Ep. 6: Building an International Community with Prairie Stuart-Wolff of Mirukashi Salon

And I basically landed in Japan. I couldn't speak a word of Japanese. I was in this foreign land, in this foreign culture, very foreign culture. And I really started rooting myself by spending time with my mother-in-law, with Hanako's mother, in the kitchen.

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, we are recording, and I am so excited to be here with my client Prairie, who is the founder of Mirukashi Salon, which we like to refer to as the Queendom. It is, it is an absolute incredible, incredible, incredible brick and mortar culinary salon that is rapidly evolving. It's been featured in, I mean, everything, Travel and Leisure, Condé Nast, so many major media outlets. And Prairie and I worked together in the beginning stages of developing this concept. And so I'm just so grateful and excited to have you on the show to, talk about your journey and tell us more about what you're creating because everyone wants to go to Japan right now and I want them all to go meet you and I'm going to be coming hopefully soon. So this is just, it's amazing for everybody to get to meet you because they're all going to be booking with you once they hear your crazy incredible story. So—

Thank you.

Yeah, welcome. And just to dive in, like, give us kind of, I like to hear like, you know, where people have come from. And you have a very interesting trajectory. So many of my listeners, you know, I think are kind of like us at heart. You know, we're adventurers, we're a little bit wanderers, we are travelers, we're global women. So just kind of share a little bit about your journey and how you got to open this culinary salon in the Japanese countryside.

Yeah, thank you. Well, it's so great to be here. It's so great to connect with you again. Um, It's almost one of those stories that I don't know where to begin because I can just continue to go back further and further and further and see how the seeds of this were planted 10 years ago, 15 years ago, 20 years ago, maybe even as a child. And I think, you know, you're very right. I— my— much of my early adulthood was about traveling. It was about finding experiences. I graduated from college and I, I wasn't ready to just dive into a career. I wasn't clear about what that career would be, and I had wonderful parents who were self-employed, so I wasn't afraid of kind of finding my way, you know, self-employed, finding ways to support myself while I traveled and those things. Um, and so I really felt like for a long time I was seeking, you know, what is my path, where am I going, where should I be. I had passions, I had interests from an early age. I loved writing, I love nonfiction writing. Mm-hmm. And that could be personal essays, that could be articles about other people. And I loved photography. I started in black and white fine art photography and then moved into digital. And so along the path, it became clear, well, you put those two together and there's some form of journalism there, right?

Mm-hmm.

There's some sort of exploring the world, being a lifelong learner, and then interpreting that for other people. But it took me a long time to figure out what that would be. And in those years of seeking, I met someone who is my current wife, Hanako, and she's from Japan. And we met in the States, but she wanted to move home to Japan. And I was on board. I said, "Okay." You know, I've always wanted to live overseas and sort of learn about other cultures. So in 2007, I moved to Japan with her. And at that point, I had some formal training in writing and in photography and in journalism. And I basically landed in Japan. I couldn't speak a word of Japanese. I was in this foreign land, in this foreign culture, very foreign culture. And I really started rooting myself by spending time with my mother-in-law, with Hanako's mother, in the kitchen. She was essentially what I would say is a professional housewife, and she would put on her apron at 5 PM and go into the kitchen and cook every night. And so I would follow her in, I would seek out her company, I'd watch what she was doing, she would chat with me. And long story short, sort of that was my entry into the family, into the culture, and the beginning of my love affair with Japanese cuisine.

Wow.

And so I just started applying my skills of writing and photography to that and started a website called Cultivated Days in which I wrote for almost 10 years about learning to cook Japanese food, about my relationship with my mother-in-law, and all of the external things that go with that. We were foraging. I was learning about fish. You know, in the States, we maybe know swordfish and salmon and a couple of other things, but there are hundreds of kinds of fish there, just exotic ingredients. And so that was my project for many years. And that was sort of— I was at the tail end of that when I connected with you because I was to start something new. Yeah.

And there, there's— so before we get into like what happened next, yes, because that, that's kind of part one. And that was, you know, I had chills so many times as you were speaking just because it's like you do see how the dots connect, you know. But like when you're in it, you don't, you know. And like when you came to me, we couldn't— like we didn't see how the dots were leading us to where you are now. Like we just couldn't see them. But now it's like, I mean, of course this is what you're doing. Of course you're open, you know, you launched, you know, a culinary salon and it sold out. And, you know, now you're building a whole building and, you know, all the things. Like, it makes so much sense now. But when you're in it, and I think, you know, I love the term seeker because I think so many women, you know, in my audience and yours too, you know, that are coming to your, you know, to, to to see you and spend time with you. Like in Japan, they are seekers, and so many women are on this endless search, like, what am I seeking? What am I seeking? They're looking for that thing that's gonna like fill, you know, the hole or fill the void. And, you know, I think so often it comes down to you, like you're the one that fills the hole, you fill the void, and— Mm-hmm. I always say, like, your only job is to follow the opening. And what I love about your story is, like, you know, how did you and Hanako meet, actually, if you don't mind me asking? Like, where?

Oh, we met in Vermont, and, um, that's actually where I grew up. And so I had gone off to a boarding high school, I'd gone to college in California, I had then traveled in Central America for a few years after that, um, and I kind of landed back in Vermont, like, Okay, I guess I should figure out this thing called adulthood, right?

Right.

And that was a sort of comfortable place to be as I opened that door. And she was in Vermont. She came to the United States to finish high school. She went to college here, and she was working in a pottery studio of sort of, I would say it's her adoptive father in Vermont. And it was just very organic. It's like small town Vermont. Eventually everyone of a certain age ends up at the same party.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay.

So it was just like random meeting.

Pretty random.

Yeah. Wow. Okay. And Prairie's Wife, for context, is a very— I mean, is it okay to say famous potter?

She's well known. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. We'll link her work because it's stunning. And that's part of the whole Mirokoshi experience also is that, you know, you're getting to meet Hanako and watch. I mean, it's like incredible what she does. Um, so we'll link that too, because I think, you know, it just goes back to this thing of like, you were destined to meet her and like, you know, experience her art and like the clarity of her vision, which led you both to Japan, you know, which led you to— it's not like you moved to, you know, Tokyo, you know, you moved— Like, describe where you live, because I— and people will look on your website, it's a, it's, it's and I haven't been yet, hopefully soon, but you're in the country.

