We were lucky to catch up with Rowan Neri recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Rowan, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

I started to panic 100 feet from the ground on a trad climb realizing I had not placed a piece of gear for protection in at least 75 feet and now was starting to feel very vulnerable, dangerous, or even stupid. This moment comes to me all the time now when I am feeling like I took on too much, which I often do. My belay partner called up to me letting me know the situation and pleading that I just keep my cool and not panic. I remember how badly I had tunnel vision and how my arms and hands felt like they weren’t my own, but I dug deep inside me, made one small action at a time, got to a resting spot, and built an anchor. The lesson: You committed; you started, and you’re still here. Remain composed and get to a resting spot! There isn’t going to be an accident today. No one is coming to save you. The power is inside of you. Trust yourself. Keep your cool and don’t freak out. If you freak out it’s over. Just don’t freak out, that’s all you need to do.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I reached a point in my tech career where I knew I was not bringing my best self to work every day. I “fired myself” and moved to a new state, Missouri. I had been struggling with a failed surgery that left me with a urinary stricture that was impacting my mental state at a time when my gut microbiome had been cleared out from antibiotics which left me with depression after my surgery as well. Feeling an outcast at my job and then moving right into COVID-19 was a very important transition for me and I’m so glad I had the willpower to persevere, make the changes, and get the support I need. I sought ketamine-assisted therapy, a life coach, and a personal trainer. But breaking through the belief system of my subconscious mind was another animal that I had to face myself and I still battle with as an entrepreneur.

Now I help others walk the path I walked, getting to the root cause of their feelings of unworthiness, lack of motivation or energy, or self-control. Taking an approach that looks at energetics and the metaphysical, biology, and subconscious programming, we address root causes and finally overcome the patterns and self-sabotage we inflict when we aren’t aligned with our true selves. I also am really good at planning. I love managing multiple projects for myself and it’s why integrative health made the most sense to me. There’s only one journey but there are so many built into it and they are all connected. I love weaving my standards for my own nutrition and fitness into my lifestyle choices and pushing my boundaries in these areas and getting to bring this to others is literally next level fun.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

For me it’s overcoming my conditioning of people pleasing while at the same time remaining warm and empathetic. I want to really help people and it means partnering with their higher self, not always the person speaking with me.

I also am working to overcome my own shadow traits of inadequacy and when that shows up as pride, dominance, or over explaining, and how this comes across as a coach to my clients. My spiritual awakening is the biggest part of making me a coach that I feel good about and that can be heard.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

My spiritual awakening is still unfolding and while I don’t know what it all means, it is really exciting to be a part of the mystery and to access a new level of trust, patience, and faith I never thought I would ever even care about. Entrepreneurship and my spiritual journey are like the chicken and egg, I really don’t know which was the catalyst and I really have had to stop focusing on this why me and what’s my purpose question – a gift that emerged from my first ketamine-assisted therapy session that I realized only recently: My purpose is to be the experience. The experience of life – living in the moment. The experience of a role model and guide – for my clients and as a volunteer but just in life as a person. I aim to embody high value as a way to quell my ache for self-respect. For me, it isn’t about purpose anymore. I am fulfilling my purpose by living because I trust in my alignment with my soul to guide me when I get off track. I have had a HUGE ego and many attachments – life has a way to show me these things one by one, it gave me the opportunity to change many times and I’ve had the luxury to get to listen. The fewer attachments I have the more able I am to listen. Recently I was shown that I had to let go of my attachment to safety and to certainty – expectations of an outcome and attachment to a result. It isn’t easy but living in reality is much better. I was always a dreamer and very emotional person. Learning to love that part of myself but now feel a more grounded and equanimous person show up feels really great.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://experienceoptimal.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/experienceoptimal/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/experienceoptimal
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rowanneri/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/theoptimalxp
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@experienceoptimal

Image Credits
Lovella Insisienmay