Ep. 34: Taking Action on the Dream of a Different Life with Kristen Gelinas

I couldn't fathom the idea of leaving New York on my own, and you were the one to really question that. And of course, it was fear underlying all of it.

Welcome to the Prosperous Woman Podcast. I'm Claire Sellers, a business mentor and coach who is absolutely obsessed with helping you create the business of your dreams and your most prosperous life. Tune in for inspiring conversations with extraordinary women that will propel you Towards Becoming the Prosperous Woman. Okay, welcome everyone to The Prosperous Woman. I am so excited to have an incredibly special guest on today, Kristen, one of my former one-on-one clients who has just undergone one of my favorite transformations. And it's been a while since we worked together, but we've kept in touch over the years. And her life is just such a testament to this work and such a testament to what I teach and what's possible when you take that leap of faith, when you walk out onto the way. And Kristen is coming to us today with like a totally different life than when we started. So Kristen, I'm gonna let you introduce yourself.

Hello. Well, pleasure to be on the podcast, Claire. Really excited to share my story and hope that it resonates with many people in your audience. So I, I know Claire, I know you from our time living in New York together. And when we started working together, I was still in New York City. It was the COVID-19 pandemic. I had experienced a breakup. There was a lot of change happening in my job, in part because of the pandemic, and I felt so stuck in my life. I knew that I wanted something different, that perhaps my New York City chapter was coming to a close. But I didn't exactly know where I wanted to go next, or at least that's what I thought when we started working together. And so we began our sessions in the winter, January of 2022. So about 3 years ago now. And what's kind of funny to me looking back, I was rereading our session notes and whatnot in preparation for the podcast interview today, but I had so many of those answers inside of me already. I wrote them down. Down on my prep forms, and I knew on a soul level where I wanted to go professionally and some places geographically that might be suited for me, where I might want to live. And so our work together was really a way to encourage me to push through some of those limiting beliefs that were keeping me stuck. But again, I had those answers inside of me all along, and so you really helped unlock them for me. And I am living a very different life, as you mentioned, from the one that I had when we first started working together 3 years ago. So I am in Colorado now. I settled in Denver, but I'm now in Boulder. I met my now husband through a run club in Sunnyside, Denver, the Sunnyside Run Club. And we started dating about 6 months into my time in Colorado, if I'm getting that timeline correct. Yeah, about 6 months. We got married not long after, we had a baby this past June. So motherhood has been a huge identity shift for me in this, and I've undergone a lot of— Um, career transitions. I'm a freelance fundraiser, nonprofit consultant. We can talk about that. But I started to make that pivot as I was leaving New York. It was part of my exit strategy. So very different life, very different life circumstances than we first started working together 3 years ago.

Yeah. Oh my gosh. And I just, you know, it was before we started recording, Kristin read to me her, you know, I have everyone kind of fill out this intake form and she literally wrote what she's living now. Like, I feel like I'm called to, you know, support the, the birth of newer organizations. Like, I feel like I'm meant to live in the mountains. Like, you actually knew. And for anyone listening who, you know, can probably relate to how Kristen felt, how I once felt, just stuck kind of in the, in the day-to-day 9-to-5 grind. Like, so many of my listeners are in New York City. Like, you know, it's a hustle out there. You're either working or you're at happy hour or you're working out and sometimes you just don't even know if you're ever gonna see another way of life. And I think, you know, so many of my clients, Kristen included, are testaments that like there is another way. And you most probably in this very moment, even if you feel stuck, actually do know what you want.

Yeah.

You just need to cross the bridge and take the steps to actually start undoing the life that you built that no longer feels aligned. So, That's a great place to jump in. Talk to us about like, how did you know— like, you reached out to me. What was the breaking point for you when you were just like, "All right, I gotta do something. I need help"?

You know, it's so hard to describe in words how I felt at that time, but it was this whole body feeling of being very unsettled. The place that I had called home for many years— I lived in New York City for 15 years in total, grew up in New Jersey, but something didn't quite feel right about the environment and I had a hard time discerning at the time, was it really New York? Was I meant to be somewhere else? Or was some of this because of the pandemic? Because so many of the things that make New York City special were suddenly inaccessible. And so I had a lot of time, me alone with my thoughts. I mentioned earlier, I also experienced a breakup from a longtime partner in July of 2020. It was a very amicable split, but I found myself alone, working from home 24/7, alone with my thoughts. And it was very difficult for so many of us, regardless of— Yeah. Regardless of where we were living, to spend that much time in social isolation. But it was in many respects, I think, an invitation from the universe to look inward. It was a time of incredible introspection. And so I started to think, well, maybe, maybe I should be living somewhere else. I wasn't driving at that time as well. That's very common for people as they stay in New York to stop driving. And I was afraid to get behind the wheel. And so I felt like I couldn't really escape. I couldn't go anywhere during the pandemic. And I started to associate driving again having a car with this incredible sense of freedom. And so I thought maybe, maybe I need to live somewhere where I could have a car again. And I just envisioned myself journeying into the mountains. I had rescued a dog not too long before Claire Sellers and I started working together. And so I used to imagine my dog and I driving into the mountains and going on hikes. And so I thought maybe there's something to this. Maybe this isn't just a fantasy. Maybe this is something I could actually make a reality. But how to get from A to Z is where I was struggling. And there was one patterning I found myself in, and you called me out on it. And it was the if this, then that.

