructor and coach, one of my super powers is “holding space” for people to connect within, heal and integrate their mind, body and soul/heart. From that base, I formed my business model which is the acronym “SPACE” – Safety + Purpose + Autonomy + Connection = Engagement, Energy, and Excellence. Those qualities, based on the core human needs from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, form the framework for a Regenerative Workplace. I use coaching and consulting practices to help business leaders apply this framework to heal their own mindsets, to fix their workplace systems and to know what to measure as a KPI related to human thriving in their workplace.
Rebecca, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I usually introduce myself as “in imperfect human, just like you,” because the “messiness” of my life – and my own healing journey – is a big part of who I am and what motivates me to help workplaces be more human-friendly.
I don’t have anything even closely resembling a strait career path. In my 20’s, I was more focused on wanting a man than anything else and, as a result, spent the first two decades of my adult life helping my first and then my second husband start and run two very different businesses. I learned their industries (first part 135 aviation and then computer network gaming), and I learned business operations to include accounting, marketing, government reporting, operations manuals, hiring/training, payroll and more. During that time I also lead women’s small groups and book clubs, and served on non-profit boards, doing key note speaking, newsletter writing and fundraising. While all of that was happening, I also lived with infertility, had a miscarriage, adopted two high needs children at 3 and 7 yrs old, dealt with mental and emotional abuse, co-dependency, addiction, divorce and a bankruptcy. To this day, I don’t see our “career” path as something that can be compartmentalized from our “life.” All of those experiences deeply shaped me in different ways.
I emerged from that season of my life at 40 years old homeless, jobless and feeling worthless as a single mom with two very traumatized pre teen kids. And from there I began rebuilding.
I got an entry level job in customer service at a Fortune 100 company and quickly moved up the corporate ladder through leadership and into organizational strategy – more than tripling my income in 12 years and influencing tens of thousands of employees. I got my master’s degree in Organizational Leadership. I travelled to Bali for a silent retreat for my 50th birthday in 2019 and started my yoga certification when I came back. I became an executive coach with three different coach certifications. I did my own healing work through therapy, somatics, spiritual study, yoga and journaling. I led more women’s groups and found my voice.
During this past 15 years, I also remarried and launched my two kiddos, but have continued to experience losses. My daughter has spoken to me in more than three years, my son has struggled with mental health issues (although he’s doing great right now), my third marriage has been fraught with attachment disorder land mines and we’ve lived separately for several years as a result. However, I’m currently stronger and more grounded and clear than I’ve ever been, living alone with my sweet Mr Kitty who adores me completely and being part of many strong tribes of amazing women.
Through all of this, I have developed and nurtured my own integrated “true self” and emerged as an authentic space holder. I’ve been told dozens of times that I bring a deep sense of calm and grounded wisdom when I speak or guide others.
I’m proud to offer something that is somewhat unique in the coaching/consultant space – which is a blend of spiritual/mystical embodied mindfulness practices focused on integration and the practical/operational business acumen focused on organizational productivity. My mission, now, is what I call “Trickle Down Humanity.” I guide and invite executives and business leaders to find their own heart-centered humanity so that they can offer that to those around them (you can’t give what you don’t have). Then I provide them with a frame work, support and tools to operationalize their values and build a human-friendly company that provides safe, supportive space for their employees to thrive.
My vision is that as more employees find space to thrive at work, then more companies will thrive and then the world will begin to thrive. And we have never needed this work more. As the “divergence” in workplace cultures continues to grow, I believe that there is a coming tidal wave that will ultimately crush companies still based on Industrial Revolution mindsets and systems and still prioritizing profits over people and the planet. The triple bottom line (Profit AND People AND Planet) is the way of the future and I’m here to help usher that future in.
To be more specific, I help business leaders who are struggling to make the leap because they feel stuck in the “way we’ve always done things.” I provide a roadmap to ending burnout and increasing human flourishing while also increasing business profitability. I do that by offering three main services:
First, I offer senior business leaders safe space to process their own trauma, shame, burnout and overwhelm to reconnect to their true self and purpose. This is done 1:1 through hourly coaching or through half day VIP sessions. My coaching include the Clifton Strengths assessment, Enneagram aligned integration work, energy mapping, and restorative mindfulness/breath practices.
Second, I offer employee experience/culture consulting that includes a free culture assessment and then strategies for where to focus on improving organization culture, and people processes. Think of me as your fractional Chief Culture/Well-Being Officer. This consulting includes team and leadership workshops on Psychological Safety, Trust, Resilience and Strengths based leadership and team work.
Third, I provide several different statistically valid measurement instruments to choose from which provide actionable data and metrics for keeping employee experience front and center for organizations as Key Performance Indicator on their company dashboards. It’s hard to change what you aren’t measuring. So I believe that effective employee experience measurement is key to improving organizational culture.
Basically, because I know that our beliefs/values/mindsets are what drive our behaviors and our systems, I apply my “SPACE” acronym first to mindsets and THEN to systems and measurements. But leaders can choose any of these offerings in a variety of different packages.
