Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Letizia Silvestri. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Letizia thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
Sometimes life puts you in a fork on the road and you have to decide which path is best for you. On one side, there is the well-known path – the one you have been on for a while, the path most of your peers take, and that your friends and family support. And then, on the other side, there is the less-travelled road, the unknown that makes your heart pulse faster. The difference between the two is that the first one is governed by our mind, that tells us, and sometimes screams us what we must do – on the other side, there is the hearth, that softly and gently whispers us what we truly desire and what makes us happiest. When I announced my friends and family that I was determined to exit my career as Experiential Marketer & Event Planner in luxury automotive to do sound healing full time, I did receive little to no support. Most people could not comprehend how after 18 years producing events for Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Lucid, Pirelli, Pagani, and becoming a benchmark of excellence in that industry, I could let it all go, to embrace an hobby as a career, entering a completely different space, definitely at a much slower pace. Yes, from the outside the risk was grand, but here is no risk when you follow what your heart craves, and it reveals your true path. And so I founded Altha (www.altha.com), with the goal to provide a modern approach to the ancient world of sound healing. And since then, I choose “I want” over “I must” every single day, and I made it my mission to support individuals and companies in their journey to less stress & a greater sense of well-being.
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?
While working in the extremely fast-paced luxury automotive industry for almost 2 decades, I discovered sound healing to cope with the stress from my demanding career. I have always been passionate about my corporate jobs: conceptualizing, designing, and planning events has always given me the opportunity to express my creativity and awe others with multi-sensorial experiences. However, fulfilling this career did come with a high price; I experienced burnout and fatigue and compromised my health due to working in a very demanding industry. At the height of the pandemic, while the world and the events paused, I decided to rescue my spirited dog, Zen. However, due to a history of abuse Zen exhibited many behavioral problems stemming from anxiety and fear. After trying many trainers and consulting with an animal behaviorist, I was given the option to regularly administer Zen doggy Xanax or put him down. However, neither sounded like a “real” option to me. This inspired me to introduce Zen to sound healing and after seeing the incredibly positive and soothing effect it had on him, I became a certified sound healer and started to share the healing benefits of sound with my community. From a young age, I always felt I had a major purpose, but I didn’t know what it was. At that moment Zen came into my life, showed me the way, and allowed me to discover my own gifts. He helped me learn to fully express my higher self and help others struggling with anxiety, stress, and depression to heal through the medicine of music. Altha represents my journey stepping into my true purpose: to share the medicine of sound and to assist people in creating their own daily practice at home for a more balanced life. We offer one-on-one mentorship programs, and we are soon to launch an on line Sound Healing Masterclass. It went from being my own healing practice to a brand that serves the individuals and companies with their wellness programs. We now incorporate our offerings at birthdays, baby showers, bridal showers as well as corporate retreats. Being a strong advocate on mental health, and an avid learner, I also enjoy incorporating hypnosis, movement, yoga, breathwork, tapping, and even egg cleansing and Mayan ceremonies into the Altha sound journeys, with the help of other healers that vibrate at the same frequency. Being passionate about travel, we love designing bespoke wellness experiences all over the world. We just developed in collaboration with Inara AWAKEN, a neuro-science backed perfume oil, that is jasmine based, and comes with a recorded meditation, for relaxation on-the-go.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I remember like it was yesterday, I just returned from a running a successful program in the UK for a well-known luxury automotive brand, and as I was heading home from LAX, I received a message from my boss, sharing with me the calendar of all the exciting events I had to plan for summer; for once, instead of being thrilled about it I felt spaced out: on the spot, I assumed it was the jet lag – Once I arrived home, I felt different: I took a longer shower than usual, and I realized only then how drained and exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally I was – and as I was brushing my teeth I look myself at the mirror and I said out loud “BASTA” (in English you would probably say “enough!” or “That’s it”), “this is not the life I want”. I knew on that moment nothing would have been the same as before. I drafted and send a resignation letter to my former employer. I did not know where I was going (Altha at that time was just a passion project!) but I certainly made the intention to live a balanced life moving forward. I felt the awareness of not wanting to live in stress, tension and constantly been imposed unrealistic deadlines by demanding employers, and I chose to give space to myself, and cultivate presence, gratitude, and self-love.
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
If you want to be successful, you need to lead by example, embody what you are preaching and be consistent with it. When I was in high school, during my Latin studies, I discovered one of the quotes that still resonates the most with me, that is “Mens Sana In Corpore Sano”: a sound mind, in a sound body! And I couldn’t agree more: there is such a strong connection between mind, body (and soul!) and it is overlooked – as a leader, a manager, and entrepreneur, it is inevitable to be under pressure, and your mindset, and physical well-being are crucial to succeed. And to do that, you have to be grounded, balanced, centered, nourish your body with healthy nutrient-high foods, movement, sun light, and get rid of all forms of toxicity and programming society teaches us to be acceptable, and normal.
I would say people shouldn’t access this line of work because it looks cool and trendy on instagram, or because they are just curious about it – normally, you enter it because life put you through pain, challenges and suffering and you were able to find the light through the darkest moments, and you feel called to help others who are struggling, and deeply understand their pain with empathy. And lastly, always keep curiosity, and a student mentality as your main drive in life: read, learn, go deeper, experiment, try new things, embrace being comfortable with change, flow, and surround yourself with like-minded people!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.altha.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/althahealing/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lsilvestri
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/altha-marina-del-rey?osq=Sound+Bath