We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kandice Shaw a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kandice, appreciate you joining us today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I hope that the people who join us at Sangha see it as a resource for their mental, spiritual, and physical health. And that they remember their time with us as offering them the warmth of being accepted as they are and also as a time of transformation. Although the idea of holistic health is growing in popularity, people who look at their mental, physical, and energetic health as intrinsically connected and take action to maintain or improve it are often considered unique. I remember when my primary group of friends thought of me as a sort of hippie novelty because I didn’t drink often or much, ate mostly veggies, did yoga, and talked about feeling awe when driving down the road and seeing a vista of cornfields at sunset. They didn’t really understand why I wanted a sleep schedule or cared about meditation and would lovingly tease me. Although I continued with my own habits, it was hard to expand. I didn’t have any like minded souls to discuss my wellness goals with. I wanted more than just physical health. As I had more access to opportunities to meet others with my interests, I bloomed!
For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved sharing what I learn with others and watching how they grow. It seems like for just as long I’ve wanted to create a place where self care, growth, and speaking authentically, were the norm. Where people were encouraged to both love themselves and to grow and embrace their next chapter. I’ve seen first hand the amazing things that an individual can bring about in their life when they feel supported and accepted with in a community. I’ve also seen what happens when humans feel lonely or isolated. I believe that we all have the tools we need inside us. Often, we just need a space, process, and community that helps us uncover them. I work every day to make Sangha the sort of place that offers that.

Kandice, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have been a student of Yoga and herbalism for over 20 years. As an E-RYT and YACEP, with Yoga Alliance, I offer 200hr trainings as well as continued education in Yoga and Ayurveda. I’m a trauma informed, holonic practitioner. Through Sangha I use my knowledge of plants, Yoga, Ayurveda, and Reiki to create positive holistic community and support people as they build resilient, nourished, nervous systems, creating happy, healthy, aligned lives.

I love to nurture growth and change. As a small child you could find me making acorn soup and “serving” it to others in the neighborhood to “help them grow and be strong.” Sangha is my grown up outlet for nurturing both myself and others. Our offerings are the result of many years of passion, curiosity, study, and experience. Each offering holds the keys to tools that I learned and have employed to assist me in moving through so many of life’s ups and downs.
Yoga and Ayurveda have been powerful tools to help me find and create a balance between discipline and contentment. I am blessed to have had the time and privilege to study with many incredible teachers. Sangha is a way to honor them by passing on what I’ve learned. We offer small group yoga classes, prenatal yoga programs for expecting mamas, and 200hr Yoga Teacher Trainings. We also offer 1-1 coaching and group classes in Ayurvedic wellness.
Reiki and cacao helped me maintain my health and sanity as I assisted my grandparents in passing on in their home as their caregiver. We offer private and group reiki sessions as well as cacao circles. Our cacao circles are filled with community and stories of this traditional heart medicine.
Community has been one of my greatest resources. I am abundantly blessed with many relationships that are incredibly supportive. I recognize the crucial role community plays in my wellbeing. We offer many opportunities for community at Sangha including creative expression, in person and online communities, single day retreats and our upcoming Summer Solstice Retreat, in North-central Minnesota.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Teaching yoga and running Sangha were side hustles for quite awhile. After a decade and a half in the service industry, I left for an office job. At the time it was a dream offer, a lot more money, fewer hours, travel, the potential for growth. It gave me the time and money I needed to pursue my dreams. I was there for many years, and then we had several key roles retire. It changed the dynamic in the office in a way that began to affect my mental and physical health. Staying in the office I had worked in for many years was destroying my self-worth, and making me ill. It took quite an emotional journey to come to grips with that and remove the golden handcuffs. I was job hunting for many months, looking for something that would be similar but not so toxic. Looking back I realize, I was convinced that my worth came from being employed by someone else. Meanwhile, I was working on my dream, putting in teaching hours at the studio and elsewhere, creating programs that were sustainable and finishing up the requirements I needed to begin holding Yoga Teacher Trainings. Full disclosure, the plan had been to offer trainings and continue to run Sangha as a side hustle. I think deep down, though, I knew if I could offer trainings, I could leave where I was and scale Sangha to a size that made it my primary source of income.
Within a month of being certified as an E-RYT, there was an incident in the office. I remember thinking, the only thing that can change here is you. I put my notice in that day. I also stopped job searching and began putting all my energy into my own recovery and Sangha. The growth we’ve experienced since has been exponential. We were able to hold a 200hr training, grow our client base and participate more fully in community outreach projects. We also found a venue for our Summer Solstice Retreat. We affectionately refer to it as Sangha Summer Camp. It’s been a dream of mine for a really long time, and it’s awesome to be realizing it and so much more.
My practices and my community helped me to take action when doing so felt terrifying. I left a place that had me frozen in so many ways and stepped into putting all my energy into the community that makes Sangha. The result has been incredibly rewarding. Every day I wake up and dive in to the work of sharing experiences, practices, and tools that truly serve people.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Community is powerful. Positive community even more so. Most of our sustained growth comes from word of mouth. People who join us feel supported and they start to see changes in themselves and their lives. The people around them notice. We advertise in many ways, but the growth that I love to see is organic. It’s really beautiful to see people show up for themselves over and over. They have a great experience and feel different, better, and then tell others. Nothing beats word of mouth for us. If you have a small business you love, share it! Love on it, tell others. That’s what keeps places like Sangha alive.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sanghayogaandwellness.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sangha_yoga_studio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sanghabyritualcollective
• Other: https://linktr.ee/ritualcollective