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

Victoria, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you share a story with us from back when you were an intern or apprentice? Maybe it’s a story that illustrates an important lesson you learned or maybe it’s a just a story that makes you laugh (or cry)? Looking back at internships and apprenticeships can be interesting, because there is so much variety in people’s experiences – and often those experiences inform our own leadership style.

I came into my yoga career a little later than most. I was 33 or 34 when I took my teacher training — surrounded by mostly younger students who seemed to fit the “yoga stereotype” more easily than I did. Before yoga, I had spent nearly 15 years on Madison Avenue, working at some of the world’s largest advertising agencies. So stepping into this new chapter, I didn’t exactly blend in — I wasn’t the young, thin, white American yogi you’d typically see leading classes at that time.

At the studio where I trained and later taught my first classes, I was the only Latina on the schedule. And becoming a teacher there was no easy feat. Yoga, as a tradition, deeply values lineage, mentorship, and the student-teacher relationship. I admired my teachers and longed for that kind of mentorship, but for some reason, they never seemed to truly see me — to recognize my passion or potential. I watched for years as others were chosen for opportunities and guidance, even those with less experience or newer to the studio. It was painful, and I remember feeling deeply unseen, not enough, and wondering if I even belonged in that world.

But then, one teacher did see me. His name was Kenny — he was also the studio manager — and he noticed that I had been teaching the “free community class” for over a year. Despite inviting senior teachers to come observe and give feedback, no one ever came. Until Kenny did.

I remember how nervous I felt when he walked into the studio that day. After class, we sat together on the wooden floors of that colorful downtown Manhattan space. He gave me thoughtful feedback and told me what I could improve on, but the words I’ll never forget were: “You’re a great teacher. It feels like you’re having a one-on-one conversation with each student the whole way through.”

He told me he believed I was ready — ready to teach on the main schedule, to be paid for my work, and to step into my role fully. And he said he would personally advocate for the owner to come take my class, as every teacher had to be approved by her before being added to the roster.

That moment was a turning point for me. It taught me that sometimes the right mentor shows up after you’ve proven your dedication, not before. It reminded me that visibility often follows persistence. And it shaped how I now lead — I make it a point to see my students and mentees, especially those who might not feel like they “fit the mold.” Because I know firsthand how powerful it can be when someone finally says, “I see you. You’re ready.”

Victoria, 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?

My name is Victoria Martinez, and I am a yoga teacher, transformational coach, and founder of Chakra Flow University — a sacred school dedicated to helping humans from all walks of life awaken their full potential through yoga, tantra, and embodied living.

My path into this work has been a journey of awakening. Before yoga, I spent nearly 15 years on Madison Avenue working as a Creative Director in advertising. I helped major global brands tell their stories and sell their products — but in the process, I lost touch with my own. I reached a point where the outer success no longer fulfilled me. Something inside me was longing for truth, connection, and a sense of sacred purpose. That longing led me to yoga — and yoga led me home.

Through my own deep healing and spiritual study, I discovered that yoga is not just about movement; it’s about remembering who we truly are. Over time, teaching became my calling, and Chakra Flow University was born from the desire to share that awakening with others. Today, the school offers 200-hour and 300-hour Yoga Teacher Trainings, transformational retreats in sacred destinations such as India, Bali, and Greece, and advanced certification programs like The Radiant Feminine Formula — a 6-month journey that bridges ancient wisdom with modern leadership and business strategy.

What makes my work unique is how it integrates both the spiritual and the practical — I teach the depth of yoga and tantra alongside the tools of conscious entrepreneurship, helping teachers, healers, and coaches turn their purpose into a sustainable path. My background in branding and creative direction allows me to guide students not only in personal transformation but also in building authentic brands and thriving spiritual businesses.

My one-on-one coaching emerged organically from this work. Many of my students, after graduating from their trainings, sought deeper mentorship — support to embody their feminine wisdom, trust their intuition, and bring their vision to life. This intimate mentorship became the foundation for the Radiant Feminine Formula and continues to be one of the most rewarding aspects of what I do. While my yoga school is open to all, my private coaching focuses on femme-identifying clients who are ready to reclaim their radiance, heal through inner bonding, and lead from their divine feminine essence.

I’m most proud of the community that has blossomed through this work — a global family of teachers, seekers, and changemakers who support and uplift one another. Many of my graduates have gone on to open studios, lead retreats, write books, and serve their communities in powerful ways.

At its core, my mission is simple:
To help others remember that they are not separate from the sacred — that their body, their breath, their voice, and their work in the world are all divine expressions of who they truly are.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe my reputation has been built on integrity, innovation, and true transformation. I created a new structure in the yoga space that no one else was doing — a Yoga, Ayurveda, and Sound Healing school that operates independently of a physical studio. This allows me to stay centered in the teaching, not the bottom line. While many studios adapt to trends and offer students what they want, I’ve remained devoted to offering what they need — an authentic, lineage-rooted education that honors the full depth of yoga philosophy.

My graduates have been the greatest reflection of my work. They leave the programs transformed and liberated — each in their own way — having learned how to alchemize their pain and stand in their authentic voice and power. Much of my reputation has grown through them going out into the world as radiant examples of embodied teaching. People often can’t believe they’re newly certified because of how confident and grounded they are. This is due in part to the unique system I created, where past graduates mentor new students, and trainees gain extensive real-world teaching experience before they ever receive their certification — something that’s not standard in most yoga schools.

And while my approach is deeply spiritual, I’m also a savvy businesswoman who stands for the value of this work. I advocate for fair pay for yoga teachers and set strong standards for compensation in my own programs. It’s part of my mission to help elevate the industry as a whole — ensuring that those who dedicate their lives to teaching and healing are respected and supported.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One of the biggest lessons I had to unlearn was that I needed to earn my worth — that my value came from how much I achieved, how hard I worked, or how perfectly I fit into what the world expected of me.

For years, I carried those beliefs not only in my mind but in my body. My relationship with myself was shaped by the cultural and patriarchal conditioning that told me my body was something to fix or perfect — that beauty and success required control and sacrifice. I spent years healing from disordered eating and body dysmorphia, learning to see my body not as an object to manage but as a sacred home to love and listen to. That healing journey mirrored a much deeper unlearning — releasing the illusion that I had to prove my worthiness through perfection.

Yoga cracked that open for me. It taught me that I get to choose what I believe — that I can live from values rooted in love, intuition, and truth, not fear or performance. Over time, I realized that discipline without devotion is just control in disguise. True transformation happens when action is guided by devotion — devotion to your healing, your growth, your truth, your divine essence.

This realization set me on a long, beautiful journey of healing — learning to love myself unconditionally, to honor my rhythms, and to define success on my own terms. That process of unlearning became the foundation of my coaching work today. I saw how many other women were carrying the same invisible weight — the pressure to be everything for everyone while feeling disconnected from themselves. I created my transformational coaching container to guide women through that same journey: releasing old conditioning, healing their relationship with their body and feminine energy, and coming home to unconditional self-love.

Because once a woman reclaims her power from the systems that told her who to be — and replaces control with devotion — she becomes unstoppable: radiant, whole, and free.

And that’s the energy I now bring into every classroom, retreat, and coaching container I lead — reminding others that healing isn’t about becoming someone new; it’s about remembering the power, wisdom, and wholeness that were within you all along.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.chakraflowuniversity.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/victoria.yogini/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mangogirl76/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-martinez-202548b5/