Yeah, so we essentially moved back to her hometown, which is Karatsu. It's on the island of Kyushu, which is southwestern Japan, and it's considered small town in Japan. It's geographically a pretty large area, but it's mostly outside of the small center of town. It's agricultural landscape, so it's quite rural. In a lot of ways it's not, it's completely different from but not unlike where I grew up in Vermont, rural Vermont, or where we've been time in rural Maine now. So it's that kind of, it was a familiar setting in that way for me, and yet everything was different. The language, the plants and animals are different, the food is different, the culture.

Everything. I mean, and you, you know, as someone who lives abroad, and Spanish is much easier to learn than Japanese. I mean, I don't, I don't think I could ever learn Japanese, but I mean, how did you handle that, you know? And, and, and how did you find purpose in your day-to-day? It sounds like, you know, Hanako's mom, like, that was a big, like, anchor for you. It was time of just total unknown and culture shock and all the things.

Absolutely, absolutely. And I think that From the moment I landed in Japan, that has been the one consistent thread, was that relationship that I developed with her and what she taught me. And sort of, she— I really honor her and believe that she's the one who opened the door to exactly what I'm doing now. Much of my personality and my past before Japan ties into that, my interests and the things I had pursued, but it was really through her eyes. She is 86 now, and she's sort of, I say, at the tail end, the last sort of the youngest of the generation who did everything from scratch. So she was cooking from scratch. She was making her own pickles, you know. She was preserving things. She was foraging. And yet she never left her hometown, which is also Karatsu. Karatsu. But through her marriage to Hanako's father, who's also a really renowned potter, she met people from all over the world, and she met really interesting, influential people in Japan. And so she brought this sort of understanding of the agricultural landscape and eating in rural Japan to a blossoming throughout her adulthood, sort of understanding fine culture and fine dining and— Mm-hmm. You know, she studied tea ceremony and she studied noh theater, and so she brought an incredible everyday elegance to the table, to everyday cooking, and that's really what captured me.

Yeah, and that, I mean, I keep getting chills as you're talking because it's just like that, like everyday elegance is like, I mean, if I had to kind of summarize your vibe and style, like that's how I would describe it, you know, and that is so evident in every— even in Cultivated Days, you know, like, that was the vibe, you know. And I think that's what people were so attracted to, um, about you. And, you know, Cultivated Days, even though, you know, everything's really Midokashi now, but I think it's, it's helpful for people to know, like, you built a quite large following through that platform. Like, how did you do that?

Um, it was organic and it was over time. It was, um, I think it started off a little bit of me just sort of writing about whatever I was interested in or seeing and sort of randomly posting. But fairly quickly, because I have training in photography and I have training in writing, I didn't want it to be just this very casual blog. It really evolved quickly into something quite polished. And I committed to publishing very frequently and regularly. So in many ways, I would say it became more of an online journal or an online magazine, except that it was just me.

Right.

And I framed it on this architecture of— in Japan, we divide the year into 24 seasons, not 4, and those are divided into micro seasons. There are 72 micro seasons. And so I formalized it. I couldn't write that much every year, but I formalized to be writing pretty much posting twice a month and following those seasons and talking about eating according to those seasons and bringing in elements of the culture, you know, not just the physical food or the ways of preparing food, but the culture of eating, which, as you mentioned, is completely married to pottery and tableware and—

Yes.

—and aesthetic. A beautiful aesthetic. And so I think just over time, I feel like it gained a readership, but it gained a really lovely and loyal readership. It was like people were following. They weren't just tapping in, "Oh, that's interesting. Oh, that's interesting." Right.

They like looked forward to these— the publications. Yeah.

Because they could almost feel themselves following. Claire Sellers Sellers.

Right. Which again, like, perfectly set you up for what you created, like, without knowing it, you know, you, you, you didn't start that blog with the intention of, you know, like, I'm gonna nurture a community that, you know, is, is dreaming of coming to visit me one day. You know, like, that wasn't even in the, or maybe it was, but it wasn't the, that wasn't your motive.

You know, it definitely wasn't in the beginning. And actually, I would say it was out of that community that I started to get the ideas for the salon that I'm running now.

Yes.

Because I would— it was definitely not the kind of blog where you'd see, you know, 50 people commenting on it, but I would get so many direct emails from people.

Yes.

Like, this post really moved me, or I love this story about your mother-in-law, or— and I started to get emails from readers saying, I would love to visit you someday, or I would love to experience this someday. And that was a light bulb in my head, like, aha, okay, there's an opportunity to bring this to life for people to experience for themselves. Yeah. And I really say that the Mirakashi Salon, the programs I'm running and offering now, are literally bringing those essays to life for people.

100%. Yeah, I just love that. I love the way that your story unfolded. And, you know, I always talk about the three, you know, I have a theater background and I always talk about the three rules of improv as they relate to both purpose evolution and business. And you are, I mean, all my clients, but you especially, and since we're talking like the three rules of improv slash purpose slash business are dare to be obvious.

Mm-hmm.

So like, what is the obvious thing that you enjoy doing and that you're good at and that you're skilled at? You know, that's where you started. Like just dare to be obvious. Keep saying yes and, you know, like, okay, I'm gonna start a blog and I'm gonna make it based on the seasons and I'm gonna listen to what people are telling me, you know, like you just keep saying yes and, and you keep following the opening. And then the third rule is, you know, say yes and— say yes— no, sorry, it's make the universe look good by saying yes and, and it's like the universe was giving you these tidbits from your client, from your, you know, readers. Like, I would love to visit one day. And it was like, all you did was you just said yes and, and you made the universe look good by moving forward with that. So, you know, none of— In retrospect, you know, and I was in it with you in the muddy phase, so I won't say this was so easy. I know it's not easy. But you can see in retrospect how the path was kind of unfolding for you. And because you had the courage to say yes, things have aligned so beautifully, you know. And, and I would say, you know, at least from an outside perspective, they've aligned kind of easily, you know. Like, even the way you got the land, and which we'll get into, you know, just the little, little things that show you this is the right path, this is the right path.

I think, yeah, I'm, I'm, uh, how do I say this? I think as a seeker, that's a really important place to begin, to be there, to be looking, to be looking in different directions. But I think one of the things that happened for me in the process of working with you that was so important was I think I was seeking but maybe with some blinders on, like looking here, looking here, like looking for it. What is it? What is it I'm after? What am I supposed to be doing? Where should I be going? Um, these are all my interests, but how do they relate? And it actually required me in the midst of seeking to take a step back, to take the blinders off and be open to receiving messages, not just looking for signs, um, in the directions that I thought I should be looking for them. Yeah. But to say, okay, I'm just gonna stand still for a minute and wait for a message to come.