In addition, as a bonus, I am certified through an organization out of New Zealand called The Breakthrough Co to provide a manager training program that is proven to help leaders be more efficient, more effective and more pro-active. Leaders are where the difference is made in corporate culture and employee retention, but the majority of leaders out there don’t have basic leadership skills and are sadly most often sent off to all day “training” to get them – none of which sticks. This proven program combines micro lessons with group cohorts and coaching to help managers build and apply the basic tools of leadership for more effective teams. It even comes with a money back guarantee!
Coming soon, I’ll also be offering some regenerative, restorative yoga retreats and closed group coaching cohorts for business leaders who want to create more regenerative workplaces in community with other business leaders.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Several books have shaped my organizational leadership philosophy and my approach to culture shaping. I think it started in 2015 while I was completing my masters degree and I based my thesis research on Brené Brown’s book Daring Greatly and Dan Pink’s book, Drive. These formed the basis for my confidence that humans deeply need authentic connection are internally motivated by autonomy, mastery and purpose. From there, the next two books that solidified my approach were Culture Code by Daniel Coyle, which is packed with case studies of high performing organizations whose cultures are built on safety, belonging and purpose, and The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson, which gives a practical tool kit for the MOST important organizational quality – Psychological Safety. Finally, I’ve been deeply impacted by the work of a little known human capital think tank, i4cp (the Institute for Corporate Productivity) and the book their CEO and co-founder, Kevin Oakes published in 2020 called Culture Renovation. It has to be the best culture transformation roadmap on the market. Personally, I’ve also been influenced in my entrepreneurial journey by Kate Northrup’s book Do Less, Cal Newport’s book Slow Productivity and my own personal study of the first and second limbs of the eight limbed yoga path – the Yamas and the Niyamas – which are ethical practices that I try to live by.
Undergirding all of this “head and heart” knowledge, however, I have also always been shaped and influenced by my personal spirituality and connection to ultimate divine wisdom as I know it to be personified and lived out by Jesus Christ. His life, teachings and daily presence in my life and His perfect vision of “the kingdom of God” inspires me daily to love as He loved and live as He lived.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
The fact that I’m participating in this interview at all is a testimony to my own personal resilience.
I launched my business originally in September of 2023. My first year was one of slow growth. I served four very different clients and did a lot of learning and iterating. I guested on multiple podcasts and spoke on stages such as Disrupt HR Colorado Springs and the Rocky Mountain Association for Talent Development conference and I coached/taught workshops for the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce-EDC. I didn’t make a profit, but I was coming off of what felt like a cresting wave of momentum at the end of 2024 when I was rocked by two paradigm shifting events.
The first was the presidential election which, for me, felt like a societal shift in the wrong direction – towards “power over” dehumanizing systems and away from humility, compassion and collaboration. The second was the very sudden loss of my mom, about a month later. As a result, I entered 2025 reeling with a lot of destabilization and grief – all while my marriage was continuing to crumble as well.
The hardest part of recovering from those losses was learning how to give myself grace and accept that I am not functioning at “full capacity.” I found myself frequently hitting a wall where my energy and focus were depleted and I couldn’t do anything except rest. As a life long high performer, that was a huge challenge to navigate. I was suddenly faced with a new year, no new clients, no revenue, and what felt like an inability to do the “work” needed to run my business. I wrote about this struggle to keep a business going as a solo entrepreneur when the floor drops beneath you on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/when-floor-drops-beneath-you-rebecca-hawkins-c7hfc/?trackingId=8dgpB01RQLC9zVpGEzbD9w%3D%3D) and my post received over 12,000 views.
As I’ve walked through (and am still walking through) this “valley,” I can’t say I’ve “bounced back,” but I can say I’ve found my way to a new reality and new strength through several commitments.
First, I doubled down on practices that keep me grounded in my inner voice, my self-compassion, my spirituality and divine guidance. I stepped back from social media and networking so that I could spend more time in silence and stillness and find my own calm center.
Second, because I teach on resilience, I know that resilience is a skill that can be developed, and I know that the key building blocks for resilience are mindfulness, connection, purpose, flexibility and positivity. So I have leaned on each of those skills in my life, journaling gratitude, making intentional time for 1:1’s with friends, adapting and adjusting when my schedule when my energy is low and allowing what is to be without judgement. These have been both survival mechanisms but also a way to role model to my audience and “practice what I preach.”
And, most of all, I have walked through this season with the knowledge from my yoga training that our culture of pain-avoidance does not serve us. I’ve learned how to let the pain come – to see pain for what it is – a signal, a message, something to explore and listen to and be curious about and learn from. As I heard one of my role models, Tamara Moore, speak about at Disrupt HR COS last year, “Tears are sacred medicine.” So I let myself cry, I let myself give honest answers when someone asks how I’m doing. I journal every day about what I’m feeling. I give myself what I need. I trust the process.
Through all of that, I feel like I am becoming even stronger as a voice for humanity in the world I’ve continued to build empathy for so many who are feeling exhausted, weary, overwhelmed and hopeless right now. I believe even more in my work and my calling to it and I’m even more qualified because of the “messiness” of my own life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.regenerativeworkplaces.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/regenerative_rebecca/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-m-hawkins/