Mm-hmm.

If I find a new romantic partner, if I enter into a new relationship, then I will be in a position to leave New York City. I just didn't even imagine, I couldn't fathom the idea of leaving New York on my own. And you were the one to really question that. And of course it was fear underlying all of it. I was afraid if I would go out on my own, it would be challenging. Could I afford it financially? How do I build community from scratch in a new place without someone else by my side? So you helped me work through all all of that. And then professionally, I had been in my job for almost 10 years. I, I worked for the High Line in New York City. It was an incredible project, and I had so much of my identity wrapped up in my work. And, and I think that's very common for so many of us, and particularly in New York City. And I loved that job. I helped build their corporate fundraising program really from the ground up, built their venue sales program from the ground up. We accommodated incredible fashion shows and brand activations, and it was work that stretched me creatively and strategically, but my portfolio was heavily impacted by the pandemic. I had to furlough or lay off virtually every member of my team. And so I had a hard time pivoting in that moment and accepting that my job was different, but also saw it as maybe this is my opening to leave and to do something different. And so you and I talked through what that might look like. And I ultimately decided and determined that the best way for me to leave New York was actually not to leave for another another job that rooted me in a specific place, but to have, to have a work life that provided for more freedom and flexibility, these values that kept cropping up in conversation. And so I gave notice at the High Line and immediately transitioned to being an independent contractor. So the High Line became one of my first freelance clients. I picked up a couple of other clients around that same time and then stayed on with the High Line for about 6 months in that capacity while I built up my freelance consulting practice in Colorado. So it all kind of happened and shook out exactly in the way that it was supposed to. And it took a lot of trust, a lot of pushing through, again, those fears and limiting beliefs to know that taking a leap of faith, yes, it's scary, you're jumping into the unknown, but certainly in my case, I think for so many others, it's, it's so worth it. You are pushed and challenged in so many ways, but the rewards on the other side of it are really incredible. And frankly, I You said this to me at the time, but you can always change course if something doesn't quite feel aligned. If you take a step and you're like, I actually don't know if this was quite the right thing. And if that's the case, you're simply being redirected in another direction. And every step, every move that you take is simply another move, another step forward along your path. So it took me a lot of time to realize that, but my trust muscle really did strengthen over the course of the few months that we worked together and certainly in the last couple of years since then.

Mm-hmm. Yeah, I just love— there's so much in there. So I mean, I so remember the part about driving. Didn't you have to get a license or something?

I did. Well, I had a license already, but I hadn't been behind a car in over 10 years. Yeah. So I, even though I had a license—

That was so symbolic.

I know it really, really was. So I signed up for driving lessons in New York because I thought, why don't I try to get ahead of this? I read a lot of books as well to not as much, you know, freshen up on driving skills per se, but a lot of the books are more about the anxiety that people have around driving and how to overcome it. Where does that anxiety come from? And recognizing that there are many other anxious drivers on the road, like you are not alone in experiencing that wave of emotions.

Mm-hmm.

And so I took driving lessons in New York. We did some city driving, some highway driving. And then when I moved out to Colorado, I took a driving course here that was focused more on navigating some of the the windy mountain roads, the roads that you're not going to find in New York City. So it was a hard thing for me to do. It sounds kind of silly in hindsight because now driving is something that I do regularly. But I do view it, I will say, as this incredible responsibility. It's not something I take for granted. I think that's in part because I didn't drive for so long.

Yeah.

And now I have a little one, so I'm thinking a lot about car safety and—

Yes.

—driving in a different way. But yeah, when I moved out here, I thought, maybe I'll survive a couple of months without a car. I'll settle into Colorado. But I wound up needing one one within, I think, 2 weeks of moving here. And it was a really fun thing to get back into. And yes, to your point, sort of very symbolic of my whole—

Very symbolic. And I think it's so relatable. Like, your path in story is quite similar to mine. Like, we had both been in jobs for 10-plus years, really a part of something. I was at Avenues and you were at the High Line. There's so much identity, I think, when you start with a company at that stage, you know, and you're really a leader and you're bringing it from really nothing to something extraordinary. So much of our identity gets tied up in our work. And I see this with so many of my clients. I wrestled with this myself, and I'm sure so many people listening can relate it. Who am I without this role? Who am I when I'm not this leader at this company that has a brand name that everyone knows. And I actually think that is for so many of my clients and was part of what we had to do in the beginning was kind of help you separate your identity from your work.