Yes.

You know, see what's moving in my periphery, grab onto that and see where that takes me.

Yes, which is a great segue to like, let's get into why did you come to coaching with me? Like what drew you to me and what, what, what was the thing that you like needed help with or, or needed support with?

Yeah, so I had basically been running Cultivated Days for almost 10 years. I was really happy with the collection of writing I had. I felt like it was very complete. I felt like it was very polished. And to that end, I felt like maybe I was coming to the end of that as a project. I felt like it was time to move into something else. Rather than just keep writing. That was one aspect of it. The other aspect of it was it's very hard to make a living as a writer these days.

Right.

And I really wanted to keep my writing personal. I wanted to keep it very much, you know, on point of what I wanted to speak about. I didn't want to get deep into doing assignments for other publications. So I was looking for the next chapter. It was how do I take all of this knowledge I've accumulated about this culture and this cuisine, and how do I take my skills, um, basically what is the next chapter and how do I make sure that chapter has some revenue involved in it.

Yeah, and purpose.

And purpose, yeah, exactly. I think for a long time Cultivated Days was me just processing what I was learning and finding my home and finding my place and my purpose in Japan, but I needed it to then have purpose as work, right, as a product, right? And I knew that continuing on that path wasn't the answer, right? Um, and so I came up with this idea of an online membership, you know, some way in which I could use that skill to produce in, you know, essays, information, give educational, um, media in some way to people, but have it be membership-based so that there would be some revenue. And I felt very clear that, like, that was the next step. That was what I had to do. I knew I had all the skills to do it. I knew I had the experience to do it. But I also knew that taking it into this place of where you have to say, okay, this is my value, this is my monetary value, and ask people for something in return, which I hadn't been doing. I had some limiting beliefs and I had some— Mm-hmm. Hurdles in front of me around that. And that's why I came to you, was like, I know exactly where I want to go. I thought I did, and I go, um, but I need some help to just clear the path. I basically need some help getting out of my own way.

Yeah.

And so that's really the moment that I reached out to you.

Yeah, I love that. And I love, you know, it's kind of like— and I see this a lot with people where— and more and more this is happening— women are coming to me wanting to start kind of their second business. You know, they've kind of done their first thing, and a lot of them, you know, started it, you know, 5, 6, 10 years ago. And it's just kind of like you come to the point where you're just like, I love it, and it's not this anymore. Like, like, I've shed that layer, and I need to create something that is representative of who I am now. But it can be very daunting when you're like, I don't know what that is. And what I see happen a lot— and, you know, because I had the, the blessing of working with you, like, I always think back to our time together because, you know, it was almost like you had convinced yourself like, this is the logical right next step, you know, like I have this blog, I have all these people, I have a big following, you know, like this is the thing that other people around me are doing, they're making money from doing it, I for sure can do this, so let's just do this.

Right, yeah, there was a little—

this makes sense. Yeah, of this makes sense. And, you know, I think before we get into kind of the moment when that veil came down, I just want to talk about, like, one of the things we really worked on deeply with you was, you know, the fears around visibility and, like, being seen. Yeah. And can you share, like, a little bit more about, like, those fears and how we overcame them?

Yeah, that was definitely something. I don't think I even knew that that's what I needed to face when I first connected with you. That came up pretty quickly in our sessions together, um, but it was definitely that thing of, you know, Cultivated Days was this beautiful website, but it was very much the curtain behind which I was hiding.

You weren't even on it, really.

No, I wasn't there. I don't think there was an image of me. I was just the author. I was showing the beauty around me, and I was showing the culture around me. And to some degree, I mean, I did write from the first person, so there was this sense of me in it. But even my writing style, I don't put a whole lot of myself into it. And yeah, I felt like, okay, if I'm gonna do this online membership, and if I'm gonna do something in which I have to sort of set a value and get people excited about, I have to reveal myself, right? People will buy into a person or personality— how do I say— more than just a product. Like, I have to show who is—

Who you are.

Right. And why would people want to get my tips on where to travel or, you know, learn my recipes? Kind of thing, right? And that was a big fear for me, you know.

Definitely. What was, what was so scary about that in the beginning?

I'm trying to remember. I think, um, I mean, I think I still face it to a certain degree. I think there's a— this thing that I think so many people, so many women face is like, am I enough?

Or, who am I to—

Exactly, who am I to ask for this? Will I be giving enough in return?

Yeah.

Those kinds of things. Why me? Why would they want this from me?

Right.

Yeah, so it was a lot of those fears, and a lot of those came from this character that you so beautifully introduced me to very early on, the saboteur.

Yes.

The voices in your head saying, yeah, you don't know enough yet, you're not smart enough, you're not pretty enough, you're not— I don't know, all of those things.

All the things.

All the things that are involved in revealing yourself.

Yeah. And so how did you— because, you know, I mean, we, we worked together, what, for 6 months, 8 months, maybe 8 months?

Yeah, 8 or almost a year.

9. Yeah, almost a year. So how did you— and I don't ever like to say these are overnight changes because it's a process. So I'm curious, looking back, and it was different when we were in it together, but how did you start to separate that voice of like, you're not good enough? Because, I mean, it was pretty predominant when we first started to really tuning into that of your higher self, which is I believe where the, the vision and, and, um, conviction and kind of momentum of Mirokoshi came from. So how did you make that separation transition?

I really think I owe it to, you know, the, the tools over our sessions. We would talk about building this toolbox, right? When this blockage comes up, this is the tool you use for that. And when this blockage comes up, this is the tool you used for that. And I think at least the first month, maybe even 2 months, we're really focused on identifying that voice, giving it a name. I gave it a personal name, you know, that was my voice. You know, my Saktur has this name, and I can talk back to her, and I can say thank you to her. I think that was another thing that you taught me, was that I had always seen these voices as something that was hurting me, but oftentimes those voices come from a place of protection. Yeah. They developed at a time when you needed them, when they helped you, but then they persist a little too long, right, and get in the way. So definitely naming the voice, learning to identify it when it came up and kind of detach myself. I used to listen to the voice and just spiral into a place of not wanting to move forward or being afraid to move forward, and I could say, thank you, I hear you, and now please go be quiet for a little while.

Yeah.

And yeah, I can move on with my plan.

Yeah.

I really think it was that toolbox of just being able to separate myself and also never assume that she will go away forever, right? Will always be there. So I had to learn a way to manage it.

Yeah.

Not eliminate it, but manage it.

