Love What You Do, and The Money Will Follow

Interviews

Mar 13

“You have to feel the fear, and then get through it!”

We’re often told that in order to enjoy a fulfilling career, we need to focus on our individual gifts and passions, and how we can share these with the world. But how do we identify these interests, and then what do we do with them? Enter Zoe Luscombe, Founder of Bodhi Barn and a beautiful example in discovering your passions and creating the career of your dreams. Radiating authenticity and determination, Zoe squeezed in a coffee break between preparations for the launch of her exciting new venture in women’s fitness and wellbeing to talk all things passion, entrepreneurship, and discovering ‘your thing’…

“I HAD NO IDEA. AND I PANICKED…”

The dreaded questions about life after university are enough to fill many of us with fear, and, whilst studying Philosophy, Zoe was no exception. “Everybody asked me what I was going to do with my degree, and I had no idea. I just did it because I enjoyed it! I panicked and applied for loads of jobs in my first year, and ended up as a Recruitment Consultant in Manchester.” Moving to a new city on her own at 19 years old, Zoe embraced her new job, but the target-driven culture and a feeling she wasn’t naturally good in the role left her doubting herself and her abilities. After deciding to return to her studies, Zoe worked as a short-term receptionist on leaving the recruitment world and felt her interest in success reignited, and a fascination about what it took to achieve great things (“I always look at amazing houses and wonder what the person inside does. I just want to knock on the doors!”). Sharing this with a Director at the organisation and asking about his thoughts on the key to his success, Zoe received a piece of advice that later shaped her career. “He told me ‘love what you do, and the money will follow’, and it’s some of the best guidance I’ve been given. From that moment on, it was in the back of my mind.” Returning to university, Zoe completed her degree whilst embarking on her first entrepreneurial adventure (second, if you count starting money-making schemes in high school!) by running a jewellery business with a friend alongside her studies.

“WHEN YOU DON’T FEEL FULFILLED IN YOUR JOB, YOU FEEL RUBBISH ABOUT YOURSELF. AND IT WAS THE LOWEST I’VE EVER BEEN.”

With her entrepreneurial spirit fired up, Zoe created a dog walking business when she and her now-husband moved to Texas, USA, following the completion of her studies. A combination of her two passions at the time (fitness and dogs), Zoe built up a client base and sold it for a profit when she moved back to the UK 18 months later. It was on this return home (with dog walking in rainy Manchester not having quite the same pull as dog walking in sunny Texas!) that Zoe had another life evaluation. “I thought, so what do I want to do now?”. What followed was a marketing role for an outdoor clothing brand. But her lack of passion in the role caused the reappearance of doubting her abilities just as Zoe experienced in her Recruitment Consultant days. “When you don’t feel fulfilled in your job, you feel rubbish about yourself. And it was the lowest I’ve ever been.” Losing confidence and struggling to adapt to such a change from life in Texas, Zoe sought expert help for her mental health, and four months later, felt a positive internal change and decided to quit her job in the near future. But, she had no idea what she wanted to pursue. During her hen do, however, everything changed…

A GAME OF GIANT JENGA AND A LIGHTBULB MOMENT

Before her upcoming wedding, Zoe’s hen do was in full swing including a game organised by her sister whereby friends wrote words that described her on giant Jenga blocks. “They’d all written things like ‘gym bunny’ and ‘fitness freak’, and I suddenly realised – this is who I am!”. Zoe’s awareness of her interests continued as more of the games went on, resulting in a lightbulb moment about her passion for fitness (“We played one game where the girls told funny stories about me, and they were all things like ‘That time Zoe forced me to go on a run!’”). Motivated by the discovery, Zoe enrolled in a personal training qualification alongside her full-time marketing role and decided to go for it, finding PT work through a friend. Despite Zoe’s certification and passion for the industry, imposter syndrome and doubt started creeping in. “I didn’t sleep the night before my first few sessions and was so paranoid someone was going to ask me a question that I didn’t know the answer to. I really felt the fear, but you just have to get through it.” And that she did. The more sessions Zoe completed, the more confident she was. On becoming pregnant with her baby boy, she decided to undertake more qualifications in pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, and post-pregnancy training, which resulted in the creation of a community of like-minded women on similar journeys.