Yes, 1000%. And I think that's why I struggled and why I was feeling stuck is that my job was so impacted by the pandemic. And I started to ask myself questions like, well, if my job isn't what it used to be, who am I without The High Line? How, how could I possibly exist without The High Line? Where do where do I go professionally from here? And what I actually felt and knew intuitively at the same time was that my work was always going to be important to me. It's always going to be a core part of who I am.

Yeah.

But there were so many other parts of myself that I was excited and eager to explore. And I felt that there was an invitation to explore. And that's a large part of the reason that I was drawn to a place like Colorado where there's a saying, it's sometimes a joke that when you're asked the question, what do you do? In New York, you would normally respond with what you do professionally, and you'd talk about your career path. In Colorado, you're usually responding with your hobbies and interests. Yeah, outdoor recreate, you know, what if I'm a mountain biker, I'm a runner. Yeah, yeah, I do all the things. So I enjoy that living out here. My career, what I'm doing professionally, is still very important to me, but I, I feel that I'm living a life that's a bit more full, multifaceted. Um, I have more balance than I was able to achieve in New York, and so I've landed in absolute right environment for me at this chapter in my life. And I don't know how long I will be here, maybe forever. Um, but that's what's been so great about this journey and working with you is that I do know how possible it is to pick up my life at a certain point and relocate or move somewhere else if that's what I feel called to do.

Yeah. And I think that's— it's amazing to watch my clients. Like, once you do it once, it's that first time when you take this big leap. You know, there's a book called The Big Leap. I love it. And once you take that first leap, you really do build the trust muscle of like, okay, when I walk out onto the way, the way is going to appear. It might take some twists and turns, but it's somehow gonna work. But, you know, you, your journey was amazing for me to watch. And honestly, like I have to say, for most of my clients, not everything goes, you know, picture Polly Pocket perfect, but But I will say I am constantly amazed at how things just unfold, you know, not always on the timeline or the location or, you know, whatever it might be. But I remember with you, you know, it was like you left the High Line and then they were like, yeah, we want you to consult. It was just easy, you know? And then I think you found a sublet, like it was just easy, you know? And then you found a sublet in Colorado. Like it was, I always tell people like, it'll just unfold, you know, but you have to get yourself in motion. And I remember with you, it was just like things just kept unfolding. And when you're in the stuck place and you're kind of paralyzed or just going through the motions, you don't believe that it will happen for you. And I think that's the hardest place to be. And, you know, this is why I do what I do, because I couldn't have gotten myself unstuck. You know, my first coach, Tracy, who I adore, She was me. She was what I was to you, if that makes sense. Like, she was the mirror. She was my guide in getting me unstuck and, and giving me the, the permission and the, the strength to, you know, design the life that I actually knew I was meant to be living. And it's so hard before you take those steps, but you really are living proof. And this is why I wanted you to come on the podcast, that like, it does work, you know, when you, when you truly have the courage to just take that first step, you know, like, what was your first step? Didn't you do a trial run in Colorado?

Well, I had spent some time out here once with my previous partner, and anytime he and I took little trips and vacations together around the country, it was funny, I would often go into it thinking, would I live here? Could I move here? And I just had this, this feeling in Colorado, like I was like, yes, I could live here. This feels comfortable. It feels aligned. I like how health conscious it is. And so I always had that idea kind of in the back of my mind. But I would say in the 2 to 3 years before I moved out here, I had several other people and from various corners of my life relocate, mostly from the East Coast to Colorado, a couple from the West Coast as well.

Mm-hmm.

So I connected with those people to talk about their experiences and felt that Okay, this really worked for them. And if I do relocate to Colorado, I do have a few friends, a few extended family members here who would welcome me with open arms. And they've all had incredible experiences. So in many ways, they were showing me what was possible for myself.

Yeah.

If I pushed past those fears. So I had some exploratory conversations. And similarly on the career front, I was trying to connect with people who had been in my shoes. To see and understand what could be possible for myself. How do you go from working in a full-time permanent job to taking that step to starting a consulting practice? I didn't have a large financial cushion, really any financial cushion. And so it felt like a tremendous financial risk to me. And I was so worried that I would take the step and I would fail. I remember that. And so that's where my conversations with what I call my expanders were really helpful. And I had a wonderful relationship with my previous manager at The High Line, and those conversations were so hard, but I was as transparent as I could be in sharing with her that I think it's time for me to move on and to think about my next step. And I want to help you in figuring out what the team structure looks like at The High Line. I will communicate to the best of my ability where I think I'm going next. And so, conversations are very hard. I won't lie about that. But— Mm-hmm. Having that level of open dialogue and transparent communication with the High Line opened doors to what I was able to achieve with them, staying on, working remotely. I was doing work for the High Line when I was in Colorado. I mean, the High Line is a physical park rooted in New York City, and I wouldn't have thought even 6 months or a year beforehand that would have been possible. So, I hope that just talking about this gives other listeners some inspiration for how they can approach these transitions. So, connect with as many people as you can, learn bits and pieces pieces from their stories. And then from there, you know, your path, your journey, your decisions will hopefully become more clear.