Yes, I, I love that. And I think that what you just described so relatable because that's literally like for every single woman I've ever met, for the most part, like the number one thing in their way is themselves and that saboteur voice, you know. And, and, and it's exactly what you said. It's, it's the voice starts, it comes in with a thought, and then it just snowballs. And then most women will shut down, freeze, you know, go kind of, you know, flight and go on to, you know, the next thing or book a trip or I don't know, whatever to avoid it. And, you know, the work that we do, especially in, you know, the one-on-one space, is this deep work of repatterning your thoughts.

Right.

And, you know, I always tell people like, I wish I could just like snap my fingers and, you know, make this happen overnight, but it really is what you're describing. It's a day-to-day, moment-to-moment awareness of the thoughts that you're thinking in your head and a consistent commitment to reprogramming them and redirecting them. And, you know, it, it's not like it takes years to do this, which is a miracle of the brain, you know, the, the brilliance of your brain that your brain actually wants to, you know, reconnect or re— you know, recreate new neural path— or create new neural pathways, you know, that are, that are more, you know, aligned with your higher self. Your brain wants to do that, but we have to teach it how, right? Because, because over time, as you said, you know, like starting from childhood, we develop these neural pathways and they just get so deeply rooted as we get older, and your brain is always looking for evidence to keep you safe and of how you might get hurt, right? Yeah, like it is designed to do that, but you are not going to get hurt by, you know, posting on Instagram or, you know, starting a business or, you know, putting yourself out there. You're— the chances of you literally getting hurt are just quite slim. However, to your brain, it's the same fear as being chased by a lion.

Right.

It can't differentiate the two. And this is, you know, kind of going into the, the neuroscience process, which I go, you know, more deeply into in my one-on-one, because I, I really believe that, you know, if you can master your mind, you can master your life. And I think like you're such a beautiful example of, you know, what shifted for you when you really committed to the process that I teach of, you know, identifying the saboteur and redirecting to the higher self. So, you know, the, the process works. And I always say, I'm like, I didn't just make this up. Like, this is a neuroscience-backed technique. Like, I didn't just come up with it one day as like a fun tool. Like, you know, people, you know, people much smarter than me, you know, that are, that are doctors and scientists created this. So, you know, I think—

Mm-hmm.

It's just amazing to hear how things started to shift for you quite quickly. So let's kind of like go into— so you had the idea for this membership, but again, I— it's exactly like you said, and I always tell my clients, like, so many of them come to me with what I call the Central Park carriage horses, which make me so sad. You know, those poor things, they can't see anything except what's in front of them. You know, cuz they've got those darn blinders on. Breaks my heart. But you know, they have the blinders on. And part of what happens when we start tuning, turning down the saboteur and almost loving and embracing the saboteur and accepting the saboteur is that the blinders start to become translucent and eventually come down. And I think that was re— where we really had like. one of the many breakthrough moments where, you know, and I'll never forget, we talked about this before we started recording, you know, Prairie came to a session and I— it was probably a month or two in, and, you know, I'll let you share, like, what was the big aha moment that you had around this membership?

Um, it sort of came in stages and So my, the path as I saw it was I had those blinders on, I think, pointed at the membership. What do I have to do? Like, what are the logistics? How do I launch this, etc.? Um, and that's why I had come to you and I was like, okay, I have all this clarity and I'm working on, you know, getting rid of the barriers or the emotional and psychological barriers and here we go. I felt like, okay, I'm ready to launch. And yet I was in a bit of a funk. I was feeling a little unmotivated. I wasn't excited about it. I didn't have fears about it. I was just kind of low energy.

Yeah.

I came to a session once with you, and I, I said that to you. I was like, I should be elated right now. I'm like on my way. And I remember clearly you said to me, just sit with it, you know, don't try to fight it. And a lot of times these sort of feelings are, they precede a breakthrough or some sort of revelation. And so just be aware of that. And so I took that to heart and I didn't, you know, punish myself, like, why are you so grumpy? Or why are you so—

Right.

This is the thing you wanted, right?

Yeah.

And then the logistics of it, it happened on a trip, but I just sort of, I had an experience and I had through this experience an aha moment of this should not be an online community, this should be a physical offering. Like, I should invite people into my world. And in some ways it was the extreme of being seen, you know. I was so afraid of being seen, and how do I reveal myself on yet a different online platform?

Mm-hmm.

Been this hangup for me. And it was kind of like, no, I quite literally need to be in the same room with people. They need to be looking at me, you know, we need to be having these experiences together. And that was where this idea bloomed. It was just, okay, this membership is not something— it's not a community that should be digital. It's a community that should be physical.

Mm.

And that was where this idea of the Mirukashi Salon came, which is offering seasonal experiential programs where I live, literally at my home, you know. And it goes back to those messages I was getting from readers of, we want to visit you, we want to experience it.

Yes.

Okay, well, that's the answer. That's the answer.

Yes, like, it was so obvious, you know, but it was almost like, you know, we had to let it be. And I remember, you know, you're like, you know, you're coming up with the membership model and, you know, the, the, you know, you're kind of like designing this whole membership thing. And I just remember, you know, you saying like, just almost like, this doesn't feel aligned, but I don't know why. And I don't know if it's just fear, like, I don't know if I'm just like nervous or like what the deal is. And I think that, you know, I say this a lot, like, I am really not interested in helping women create things that they're not just like in love with, you know. Like, if you're not like just lit up, ecstatic, like you want to shout it from the rooftops, then there's something bigger there.

Yeah.

And I think there was a part of you that was, you know, and I say this with love, playing a bit small with the membership. You know, it was almost like, okay, this is like the logical right next step. I can still kind of be a little bit behind the scenes, like, you know. But what your soul was calling was something so much bigger and deeper and more honoring of your mission in this lifetime. And I think that it was like once you got clarity on— once that, like, clicked, it was like a whole new energy took over.

I mean, it's almost as though things just started happening on their own.

It literally was like we were on a conveyor belt and, like, we were like, okay, here we go.

But I remember too, and this was also so— I don't think I'll ever forget this— is I had that big aha moment on my own and I felt very nervous coming into our next session. I was like, I've been talking to Claire for weeks about this online membership thing, and she's going to be so disappointed, and like, what a waste of all this time of hers. And, you know, like, I felt very much like I was going to let you down in some way by making this huge shift midway through our work together. And I remember I, I brought it up to you, and you were like, fine, let's throw the membership out. This is great, tell me more. And it was just this moment of like, oh, it's okay, it's okay to, you know, follow a different path, it's okay to bend, and particularly when it feels like it's so much a better fit and the right thing to do.

