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

Hi Tyler, thanks for joining us today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you in your professional career?

In January of 2020, just before we realized how severe Covid-19 was, I was working at a boutique advertising agency. The creative ideas were incredible, the staff was diverse, and the network we had access to was extraordinary. Unfortunately, folks were so overworked and underpaid that they regularly had interdepartmental conflict. I mean, you could FEEL the tension and burnout in every meeting. It only got worse after the work from home mandate came through later in March.

I remember working from 9am-9pm every single weekday, and I didn’t really know how to say “no.” But my health was actively declining as my stress levels were high and I didn’t have time or energy for the things that gave me fuel. Admittedly, I fell victim to my environment. I logged in each day expecting the worst–I thought I was stuck.

And then, it clicked.

If I wanted to experience something different, I had to make different choices. Searching for another job was job in itself, so while I casually underwent that process, I decided to make every day as good as it could be. I released the need to take things personal at work, I decided to communicate boundaries as best I could, I asked for help when needed, and I made it a point to sprinkle positive energy into every interaction. It wasn’t easy, but these practices literally started to shift my entire experience. I even got the opportunity to guide weekly meditations which led to me starting my mindfulness life coaching business.

It’s amazing how things come together when you speak up for yourself. I know I have something special to offer the world, and I can’t do that if I am not well and taken care of. This experience taught me the importance of prioritizing my needs even in a corporate setting.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I go by “heart-softener” because while I offer a range of creative healing services, I also spread messages about leading with love through my podcast, digital creations, and poetry. The common theme of my work is to undo the hardening of hearts, towards ourselves and one another. There are things in life we experience that change us forever, and through my mindfulness work, my hope is to help more people see that their perspective is power, feeling is a good thing, and opportunities to thrive are within doing the work.

I specialize in helping highly sensitive women release people-pleasing, self-doubt, and other mental blockages. I think what sets me apart is that I’m offering both a safe space for clients to share and tools for them to face and overcome what has them feeling stuck. This life is all we’ve got, we might as well make it what we truly want it to be. The key, is knowing it’s possible and to know that, we have to have the courage to change our minds.

I’m most proud of turning my own difficult experiences into powerful testimonies that allow me to create authentically and serve my clients today.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

I think continuing to be open to my own life experiences is most helpful for succeeding in this field. You know, since this is healing work. The moment I shut down or shut out on myself, I will no longer have anything to create and share. It will be helpful for me to stretch, get uncomfortable, and learn from life. I’ve decided I’m a spiritual warrior, so I don’t think I’ll have a problem with staying on this path :)

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe consistency and word-of-mouth marketing has helped me build my reputation within my market for sure. I started discussing spirituality, mindfulness, and healing on my podcast, The NUDE Podcast, back in 2019. You can even find tweets and Facebook statuses where I’m dropping gems about these same topics from like 2010. I also just try to do a really good job of being present when I’m working with clients so they can get the most out of the experience, which leads to great reviews! I’m grateful.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tythewordsmith.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tythewordsmith
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-riley
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/tythewordsmith
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@tythewordsmith