Yeah. And I think that, that last part is so important. Things just start unfolding. And I see this happen with me all the time. Things just— it just starts. We said this before we started recording, like, the right people, places, and things just kind of come to you, you know, and it might be not in the way you expected. It might not be in the order, But it does unfold and the way does become clear. And honestly, I think, and you tell me, like, I think those first initial weeks, months are the hardest, you know, where you're trying to unearth from, you're doing the identity work, you're, you know, having to have those humbling conversations like, hey, I'm trying to make a career change. Hey, I'm thinking of, you know, uprooting my whole life. Like, that is a humbling, humbling period where you just have to kind of put your ego aside. And it's like, you just gotta kind of say, I'm starting, I'm starting a new journey here. And I'm going to be humble about it.

Absolutely. 100%. And the other thing that came to mind as you were talking is this idea of— you used to say this to me in sessions, you can't mess this up. No passing or failing tests from the universe, which was— lingo that I had latched on to from a manifestation program I was doing simultaneously. And you do attract the people, the places, the experiences that are aligned with wherever you are on your journey. And so I sometimes had a hard time as it was all unfolding just being patient and letting things shake out as they were meant to. And it's easier, of course, to say that now looking back, but when you're—

Yes.

It can feel hard and you feel like there's these these challenges and these hurdles at every turn. And I was often outsourcing my power, my intuition. And you may recall, I also did a few readings with psychics at that time.

Yeah.

I had such a hard time sitting in the unknowing and just trusting that things would shake out as they were meant to, so long as I was putting in the time, the effort. And so I would turn to these psychics and schedule these readings.

I remember that.

They would tell me, here's how your life is going to unfold in the next 3 months. It'll all be fine. Don't worry, you'll get to where you want to be. And here's where you're going to be. And of And of course, none of the sessions exactly unfolded that way. But that's, that's the kind of guidance I was looking for, because I had such a hard time surrendering and loosening my grip on control. And I'm in such a different, different place in my life right now. And I'm able to flow and navigate the day to day and difficult conversations with so much more ease because of the work that you and I did together starting 3 years ago now.

Yeah, you know, it's, it's, I love the topic of outsourcing power. You know, I think that that's very important. And I see this come up with so many women, especially around like, I'm just gonna go pull a card. And I think you were into tarot. Were you into tarot?

I started dabbling, yeah, with the tarot.

Yeah, and there's nothing— you know, I have too, and there's no— I have no— nothing against any of that. What I'm against is outsourcing your power. I have done a lot of work and still do work on my own and with my teacher with the Akashic Records, and And when I do that, I am so clear on like, this is just a tool. It's not a prediction of the future. It's truly just to help me connect to myself. And I think the minute that we start looking outside of ourselves, and this is, you know, as a coach, something I'm constantly super, super careful, like, I don't want anyone to ever look to me and make a decision based on what I'm telling them, you know, like my— Yeah. Goal is to always lead you back to yourself. And this is why, you know, and I said before we started recording, like, you're just so embodied in the work, the work of walking out onto the way, following the opening, you know, all these things I teach, like, you're so embodied in it now. Like, I see it in your face. Like, I see it in the way that you move and talk. And it's like, that's because it's, it's you. You're so in tuned with your heart and your power and and you're just in such deep alignment. And the minute we start outsourcing to psychics and tarot cards and, you know, Akashic Records and da da da, looking for answers outside of ourselves because we don't trust that we have the answers. And I want to like bring us back to— you literally had the roadmap. Session 1, you were like, I think I'm meant to do XYZ, and I think I'm meant to live in XYZ. You had the roadmap, you know, and yet like it felt just so far away. Like, how am I ever gonna get there? And—

Or I doubted myself.

You doubted yourself. You doubted yourself. And that is, I mean, that's the whole thing, right? Like, you know, I, this is why I do what I do, 'cause I look at women and I'm like, you actually know, so can you just make it happen? Can you step into that? It's so much easier said than done. And I've done it so many times. You, you've done it so many times, you know, over the last 3 years, over and over and over again. And it does get easier because you build that muscle and, and you start self-sourcing your power versus outsourcing it. And I think that's like the key.