Yes, yes.

And that was liberating for me because you were gracious to me in that moment, but it also made me realize like, I'm not beholden to anyone, you know, I have to do the things— you are to your family, of course, to some degree, but you know, when it comes to building your own career or finding your own path, um, you should shift as many times as you need to, to feel like you are truly walking the path that was meant for you.

Ah, amen.

I've kept that with me, you know, as I continue to evolve, and I'm only in my second year of running the salon, but you know, it's a learning process, and I'm like, okay, I'm gonna adjust in this way, and I'm gonna adjust in that way, and it's over time it's not going to look exactly like it did when I first formulated the idea.

Right.

Not only is that not bad, that's good.

Yes, that, that is good. And, you know, like, I, I'm helping so many women who are launching different programs and, you know, trips, and, you know, I have so many women in travel that I'm working with, and, you know, I use your story so often as inspiration because, you know, the membership I think would have worked, of course, you know, and it would have been good, but it would have paled in comparison to what you've created on a fulfillment level.

Absolutely, absolutely.

Like, you— and you would have ended up with that same. It's like that soul gnawing. There's something more. It's that seeker. It's the seeker voice of like, you know, nope, a little to the left, a little to the right. Nope, it's not that.

A little higher.

Like, and it is kind of like you're, you know, you're in a cave in the dark trying to find, you know, the, the kind of path with light. Like, it is a little bit like that.

Yeah. And I truly believe had I gone for that, it would have um, it would have at some point ended. It would have been like, okay, just like—

We're complete.

—website did, like, okay, I've done that. I think I would have definitely hit at some point a what's next moment.

Yes.

And I truly believe— of course anything can happen— but I truly believe there is no what's next moment for me right now. It will evolve, it will change, it will, um, grow and expand. But I can't imagine ever thinking, okay, I've done that, what's next? It's like, it just feels like this is what I want to do with the rest of my working days.

And that's, you know, I always talk about building legacy brands. You know, like you are, you know, it's, you've, you've tapped into your legacy and your legacy business. And, you know, I always say this, like I help women build businesses that will move and groove with them for a lifetime. Time.

Exactly.

You know, like my business, you know, and our businesses are quite different, but you know, when I become a mom, I'm sure I'll do, you know, something on motherhood, you know, a program on motherhood, like business and motherhood, you know, like, I mean, I'm sure when I get married, I'll do something on, you know, being, you know, being an empowered wife, or I don't know, like I can run, you know, mother-daughter retreats. Like, my business will move and groove with me. I never need to burn it down and start over.

Absolutely, absolutely.

And that's what you are, you know, such a beautiful testament of. And the way that you were able to create that is because it's almost like you went bigger than— it's like you let the dream be bigger than you were in the moment.

For sure, for sure. I mean, I think the dream was so big, it kind of terrified me. And yet, as we referred to a few minutes ago, like, it just kept falling into place in such a way that it was like, I just have to keep up with this dream.

Yes, yes. And people, people, you know, I say that all the time, and I'm gonna like do a sound bite of you saying that, because like, when my, when my clients are in the the moment before they launch the thing, or, you know, before they kind of go into it, I tell them, something bigger than you will take over. Like, something bigger than you will take over. And it's so hard to have blind faith in that if you've never experienced it, but it's, it's so true. And I, I see it over and over and over again. The right people, places, things, ideas, you know, all the— it just kind of falls in your lap, and people don't believe it can be that easy. And I think that's another thing, is that maybe there was a part of you that was like, I need to work for this. So like the membership, like I need to dig my heels in and build the platform. And, you know, like I think there was a part of you that thought it had to be kind of like, okay, the blog was good, but like I need some— I need a challenge.

Yeah. And I think there's a part of me that was like, if I haven't worked so hard at this, then I won't deserve the fruits of, you know, what it brings.

Yes, or it won't work.

Or it won't work, right. And that's not to say I don't work very hard at—

Of course.

—this amazing dream too, but it has to be— you see a sense of ease when you're on the right path where you put in the work and then you see the results. Yes. It's just, that's the way it works. And that sort of implies that you are walking the right path.

Yes. And I think the other thing, and I'm curious, you know, we were, I didn't mention we were connected through Lauren Bates with Wild Dreams, right? Yeah. So, you know, I'm curious, like, you know, and Lauren and I have talked about this, she came on the show, like, and for me, I don't, I mean, of course I feel like I'm working sometimes when I'm having to do, you know, like, I don't know, things I don't particularly enjoy doing, which honestly isn't that much. But I never really feel like I'm quote like working as I did when I was in an office. Like, do you feel like that? Like, how do you feel when you're building and creating and doing all these things? Like, how do— what is your energy around it? Because I think these are good too. like clues for people to know, like, do I need to shift or pivot or grow my, my dream or my business?

I mean, I, I feel like now all of the— when I say I have to work hard, it's like there are a lot of tasks you have to—

There's a lot to be done.

There's a lot to be done.

I mean, you're building an entire, like, palace in the Japanese countryside, so there's a lot happening.

You tend to— there are things to consider and design, but Yeah, I think I feel the same way as you. Nothing, even the stuff that's like in the weeds, even the writing emails or formulating, you know, the contact form, anything, or making reservations for hotel rooms for people, it's like, it's all a piece of this thing that I'm so excited about and I'm so happy to be doing that it doesn't bother me at all, you know. I'm, it's more just about like, okay, don't forget to do this, keep on track of that. Let's make sure email gets answered. But yeah, I never feel dragged down about it. In fact, I feel excited, you know. It's like, yes, oh, there's another email coming in, and that means something's happening. Yeah, there's a development, and so I'm gonna write back, you know. Yeah, I never feel like I'm slogging through. A lot of my work is actually spent with people doing amazing things, having phenomenal experiences, but there's a whole administrative side too that happens. Right. Side of that. But I love it. It just means we're growing. It just means we're moving. It means people are signing up, people are coming.

People love it. They want more.

And also, I think a lot of what's happening now for me on the administrative side is like, I just keep having more ideas. It's like, oh, what if I did this, or what if I did that? Or, um, not everyone can come and have this experience. What is something I could produce for them? Is something that I can offer them. And a lot of my list is so long, but it's not this long list of like, oh, I have to do this. I have to do this. I want to do this and oh, I want to do that. And which one attend to first?

