The Rise That Begins Within: A New Path to Success for Women Entrepreneurs
For most of my life, I believed that the only way to succeed was to push harder. I grew up hearing my dad say:
“If you’re hard on yourself, the world will be easy. If you’re easy on yourself, the world will be hard.”
So I learned early that being hard on myself was a form of safety. And I carried that belief — and that pace — into adulthood. Pushing myself through exhaustion. Pushing through fear. Pushing through the quiet whispers inside me that begged for rest.
Push, push, push until the next performance, the next project, the next launch, the next role.
Growing up as a dancer, this was the rhythm my nervous system learned early — a rhythm that shaped my identity for decades. We trained for performances with an intensity that felt normal, even expected: 150% effort every day… adrenaline high before the show… stress and anxiety baked into the process… And then the crash.
Growing up as a dancer
This was the rhythm my nervous system learned early — a rhythm that shaped my identity for decades. We trained for performances with an intensity that felt normal, even expected: 150% effort every day… adrenaline high before the show… stress and anxiety baked into the process… And then the crash.
After every performance, I’d collapse into illness or depression.
My nervous system didn’t see rest as safe — so it only rested when forced. And unconsciously, I kept recreating that exact cycle in every phase of my adult life.
What I didn’t know at the time was this: My body had associated chaos with safety. And calm with danger.
So even when life grew quiet, I didn’t. The Unseen Pattern That Followed Me Everywhere
That early conditioning created a loop I couldn’t see — until the day I finally did. Every job and every career shift I chose was different on the outside, but underneath, the pattern stayed exactly the same. I taught dance — pushing myself to teach as many classes as I could because the income was unstable.
At the same time I volunteered at our megachurch
Choreographing, training, directing, teaching… pouring myself out until I was depleted. When the church offered to hire me, I thought, Finally, I’ll get paid for what I’m already doing. But I ended up working more and making less income. So I made a brilliant decision — or so I thought.
I opened a dance studio. There I was again: teaching, marketing, accounting, cleaning, dreaming, sweating, striving… all the responsibility, all the pressure, all the stress.
And eventually — a wall. A collapse. A familiar crash of exhaustion and emptiness.
So I pivoted. Again…..
I became a dental assistant
thinking: “It’s predictable. Stable. Monday through Thursday. Perfect". Except it wasn’t.
It was 7 AM to 7 PM. Fridays and Saturdays were spent in bed recovering.
My body was shutting down.
My mind was foggy.
My spirit was drained.
By then, I was deep in adrenal fatigue.
So I had another brilliant idea…..
I became a Realtor
I’ll control my income, I thought. I’ll control my schedule. But real estate is a roller coaster. Other people’s emotions, fears, expectations… I absorbed it all. I carried it all.
And yet — I kept pushing. I kept striving. I kept trying to fix the outside world so I could feel okay on the inside.
Every decision I made felt logical at the time. And each one led me into the same predictable cycle.
Over-functioning.
Over-giving.
Over-extending.
Then collapsing.
I wasn’t broken — but the patterns I was living were.
The Moment Everything Shifted
The turning point for me came during my somatic and nervous system education.
I remember researching and learning about regulation, trauma patterns, and behavioral loops… and suddenly — the entire timeline of my life came into focus. It was as if someone turned the lights on inside my story.
I saw it. I saw me.
The little girl who only rested when she was sick.
The dancer whose worth was tied to performance.
The woman who internalized “push hard, collapse, repeat” as her way of life.
The achiever whose nervous system believed chaos was the only safe energy.
It hit me so hard I felt it in my chest:
The problem wasn’t the job.
Or the career.
Or the schedule.
Or the people…….It was my nervous system.
I had been looking outside myself for safety, stability, and success — when the real work was always inside.
For the first time in my life, I understood:
I wasn’t failing.
I wasn’t weak.
I wasn’t meant to live in burnout.
I wasn’t “too sensitive.”
I wasn’t the problem.
My patterns were. And patterns can be re-written.
What Alignment Feels Like Now
The work didn’t happen overnight — but it was profound. As I began regulating my nervous system, everything shifted.
I discovered something I never knew I needed:
Peaceful clarity.
Not the adrenaline-fueled clarity I used to chase — but a soft, grounded, spacious knowing. I learned to become the observer of my patterns instead of drowning in them. I learned to pause before reacting. I learned to listen inwardly instead of performing outwardly. I learned to stop trying to “fix” myself.
Because I finally understood:
I was never broken. It was just old conditioning asking to be seen and redirected.
This created a grounded confidence I had never experienced before — a calm assurance in who I am, what I bring, and how I lead.
Alignment, to me, now feels like:
Peace that doesn’t need permission
Clarity that isn’t forced
Confidence rooted in truth, not performance
Action that flows from purpose, not pressure
And rest that finally feels… safe
This became the foundation of everything I teach, everything I practice, and everything I build.
Rising Without the Rush
When I look back now, I see the through-line clearly:
Every career change was me trying to find safety externally.
Every burnout was my nervous system waving a flag.
Every collapse was a message.
But the real rise — the true rise — began the moment I stopped rushing and started listening.
This is the new way. This is the feminine way. This is the aligned way.
And it’s why Élevé Collective was born.
Élevé Collective: A Community for Women Who Want to Rise Differently
Élevé means to rise or be lifted up — and that is the energy of this movement.
Élevé Collective is a space for women who are done with:
Hustle culture
Proving themselves
Burnout cycles
Over-functioning
Pressure and performance
And ready for:
Alignment
Connection
Calm confidence
Sustainable success
Community
Purpose
Joy
We are building a life-giving community for women entrepreneurs who want to rise — but without the rush.
If parts of my story feel familiar… f you’ve lived in the push–crash cycle… If your nervous system has been carrying more than your mind realizes… If you’re craving connection, growth, and a new way of doing business…
Then Élevé Collective may be the space you’ve been wanting — and didn’t know existed.
We’d love to invite you to explore more, join the interest list, and be part of our Inaugural Gathering on January 20th, 2026.
Learn more or join the interest list here: https://www.elevecollective.org/
Because you were never meant to rise alone. And you were never meant to rise by force.
You were meant to rise — with grace, with support, and with alignment.
This article explores women’s leadership, internal barriers, entrepreneurship, and identity expansion.