Yes, 1000%. And there's so many things that I can say in response to that. But something else that came up in our sessions working together that's kind of related to all of this is this idea that you're following the path, you're making your aligned decisions, you're trusting that internal compass. But I remember you saying, Kristen, there's never gonna be this magical moment where the sky's clear and you now know, this is my opening, this is my invitation to make this move. And so you also have to take initiative and take those steps. And I remember there was just a Saturday afternoon, a regular Saturday afternoon in April, and I was going for my morning, or afternoon walk rather, in Prospect Park, and I said, you know what, the skies aren't magically going to clear and say, this is your moment to book that Airbnb in Denver. I said, I need to go home and I just need to do it. And as soon as I did it, I messaged you and we talked about it in the next session. And that was another piece that really got things in motion because I realized what, what was I waiting for at that point? Yeah, really, I just needed to do it. Take the action.

You just— it's that first step. It's like You know, I've had clients book plane tickets, book Airbnbs, send the email, whatever it might be. It's that one thing that just sets things in motion from your own sovereignty and your own power. From that point, it's almost like a snowball where it just gathers speed and it, it does get easier and easier and easier.

Yes, it does.

So I, another area I just wanna touch on, and then I wanna talk about your business.

Yeah.

Because I feel like it's grown and expanded in just such a beautiful way. But part of our work together, this is why, you know, some, some of you know, I ran a dating program a couple years ago, The Magnetic Woman, because I have a very specific approach and set of beliefs around dating and romance and courtship. And I created a group program around it. But Kristen was actually one of the first clients that I even touched on relationships with. And she's now married and has a baby and her partnership is just so gorgeous. And that was another case of you really having to kind of put your ego aside of how you thought it was going to look, you know, and you really having to trust the way that you felt in your body versus like what your mind was telling you. So a lot of my listeners are single, a lot of them are married too. But tell us a little bit about how— because that was all part of the journey. It was like you had to get to Colorado. Like, how did that all fit? Yeah. Happen. Yeah, you were dead single.

I was dead single. I've been in a relationship for about 8 years. My partner and I split up in the summer of 2020. It was a very amicable breakup, but I was eager to enter into my next partnership. I was interested, really open to the idea of having children, but also saw a version of my life where perhaps I never had children. And I was— I was okay with that. But I had a list because I was following a manifestation method, or I had a list of the various qualities that I was looking for in a partner and really got into some of the details and specifics. And I knew intellectually that to some degree I could put this out there into the universe, and the universe might in fact send me a partner that is quite different from the list, because they perhaps know— my guides know, the universe knows— what's better for me at times than maybe I know for myself with dating in particular. So I was open to the idea that my person might look a little bit different than what I I initially put down on paper. But when I moved to Colorado, I'll kind of tell— there are a lot of kismet-y aspects of this story, but I settled—

It's so crazy. Girls that are single, like, just listen to this because you really can't make it up. And we love— I've never met him, but I think he's just like what I would call textbook captain.

Yes, he's fantastic. So I settled in a neighborhood called Sunnyside, Denver. And when I went on vacation with my previous partner and we visited Colorado, we actually stayed at an Airbnb in this neighborhood. I really loved it. It has kind of an exurban feel. It was the, the kind of transition I was looking for after leaving New York. It felt more homey. I was staying in a detached home that had a backyard. It was perfect for my dog, but I still had access to all of the incredible amenities that one might want living in an urban environment. So it was perfect for me. Um, I found this Airbnb when I was moving to Colorado in the same neighborhood in Sunnyside. And when I was thinking about how to put down roots and where I might want to build connections, I thought, I want to get into running when I moved to Colorado. I really want to become more serious about running. I knew a couple of other people back in New York who were involved in running, and they had just so many incredible friendships. I was like, that's what I'm going to do. I started Googling run clubs near Sunnyside, Denver, and turns out there was a Sunnyside Run Club. They met weekly on Tuesday nights. And so I started going very soon after I moved to Denver. And I could walk to the run club. It was so convenient. My next-door neighbor in Sunnyside was also a part of the run club. So it really allowed me to put down roots and it, it made Denver and it made Sunnyside specifically feel like home. So my husband has been one of the heads of this run club, or he was at the time, and planned and coordinated all the routes, was very active in posting on Facebook. And I remember thinking at the time, oh, he's kind of cute. And we became friends. And I remember looking back and reflecting on my first 6 months in Denver and being really grateful for his friendship. He would invite me out to social outings with other members of the run club outside of the organized weekly runs, and so really allowed me to establish friends and connection and community. And that was a value and something we talked about a lot in our sessions, because I, I was missing that in New York. I didn't really have that anymore.

Yeah.