I think that that's another— as we're talking, I'm like, okay, another— I love coming up with methods. Another Claire method is coming in here. It's like signs that you're on the path, you know. And I think one of them, you know, it's like work doesn't feel like work, you know. Something— the right people, places, and things just seem to magically pop into the field. And the creativity and ideas are like endless, right? You know, and, and it's not from a place of, you know— and I think I can speak for you in saying this also, like, you know, I'm never really creating anything like, okay, I'm gonna make this because it's gonna make this amount of money, you know? Like, I'm not thinking about the money in my business really. Like, I mean, of course I think about it, but I'm never, you know, creating anything from— with money or the price tag at the forefront. And that always— I always felt that, and I still feel that from you. Like, it is your mission to share your world and the art of your, you know, culture there with people, full stop. Like—

Absolutely.

And the prosperity, the financial prosperity follows that.

Right. I mean, I definitely had my eyes on wanting to create a life that included financial prosperity, but I never made any decision about my offering based on that. You know, what could I what could I get for this, or what could I get, or what would be, what could I get more for. It was simply, this is what I want to do, this is what I want to offer, and this is what I think the value of that is.

Mm-hmm.

And I continue to, it's just about, you know, these ideas that are coming are not at all about income. It's about how can I augment the experience of people who are coming to my salon sessions? How can I offer a feeling or a taste of that to people who can't come to my salon sessions? Salon sessions, right? It's all about just expanding, augmenting, sort of creating more opportunities, more channels.

Yes, more channels.

Experience what I'm trying to offer.

Yeah, and it, you know, it goes back to like, you know, again, it's like the money, you know, it's the offering and the service and the impact comes first, and then You know, the financial aspect is always a natural byproduct of that. It's just, it just is, you know. But I think, you know, the other part of this kind of list I'm formulating in my head that you're such a testament of is, you know, it's like there's infinite expandability, if that's a word, you know. Like, I mean, you could even— I don't know if you want to do this, but I mean, you could even open in other parts of Japan, you know. Like, I mean, it's just like literally it is endless. And I think that is the type of business that I love helping women create because it just, you never, for most of my clients, one of our top values is freedom, you know. And when you build a legacy business like you have, you will always feel free.

You just will. For sure. I mean, I have no intention of leaving Japan, but I look at this model of what I've created and said, this could exist in any other country.

Any other country.

Because we are creating an experience for people that happens to be located and focused on this rural part of Japan now, but the feeling, that feeling, that approach, that design of that program could exist anywhere.

Totally. I mean, it could even be a franchise, you know, like, I mean, not that you probably want to do that, but it but you're free, you know, like it's endless. And I think that is so inspiring for, for people to hear because the membership was not.

No, I would have been tied to something very specific.

Yes, yes.

And I think also speaking to what you were just saying, there's such beauty in being, you know, having all of these new ideas, being in this kind of a business where you know, opportunity. You could say, I could pursue this, or I could pursue that, or I could expand it in this way, I could expand it in that way. Really allows you to say, okay, well, which one do I want to do? Which part— which of those ideas would make me most excited or motivate me? Um, right. So again, you just keep continuing to have the ability to create the life you want, you know. Right. I had some ideas, oh, I could do that, and then I think, yeah, but that would actually tie me to something that feels more limiting than, um, than I want to be.

Yeah. And I think that's, you know, I'm like making this list now in my mind. See, I'm like, okay, I could do, I could do a whole masterclass on this. But I think another thing is that you built this concept around your life.

Exactly. Yeah.

Like, and I've built my business around my lifestyle, you know, like I literally like, can go. I just need my computer and like, I'm good. And actually, like, I get even more inspired when I'm, you know, on a plane or around the world. And, you know, it works with my brand. Like, and I think so many people, and actually, to be honest, I'm seeing this more with men. I don't really work with men, but I just, with men I talk to, this idea that like, it needs to feel hard and I need to be at a desk and I need to have a monitor and I need to, you know, be in an office and all these things. And, you know, to be honest, the best businesses, these legacy brands that I'm talking about, it's when you've designed it around your life, not the other way around.

Exactly, exactly. And in that way, it becomes an expression of you.

Exactly.

That's the— that is the offering you have of highest value.

Yes, 100%. And I mean, that's why, you know, my one-on-one program is called True You.

Right.

Exactly. You know, like, it's because, like, if you can tap into what you've tapped into, you can't fail, quote, fail. You just— there's just— there's no reality where it doesn't, quote, work.

And I think, you know, circling back to this idea of being a seeker, but then perhaps feeling like a seeker with those blinders on, um, letting those fall away, the process we went through together in coaching allowed me to continue to be a seeker, but it also brought me back to myself. I think I was so focused on seeking out—

Wasn't—

Yeah, it was all about out. What's for me? What do I need to find? What do I need to learn? And I think one of the things, you know, when we did exercises to sort of tap into the higher self and the truest version of you, one of the messages I got in those exercises was, "You have everything you need inside of you already." Yeah, I remember that. And that was so important for me to hear from myself.

Yes.

I just— my shoulders dropped and my heart rate went down, and it was like, I've been running and running and running to be, you know, to gain skills, to learn more, to feel more like I have the value, or to, to feel more worthy. Yeah, to tap into a voice that says you were born worthy, like you have it in you, gave me such a— not just confidence, but a calmness. Yeah, that allows you to then receive the messages from the universe.

Yes, yes, 100%.

That was so important for me because I was, I was just running. Running.

Yes.

And the older I got, the faster I was running. Like, wait a minute, look at how—

Running out of time. Yeah.

Running out of time. Where is it? What is the thing? Where's the path? And crashing through and looking for it. And it was like, just stop.

Yes. Yes. And I, as a coach, I can tell you those things. It's in you. Like, you got to slow down. I mean, I literally just told a client before I hopped on, I was like, stop everything, go to the beach, don't work anymore today.

Right.

Because she just was spinning, you know? And it's like, you cannot create from that place. And I can tell you everything you just said, like, Prairie, everything you need is inside of you. But when you hear it from yourself, yeah, that's when it lands, and that's when everything starts shifting. And we cannot hear that without slowing down.

Absolutely, without slowing down and without clearing those voices and sort of separating from those thought patterns that are just ingrained.

Yes, from 3 years old starting, you know, it's like—

We don't know where they came from.

We don't know, right.

I remember too, one thing you said, like when we were dealing with those voices, I kept saying, I don't know where they came from, like I'm trying to figure out where they came from. I had a pretty good childhood. And you said to me, it doesn't matter.

Doesn't matter.

They're here now, so let's deal with them. It doesn't matter.

It doesn't matter because—

That was so great to hear. I was like, oh, okay, good.

