We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Adam Turney a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Adam, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been one of the most interesting investments you’ve made – and did you win or lose? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)
The best investment I’ve made was obtaining my yoga teacher certification. Prior to the pandemic, I was practicing yoga for a few years and instantly grew to love it. When you go into studios, they can charge over several thousand dollars for training; as a creative this was not an option for me. When the pandemic happened, a lot of studios moved to offer virtual training opportunities. This, in tandem with the height of the the Black Lives Matter movement, resulted in some studios offering BIPOC scholarships for a 200 hour yoga certification. I applied on a whim and got a scholarship for a really great training program. Due to the industry downtime, I was able to invest my full time and energy into this training. As we eased out of the pandemic I was able to go straight into teaching at a studio which I never thought was possible. Up until that moment, I was just focused on my performing, but now a whole new path has opened up for me through yoga. I’ve since gone on to obtain additional certifications that have continued to amplify my yoga journey. I love how I’m able to share myself authentically when I teach and I hope I can continue to help others on their healing journeys through yoga.
Adam, 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 was born and raised in the Bay Area. Ever since I was little, I had a love for performing; you could always find me singing and dancing around the house! I went onto perform in school productions and do community theater. Fueled by my love of performing, I moved to Los Angeles and attended UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television. Upon graduating I entered the LA musical theatre scene and soon found out that it wasn’t really for me. I had always put my passion for my talents at the forefront rather than having a purpose-driven career or life focus. At one point, I booked a contract with Disney Tokyo as a vocalist when a mental health crisis happened. After going through treatment, taking the time to regroup and focus on myself, I came to learn that life was so much more than my career. When I was in one of the treatment programs, I would teach people yoga. This was one of the first moments that resonated with me and I knew there was something more there. Once I was able to get back on my own two feet, I decided to explore the yoga teaching path. After obtaining my certification, I started to teach in studio and realized the intersectionality of performance and yoga teaching. As a yoga teacher, you’re in charge of the energy of a space and helping people connect to themselves. It combines everything I’m about. Additionally, I’m passionate about helping people find balance and freedom through the use of mindfulness and movement. With my experience as a performer and my life experiences, I understand the need to combat the noise, busyness and burnout that the world consistently brings. As a plus-size queer yoga instructor, my passion is to create a more equitable industry for both practitioners and teachers. I’ve established my own yoga company called Flow and Play that is focused on making this happen. My hope is to help the yoga industry redefine what it means to be an inclusive space focused on human centeredness rather than the aesthetics.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
What can society do? Pay creatives more! We make the world go around and as we’ve seen with the recent strikes, creatives are not getting paid what they are due. People are just trying to live a comfortable life. In our society, being a creative is not put on the same pedestal as other industries. It’s ironic how the world turns to the creative industry for relief/entertainment, yet creatives are some of the most underpaid people in today’s society. We know the money’s there, it’s just clearly not being distributed fairly.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson I’ve had to unlearn is people pleasing, especially in the “yes culture” that permeates throughout Hollywood. I’ll never forget one time my partner and I were headed out on vacation. During the roadtrip, I received a call from my management team urging me about a great audition that was perfect for me, however I was already out of town and wouldn’t be able to make the audition. This turned into a not-so-great conversation (telling me to fly back, turn the car around, etc.) and I ultimately chose to continue with the vacation rather than going to this ONE audition. Funny enough, I was still able to be seen weeks later for the role and booked it! This goes to show that was is meant for you will never pass you by and to stick to your guns and learn to say no. No is a perfect response that doesn’t need an explanation. As I progress in my life and career, I’m learning how to be more selfish. I’ve learned that I have a choice in whatever I do – that includes who I spend my time with, who I give my energy to, and putting myself first. That isn’t dictated by other people, only myself.
Contact Info:
- Website: flowandplay.com
- Instagram: @adamturney_
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-turney6/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/adamturney_
Image Credits
Brandon Tabiolo, Matt Pointon