And it's so important to sort of who I am and what I need on a soul level. So he and I were hanging out as friends, And then in January of 2023, so 2 years ago, he asked me out on a date. And it was very clear from the text that it was a date. I hadn't really imagined that he and I would make the transition from friends to romantic partners, but there was no hesitation, no doubt in my mind that I should go on this date. Um, he has an incredible sense of humor. I always enjoyed talking to him. He's a Colorado native, and so if I was looking for recommendations on places to go hiking with my dog, he had them and then some. So— Mm-hmm. We had an incredible date. It was over 3 hours in conversation over dinner, and we hung out a few more times after that. But I remember saying to you in session, Claire Sellers Sellers, I'm just not sure if he was the one, because I was expecting my person, whoever I meet next, to give me those butterflies, that, that feeling of anxiety. And I remember you saying very clearly in our session, Kristen, there are no red flags here. And so I invite you to lean into the experience of spending time with an emotionally available man who's interested in spending time with you. Just see where it goes. And so I said, I think, I think you're right. I think you're right. But I was shutting it down before I was really even really willing to give it a fair chance. And part of it was my fear that if it didn't work out, my social connections, the connection to the run club, I'd have to leave the run club.

Yeah.

I'd have to join another run club. So I was It was fear kind of running the show. And as I mentioned, this, this idea that, oh, the person that I'm with, I should get really nervous and anxious. And I realize now, no, no, that's not the case. Because what I was thinking I should do was show up on these dates, needing to be a better, slightly more improved version of myself. Because I was attached to this idea of competing for a man's attention, competing with other women. And that's not how it was with my husband, Beau. He made me feel really safe and really secure. And on our second date, he said to me, I got off all the dating apps because I'm really— I'm interested in exploring where things with you could go, you and only you, and I don't want those distractions. And ultimately, that is what I wanted to hear from someone. I wanted to be their choice, not one of many options. And so through spending more time with him over a couple of months, I really was able to overcome those fears, those doubts, and realize worst case scenario, if it doesn't work out, I'm not gonna need to leave the run club. We're both mature adults here. We can figure it out. So as soon as I really leaned in, as you encouraged me to do, it all just sort of clicked seamlessly from there. And he was clear with me. He was direct with me from the beginning. I never once doubted his feelings or intentions for me. And so I hope people listening—

Yeah.

Hear that. And you know, every story, every experience looks a little bit different, but I was the one who took more time than him to realize that this was meant to be, the stars were aligned. And I bring up the Sunnyside piece of it too. And also I lived in a neighborhood called Sunnyside, Queens in New York City. Oh yeah, that's cool. The best day from college. And so all roads were— The dot connected. Leading me to Sunnyside, Denver to find my now husband and to have our child together. And we named our baby Cyrus, which actually means sun, S-U-N. And we named him that in large part because, A, his due date was the summer solstice, and then he arrived 10 days early, but we still figured it's okay, we'll give you a name. Inspired by the sun. And then because Beau and I met through the Sunnyside Run Club in Sunnyside, Denver, and I had so many positive associations already from my time living with my best friend in Sunnyside, New York. So it all kind of led me exactly to where I'm at right now with motherhood And of course, that's influenced where I'm at professionally as well. So I'll pause there because that was a lot on the dating and relationship story. But I hope— I mean— —for wanting me to share.

I just think it's so important for people to hear. I don't talk about this as much, but I really believe in— I believe in the possibility of safe and easy, consistent love. And I think that as— as high-performing, high-achieving women, we sometimes don't, for whatever reason, we don't believe we're worthy, or we think it should, we think we have to earn it, or, you know, we think it should, it should feel electric, or whatever the story is we're expecting. And as more and more of my friends become coupled, it's, it's this, this is the experience. It's the safe love, it's the available man, it's the steady man. It's, you know, what I call the captain. He's consistent, he's clear. Claire Sellers Sellers. Like, and I just think that it's so important for women to hear that this is not only possible, but this is like what you should be expecting inside of a relationship. And don't settle until you find that.

It's what everyone deserves, truly.

Yeah, yeah. And I remember you saying that, like, you know, before I think you guys were even married, you were like, "I really want every woman to have this kind of love." Mm-hmm, yep. And again, it's almost like this funhouse where like you had to walk through the one door of moving to Colorado Colorado, you know, and then you had to walk through the next door. Well, first you had to walk through the door of leaving the High Line. Then you had to walk through the door of, you know, getting to Colorado. And then you had to find the neighborhood. And then you had to be like, I wanna make friends and I wanna create, you know, a deeper hobby. You just had to keep saying yes, following the opening. And it, it led you, you know, to like the, the perfect place, the perfect person, the perfect everything.

Mm-hmm.

You know, it just, it just unfolded. And, you know, I know it hasn't been easy and it takes tremendous courage to do what you did. But like on the other side of it, the life that you've created is just— it feels so effervescent and just so, you know, easeful for you compared to when things were so just, ugh, misaligned.