And, you know, I'm a huge proponent of therapy. Like, I've been in and out of therapy my whole life. And, you know, no shade on therapy of any kind. But at a certain point, the where it came from is just irrelevant. Exactly. You know, and like, you're being able to identify that, you know, the feeling of shame was because you spilled ranch dressing on your pants, you know, at a kindergarten field trip, which is something that happened to me. You know, like, I have that memory. I mean, okay, now I know where it comes from, but guess what? You're still going to feel the shame and the looping and the thoughts, right?

Just knowing the origin doesn't make it go away. It doesn't.

You know, it doesn't. Shift it. And you know, one of the things I— you know, I have all my little mantras and slogans. One of the things I say is shame won't shift it. It just doesn't. You know, like, the, the root won't make it go— the identification of the root will not make it go away, and shame won't shift it. And so all we can do is identify, create awareness, and move forward.

Exactly.

Because your brain is so malleable. You know, I should do a whole episode episode on, you know, the power of the neuroscience that, you know, backs basically everything that I do because it, it really works and we're seeing it play. We, we were watching it play out as you build this empire, you know, like you rewired your brain.

Right, right. Yeah. And made space and made new pathways that allowed—

Made new pathways. And they're, and this is lifelong change, you know, like when, you know, I don't know, you decide to expand in X way, like you already have the new baseline of, of course it's going to work, of course, you know, people are going to come, you know, like you already have— that's your new baseline, it's higher now.

Right. Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely.

So one thing before we— I know we're kind of rounding around the corner here, but I do want to I've been curious because I haven't been a part of— so through our work together, you know, you— I believe we launched— you— we completed our work and then you launched the salon, I think, or you launched it with me, but it really took off in the last— what would you say, like, year?

Yeah, so we worked together, and I think I worked with you through the launch of the website, which was when reached my first year of offerings, but because of the pandemic, and Japan I think was one of the last countries to open up to travelers, I essentially launched my program a year before they were to begin.

Right, right.

Because I felt like I, I really need to make sure Japan's open again before people start their trip. So I launched the programs in sometime in the early spring of 2022 with the intention to actually start the salon sessions in person in 2023.

Right.

I think I was with you into that launch.

Yeah.

And it was crazy. It was beyond—

I mean, it was like, tell everyone what happened. It was crazy.

Japan was still firmly shut down to travelers. And I had like, within a couple of days, several of the sessions were full. Were sold.

I mean, I just remember you being like, it's sold out. I was like, oh my God, yay. But of course it did.

And then, you know, because I had a full year to promote—

You had a lot of time.

—program before I was even tied up with running it.

Yes.

I really had a long time, so managed to fill the first year entirely. And I—

Why do you think that happened? Because I work with so many women in travel, and this is what I want to get into, because like, you know, I, I, I think so many women look up to you and just the way you've built this and run this. And like, how and why do you think that— because you were very strategic in investments, and you know, I know like how you were promoting these— like, why do you think that these sold out so quickly?

I think there were various aspects. I think, um, in terms of what I did to prepare for it, um, I really took my time. And I think in some ways I was very lucky because of the pandemic, like, I couldn't start running them physically right away, right? And the timing was just perfect that I started working with you and that we sort of moved through and found that, oh, this is The True Calling, I had a lot of time to develop the concept, to create a brand new website, and to really consider the value, which means the price point of the programs I was offering. And so I just feel like because I could really give a lot of attention to all of those details in preparing, nothing was out of alignment when I launched it.

Yeah.

What I— what people could see I was offering appeared to match the value of the price. Yes.

And you put a lot of thought into the price. Like, I remember you really— like, that was, you know, I mean, it wasn't just like you slapped a price tag on it. I mean, you like really— that was a big thing that you put a lot of care into.

A lot of care into, a lot of thought into. But also, I think for the first time in my life, also just meditated on it. Was like, yeah, you know, put out a number. How does that feel?

Yes.

Instead of saying like, okay, we're gonna have this many workshops and we're gonna have this many nights and this many meals, so therefore this is what it costs. It was more like, just does it feel right?

Aligned. And I always tell people like, pricing is so personal, you know, like, and at the end of the day, if you think it's worth $10 grand and you're 100% matched for that energetically, then you go sell it for that.

Right.

Exactly. You know, but if you think it, if you in your heart feel like, okay, this is maybe worth $100 and you're trying to sell it for $1,000, you, we've got a problem.

Right.

And I think that was like, you were so behind those prices.

I was very confident in them. I was behind them. And to the point of which I think at some point you asked me like, oh, are you gonna do like a launch sale or a discount? I said, no, I don't think I will. I think this is just what it is. This is it.

Mm-hmm.

This is what it is.

Yeah.

Which was, I think, really important for me to figure that out and stand behind it.

Yes.

No question.

Yeah.

I think also I, in my mind, and I continue to think, like, for me, in terms of my ideas, I could run 20 of these per year.

Uh-huh.

So the seasons and the flavors, but I was strategic to— I only launched 5. For the first year. Excellent. Because I needed to be sure that those 5 filled as opposed to 20 of them having—

Right, right. So choosing quality over quantity and excellence over profit, we'll say.

Knowing that I could expand.

Yes.

As the business grew, as my audience grew, um, as we got some exposure, there would be an opportunity to add in those and I'm actually gonna have 8 on the calendar for next year, so I'm already doing that, you know, little by little.

Yeah.

And I think, yeah, I think it was those things, and I think it was also cultivated days, you know.

I was just gonna say.

So much work into this thing for so long that I truly believe, yeah, I can say confidently that 90% of the people who came that first year were either people who were reading Cultivated Days for many years or who were following Hanako's pottery business. So we had an incredible year because we had such personal guests, you know. It wasn't like they had seen this in a magazine, signed up, and just showed up on my doorstep. Like, they knew who I was.

Yeah, they knew you. They knew that, you know, you guys go surfing and you're cool van and, you know, all the cool— I mean, like, you will link the Instagram because, like, I mean, your life literally looks like a dream. I'm gonna come. Lauren told me, she's like, it's just as cool as it looks.

Like, oh, that's so good to hear.

Like, you know, I mean, but, but I think that that's the other thing that I think is really important for people to hear is that you didn't just pop up on Instagram, post a post and say, all right, I mean, you spent a decade, and now it doesn't need to take this long, but you spent a decade nurturing a community, building a community, and you didn't charge for that at all.

No, it was free.

It was— you literally gave free value, free, I would say, like, escape content, you know, for people to really, like, be a part of your world and escape into your world for a decade.

