We recently connected with Kisma Orbovich and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Kisma thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Folks often look at a successful business and imagine it was an overnight success, but from what we’ve seen this is often far from the truth. We’d love to hear your scaling up story – walk us through how you grew over time – what were some of the big things you had to do to grow and what was that scaling up journey like?

I look at the “insides” of a business as a clear indication of the level of belief, confidence, organization, and trust that the business owner has. I’ve been an entrepreneur since I was 13 years old and started giving flute lessons. After decades of performing and working as a professional musician, I decided to open a Yoga Studio. My musician friends flipped. “You don’t know anything about business.” My reply was always: “If I can get a job in an orchestra, I can run a business.” (orchestral positions are some of the most competitive in the industry)

So I used discipline to start my yoga studio and build it, then my coaching company, Illumination Academy™. The challenging times always erupted out of two main events that I personally would be going through: 1) Lack of belief in myself – because we are what we believe ourselves to be and create from that vibration. 2) Lack of internal systems and organizations. Creatives have a way of creating chaos. ;-)

I remember sitting in a VIP day with a well-known coach who said to me: “Kisma, you cannot sustain what you are doing. I’ve seen it over and over. $350K a year, but you’ll never scale or sustain if you don’t change how you are doing things.”

That was four years and since then I have focused on putting energy into my Ashram Alchemists™ inner circle so that I can serve more and create a sustainable inner system that creates an impact for my clients. My 1:1 upper tier clients invest significantly with me, so that they are able to access the energy I can give them.

I can honestly say the most recent growth period felt like I was pushing a brick house up a hill. I brought in my husband Nick Hansinger, as a mobilizer, and I trusted him. But I had to LET GO of control and allow the foundation to be cleaned up and rebuilt.

There’s a period of walking in the wilderness whenever we are preparing for a new level of business. Things break because they have to. People leave us, because they need to and we need them to. We face the darkest and scariest doubts inside of us so that we can clear them and soar.

Running a business is like a fast track so Self-Realization. Every doubt, every limiting belief, every fear is exposed. When the human is present enough to face them and clear them, that’s when the magic happens.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I spent the first half of my life as a professional musician—a flustist. I knew I wanted to play in an orchestra when I heard Beethoven’s 7th Symphony on an LP conducted by Ricard Muti. Years later, I would end up studying with the principal flutist of the Philadelphia Orchestra and launch a highly success career.

As clearly as I heard a voice that this is what I would do, when I was 40 years old, I heard that same intuitive voice say, “It’s time to leave.” This happened in the middle of a concert and I was stunned. I had spent years and hours of practice getting to where I was. But inside, I knew it was time. There was more for me to learn and live in life.

Of course, I finished the concert, and the season ;-) and moved me and my daughter back to the US. We had been living in Hong Kong, where I played for 8 years. My guidance was to open a Yoga Studio, glancing back I realize this was specific guidance because I met my teacher/guru, Swami Parthasarathy, through the studio. I began going to India to study at his Vedanta Academy and have been focused on these teachings for the past 15 years..

Going from Yoga to Coaching was natural. What most people were looking for in yoga was guidance…I call it seeking an alternative way of living, of being. When I merged the Vedanta teachings with energy practices and understanding human behavior at a deep level, Illumination Academy™ took off.

I help entrepreneurs, leaders, and career professionals understand and work with the universal laws. These laws are scientific and run our universe. Most people are working against them through the conditioned mind of fear, doubt, and ego. When we work WITH them, unimaginable prosperity takes shape in all ways of life: wealth, leadership, love, and spirituality.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

The most powerful event in my business that helped me to pivot, was an unfortunate one. However, I believe deeply that things do happen for us to go through and when we see it through, and walk through the wilderness there is an activation on the other side of many miracles. My mentor at the time had a breakup in his marriage and started drinking. He ended up taking large amounts of money from his students in his mastermind. I was included in this event. He walked away with $86,000 of my money. I knew I had to 1) forgive him 2) forgive myself for trusting him 3) get to work. One year later I had that amount of money to invest in another coach and my business soared. It was an incredible experience, both painful and revealing on so many levels.

Can you talk to us about your experience with selling businesses?

I sold my yoga studio after operating it for about six years. I had opened it as an affiliate with a group that had 4 other studios at the time. I loved that studio and the community, however, for various reasons, it was time to exit. They had the right of first purchase or refusal and decided to buy. What followed was interesting. They tried to find places where I had done something “wrong”, so they could negotiate a lower price. Thanks to an amazing bookkeeper (which I always recommend to have) I knew our numbers were solid, and I ran that studio by the book. I held my ground. My lawyer was freaking out. She thought I should take this offer they were threatening me with. I just let go and trusted Universe that I was in truth. Finally, the buyers apologized and realized they were looking at the wrong contract. The deal was done and the studio still exists which makes me very happy. The lesson is to run a business cleanly, hold your ground professionally when selling, and know your and the business’s value.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kismaawake.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Kismaawake/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KismaAwake
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kismaawake/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/kismaawake
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Kismaawake/featured

Image Credits
Photo by Beth Ross Buckley for the first two 3rd one, no credit