“PEOPLE ACTUALLY WANTED TO TRAIN WITH THE SPIDERS!”

With no specific career plan in place following the birth of her baby, Zoe started noticing signs to explore a female-only fitness path. Requests started coming in from women she’d trained before and during their pregnancies for a post-natal class. “It happened really organically, and it was like the universe just sort of guided it.” With that, Zoe created Mama Bod Squad for her growing client base and also started training clients in her garage gym (“And it really was a garage at first, the lawnmower was still in there! I was a bit embarrassed at the thought of advertising it, then I just thought, I’ll give it people as an option!”) The garage gym gained traction with clients enjoying the privacy and, as a testament to the training, Zoe quickly outgrew the space. With her entrepreneurial spark fired once more, thoughts of creating a business came back to Zoe, but this time with a difference. No longer was she as interested in what she could receive, but instead was focused on how she could provide value to others and create something really special (an echo from the Director who shared his advice with Zoe years ago in her receptionist job). After putting it out into the universe that she wanted to open a women’s only gym, an amazing opportunity presented itself to rent out a space through one of her clients, leading to the creation of Bodhi Barn.

“IT’S NOT GOING TO BE EASY, BUT IT WILL BE WORTH IT.”

When comparing her previous entrepreneurial opportunities (beginning in high school, through to university and whilst living in Texas), it’s so clear to see the enthusiasm and underlying desire to help others that drives Zoe in her personal training ventures and brings her alive when talking about her upcoming fitness studio and community. “Fitness has always been a huge part of my life, and running is like meditation for me. It’s when I don’t overthink and when I get some of my best ideas.” It’s no surprise then, that the number one piece of advice from Zoe for anyone feeling lost and unsure about what they want to do career-wise is to get reflective and think about what you’re naturally good at, and what other people would describe your ‘thing’ as. “Everybody has a ‘thing’ that makes them different and what they can offer to other people. Follow that. Don’t feel like you need be in a 9-5 job if it doesn’t appeal.” And whilst venturing out on your own can be tough financially, you do what you have to do, and you make it work. Will it be easy? No, but it will so be worth it.

COMMUNITY FIRST

Zoe’s vision for providing value is clear, and so are her goals….“I want Bodhi Barn to be the go-to place for women’s health and wellness.” In an ever-growing digital world, there is no doubt that in-person connection is more and more sought after, and Zoe is determined to create a community to serve that need. To support herself in creating this life-changing space for others, constant learning is top of the agenda, with her current reads based on the moon and female cycles (“It’s so interesting, I can’t wait to have experts hosting workshops at Bodhi Barn to empower the women in our community!”). There are other goals too, one of which is to keep open minded about possibilities, including expansion in the future. Alongside these goals is a visualisation practice that Zoe enjoys when there is time to go running. “I don’t get a lot of time to run these days, but I still enjoy thinking about the future and knowing that the best things manifest when I’m open and have absolute trust and faith. And I’m so excited for what’s to come…”

Story by Zoe. The advice;

Know that you’ll go through some shit times, but remember your ultimate goal and know that it will be worth it
If you need help from a friend, professional, loved one – don’t be afraid to ask for it
Ask people who know you how they’d describe you. It’s eye opening!
Make sure you’re going to enjoy the journey, otherwise it’s going to be really hard
Follow your passions and ask others for help in identifying them
Don’t force it, when you trust and let go are when the best things happen

A huge thank you to Zoe for imparting her amazing advice and sharing her inspiring story. To learn more about Bodhi Barn and the exciting upcoming events at the boutique female health & fitness studio, head over to the website and follow what Zoe is up to over on Instagram.