That's exactly right. And even though there certainly are challenges and pregnancy and motherhood have been filled with so many of them, I do feel like I am exactly where I am meant to be at this chapter of my life.

Yeah, yeah. And talk to us before we close, your consulting business. So you had a baby. Oh my gosh.

Yes.

And you're slowly like easing back into work, but it sounds like your business has kind of up-leveled and you know, you have some amazing clients and that has in a similar way followed a pattern of just like these amazing women kind of fell into your lap. Like, so just kind of tell us a little bit more about what you do and how you're helping women and brands elevate.

So I am a fundraising and growth strategist for nonprofit organizations currently. I'm, I'm open to working with other kinds of businesses, particularly young businesses, women-led businesses, but working with young nonprofits is sort of the niche that I've found myself in up till now. So at The High Line, I built, as I mentioned earlier, their corporate and venue sales program. Programs really from the ground up, built a team there over time. And I've always been attracted to younger organizations or organizations undergoing major transition. And so when I first made the pivot to being a freelancer, doing this, um, nonprofit consulting work, my clients are all based in New York because that's where my professional network was. It all kind of happened naturally. And those client contracts, many of them were 6 months, a year long, some even longer than that. They all ended in March of last year, just a couple of months before my son was born. And so it allowed me to just take a pause. I had undergone a lot of change, a lot of transition in a short period of time. I didn't take any time off of work from when I left New York and moved to Colorado. It was just one thing after the next. And so I had a moment to really breathe and settle into those last few months of my pregnancy. And then my son was born June 11th. I took a 12-month, or sorry, 12-week maternity leave. And as I was thinking about my return to work, there was an invitation for me to think about maybe having a client base here in Colorado, working with different kinds of organizations. And I needed the experience, I needed the pause, and I needed motherhood to help guide me in this new direction. And so the clients that I'm working with right now are actually in the maternal health space. One of them, they're, they're called Sanctuary Doulas. They started a nonprofit arm called Sanctuary Cares that provides subsidized specialized postpartum care to vulnerable families in the Boulder-Denver metro area. And so I started working with them because the for-profit arm, the Sanctuary Doula, is part of the business. I contracted with them to provide a postpartum doula to spend time with me and Beau and our baby in those early weeks at home together. And I had such an incredible experience and really benefited so much from the care. And I thought, what can I do in this space? It's so important to help other families. There's so much that you're navigating physically, mentally, emotionally, financially. And so when I received the email where they announced that they were forming this nonprofit, Aram, I thought maybe that's something I could help with as I'm jumping back into work. And so kind of what we were talking about earlier, it's not like the skies cleared and something magically fell into my lap. I had to email them. I had to put myself out there and say, hey, I'm a new mom and I just worked with you and I had an incredible experience I have a background in fundraising. I've worked with a lot of young nonprofits. I'd love to explore if there's a way that I could help you in getting Sanctuary Cares off the ground. They responded enthusiastically. We had a few exploratory conversations, and not long after, I had a scope of work where I was working on their launch campaign and a couple of other things on the side. So it just— it felt really natural, and the conversations just unfolded once they began in a really sort of seamless way. Yeah. And then the other client that I similarly reached out to was a freestanding birth center in Boulder County. They're called Boulder Birth and Holistic Health, and they've operated under various business models over the last several years. And to make a very long and complicated story short, they're in the process of transitioning to being a 501(c)(3) 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. So they've been in operation for over a decade now. They serve and have helped birth thousands of babies into this world. And so I'm helping them navigate that business model transition, and it's a bit different because they're more established, but same idea of helping with major transitions and empowering women and families. And it's been a really incredible and rewarding experience so far. And obviously those two clients in particular align with this chapter that I find myself in. And so I also have a background in classical music, which we haven't talked about. And so—

Yeah.

It's been interesting how when I started my professional career, I was working in performing arts organizations and I loved that given my background and training. Then I made this pivot into the High Line and I've worked with a couple of other parks and public space projects. And now I find myself in the maternal health space, family, and looking to put down more roots in Boulder and, and Colorado. So it's all to say, it's kind of all of these little twists and turns have led me to where I am. And that's not to say I won't work for performing arts organizations. Or Peloponnesus again, of course I'd be happy to, but the work helping other mothers and families just feels really aligned right now and really, really meaningful. And certainly one of my motivations is that as my son gets older, I want him to be really proud of the work that I'm doing.

Mm-hmm.

And I do feel this tremendous pull, this desire to be of service.

Mm-hmm.

And I also have a certification as a health coach. So whether it's supporting organizations or supporting individuals, I really, I have always felt so compelled to help other people, to support missions. And so that might look a little bit different as I grow and evolve as a person, but that's the through line. That's the connection, connection for it all is wanting to be of service.

Yeah, and I love how that has just evolved. And, you know, we didn't really talk about this, but of course, one of the first things we did was values clarification. And if you listen to this conversation, like the values of, you know, community, service, you know, beautiful places, like health, like all of these values are woven so beautifully into your life. And because you had clarity on that, like we can now see, oh yeah, like this lights me up because it's pinging my value so fully. And, you know, I always say like your values are the roadmap to your purpose and, you know, that's how you get there. And that's, you know, we find you here truly living like what I would say in the seat of your purpose. And it's just such an honor to witness it. It's just such a joy.

Thank you. Thank you. I couldn't have done it all without your help.

Oh, well, it was just, it's such an honor. And I love that we keep in touch. And I always tell my clients, you'll never get rid of me. I'm like the annoying girl in your DMs. Like, oh my God, congratulations about every single thing.

So you're stuck with me for life. No, I love it. I love that we still have this connection, and I still feel so connected to you even though it's been 3 years since we started working together. I, I love being able to share these updates because you appreciate where I've been, where I am now, and, and incredible, incredible journey.

So much. I really do. So I always ask people 3 questions before closing. So the first one is, what is the next dream that you're bringing into life, you're birthing into existence?

Oh, um, something that Beau and I are talking about is, as we put down roots in Colorado, possibly buying a home here and what that looks like. And so we're in a townhouse right now with our son, and we've been renting. And so home ownership, but this idea of family and putting down roots, you know, I have some of that now, but kind of the next level. And it's just further cementing, I think, my desire to stay in Colorado and just how aligned this place feels right now. So I think that's probably what I would say.

I love that. I love that. And what does prosperity mean to you?

Ooh, you know, this is a great question. And I also, I often think about the word abundance too, because if you had asked me this question 3 years ago, I really would've focused on the financial. Now I really Really, it's not. It's so much bigger than that. I mean, sure, that can be a part of it, but it's all of the things that we've been talking about. It's living a life that feels truly aligned. You don't have that feeling of being stuck. And so for me, the abundance and prosperity comes from having interests, being really in tune with my health, and even as a mother, continuing to take care of myself and recognizing that I have to make sure that my cup is filled to show up as the best version of myself for my husband and for my baby. And so time in the mountains, time connecting with other moms through fitness classes, whatever it might be. So it's looking at my life in a much more kind of multifaceted way beyond just my career, even though what I'm doing professionally and how much I'm earning is, is a component of it.

Yeah, it's, it's so true. You know, I think it's kind of like the level 1 of prosperity is money, but I love asking this question. I've had people say, you know, my feet in the grass is prosperity. Like, you know, waking up without an alarm is prosperity. It's so many things. And when you actually can feel into the breadth of it, like money is not even—

No.

It's just so surface, you know. I love that. I love that. And then finally, How can people connect with you if they want your support and, you know, funding their organization or the, the work that you're doing? What's the best way to, to get in touch?

Yeah, I'm pretty— yeah, I'm pretty private on socials, but I do maintain a public LinkedIn profile if you're interested in seeing more about the clients that I've worked with, where I've been professionally. That's the best place to look, but you can also just shoot me an email. Um, my work email is kristen, K-R-I-S-T-E-N, kristengelinas.com. So that's K-R-I-S-T-E-N G-E-L-I-N-A-S.

Amazing. And we'll link all that in the show notes. And I'm just so grateful that you were willing to share your story. I know it's going to inspire so many people on all the things from relocation to taking the leap, starting your own business, finding love, stepping into motherhood, like the whole thing. And also hear this, everyone. This happened in like 3 years.

Yeah, it was wild. I mean, it was fast. Together in January, I got my place in Sunnyside through Airbnb in April. I moved end of June. So it wasn't even 6 months. My, you know, resigning at the High Line, moving to Colorado. Beau and I started dating 6 months later, and then we got married and our baby baby was born in June. So literally within, you know, 2 years of living in Colorado, it was, it was, it was wild. It was fast.

So no matter where you are now, know that everything can change in an instant.

Mm-hmm.

And you've got living proof right here in Kristen. Thank you so much for joining us.

Thank you. Happy to be here. And if anyone has questions or wants to connect about any part of my journey aside from the career work, I'm happy to be an expander or a resource to you. So just encourage you to reach out.

Thank you for tuning in to the Prosperous Woman Podcast. I am so grateful for your presence and for being a part of this community. Feel free to DM me @itsclairesellers on Instagram. I would love to connect with you and hear what resonated with you in this episode. Forget to subscribe to the show. And if you enjoyed what you heard today, leave a 5-star review. Your feedback means the world to me and helps me reach more incredible women just like you. And because I love to spoil you, just DM me a screenshot of your review on Instagram and I'll send you my free Prosperity Activation Course as a thank you. It's my way of investing in you and your dreams.