Right, and I think that was crucial too, because what I'm offering is not the obvious, you know.

Right.

Tokyo is the obvious, Kyoto is the obvious, um, and it takes a bit of effort to get to us.

Yes.

We're out there.

Yeah, yeah.

But because I— there was so much evidence that what I was offering was legit, that, you know, this would be really deep, original, authentic experience. And all of that was because I had, I had basically invested in the Mirukashi Salon as a concept for a decade. And then I simply said, okay, how do we turn this into a live event?

Yeah. And I mean, it, you know, I always tell people, like, in order for people to buy, you need to be established, like, as an authority. You know, I don't really love that word, but you know what I mean? People need to know that you're legit and you know what you're doing and that you're an expert in your field, which you had done. They need to have received some type of value from you, you know. They need to, they need to have felt like, you know, okay, like, I like already got something from her, like I want to go deeper, you know. And, and they need to have, you know, the like, no trust factor, which like you, it was perfectly teed up. It was like perfect. It couldn't have been orchestrated any more beautifully, like. It was just so perfect. So I think it's, it's important for people to hear, you know, and I work with so many women in travel who are starting from like, they don't have a following, they don't have any of what we're talking about that you had. And that's why, you know, in the beginning I really focus on building community, building a movement, building, adding value, establishing the like, no trust. Establishing authority. Like, what is the thing? Like, you know, are you an expert in, you know, Celtic traditions in Ireland? Like, focus on your one lane and just stay in it, you know?

And just commit to it and yeah, be there in it.

Yeah.

You know, don't— it's so easy to get swayed by all the shiny things these days.

Yeah.

You know, scroll through Instagram and be like, oh, maybe I should be doing that, or I should be wearing that, or, you know, writing posts in that style.

Yeah.

And I certainly had those moments, but I think I'm so grateful that although, you know, I talked about the fact that I was kind of behind the curtain, everything about Cultivated Days, the tone of the writing, the aesthetics of the website, the photography was 100% me.

Yes, and it's mirrored in, you know, it's elevated and but I mean, it is a, it was a natural transition.

Absolutely.

And I think for, you know, because I said for, for whatever reason in the last, you know, few months, I've gotten so many women, especially in my Opulence Mastermind, that are starting their second businesses. And they sometimes, the mentality is, I'm starting over.

Yeah.

And, and let Prairie be a testament that you're not starting over, whatever your second thing is, is just a continuation and evolution, and it has prepared you for what you're about to create.

Absolutely. You bring all of that with you.

Yes.

I mean, those are— even if it's a radically different concept, you have those skills, you have that perspective, you have that experience, and it will make the second chapter happen so much faster.

And even bigger and better and more aligned and easier and less work and all the things. You know.

All those, yeah, exactly.

So as we come to a close here, like, talk to us about, like, what is going on over there in what we call the Queendom. Like, Queendom, yes. Like, I mean, so you're building— it looks like a palace. I— what are you building over there? Because so, for context, Prairie was running these salons the last 2 years out of your literal home, right? Right. Where you live, which it looks like it's out of a magazine, by the way.

It's lovely, but it's also, um, it's a lot.

It's your home. I mean, that would be like my worst nightmare. I would be like, nobody come over, I'm renting an Airbnb.

Yeah, it became, um, apparent quite early on that these programs So basically the salon is, you spend about 5 days in the town that I'm in. And we, through those days, it's a lot of cooking together, gathering ingredients. We might be foraging. Much of it is based literally at home.

Yes.

And Midokashi is the name of the sort of part of town that I live in.

Yeah.

And then we also will go out and meet some food producers and we go to a couple of restaurants. But the bulk of what makes it so intimate and so particular is that essentially you're being invited into our home to live this life with us for a few days. But I realized that it was— if it was literally in my home, that would be really challenging. It was really challenging. And so I realized that we needed a dedicated space, but that space had to be in Midokashi, like it had to be an extension of our home.

Yes. Yes.

And so over a bit of time, and this was its own amazing wild miracle story, you know, that was like, okay, and then sort of waiting, okay, well, how do we do that? Eh, how do we finance it? Where do we find the land? You know, all of those things, the logistics of how do you build a physical salon.

Yes.

And it's been a wild journey, but essentially I found, I was able to purchase this phenomenal piece of land that's right around the corner from my house.

Incredible.

It's gorgeous. It has two tiers, two flat tiers. It has sunlight. It has a view of the mountains and the ocean. And I connected with two phenomenal architects who are young, and one is from Spain and one is half Japanese and half New Zealander. It's just been this marvelous experience of like envisioning Okay, I understand what the program is now and what is the home that that needs to live in. And bringing again, it's, you know, it's another iteration of me coming back to myself and sort of creating this space. It's everything I love about Japan aesthetically, but I'm also bringing myself. I'm a New England girl. I grew up in Vermont.

Yeah.

Like, I'm American, and no matter how long I live in Japan, I will be that. Always at my core. So I'm allowing myself to also integrate some of those elements into the space and create— it's basically a home for this work that I'm so passionate about. And so it's under construction right now. We did about a year and a half of design work, broke ground in March of this year, and it's happening. And Japan is so fast and so efficient.

So fast.

My next salon— I run the salons kind of seasonally, a bunch of them in the spring and a bunch in the fall, and my next one is coming up in October, and we will be in that space.

Oh my gosh, wow.

Again, it's pinch me. It's kind of— it's been very similar to launching the salon concept and program. It's just I had this idea, it almost felt like it was too big of a dream to dream. Yeah. How could I have this land? I mean, how could I have this building? And just taking one step after the other and doing the things that I need to do, but also allowing it to fall in place. Not fighting, not pushing, just saying, okay, tell me where to go, tell me how to do this.

Wow.

And it's, yeah, it's phenomenal. It's again, it's pinch me, you know, just like when the we launched the programs, you know, a year ahead of time and they filled up so quickly. It's like, wow. And it's another sign that when you're on the path, you're on the path.

It works. It just works. And it's easy. And not to say you don't have to work, but, you know, there is a— there is something bigger than you.

Yeah.

Mo— momentumizing this whole operation.

Yeah.

And it's just such a joy to watch it unfolding. I mean, it— I adore following you and I love seeing the updates and you know, the building. When I— I mean, I almost screamed when I saw the building structure. I was like, oh my God.

So did I, because I was actually— I'm not even there at the moment.

Yeah.

And I just got this picture from my architects, and I was like, oh my God.

I mean, it's just— it's just incredible. Like, would you— if, like, 3 years ago, 4 years ago, would you ever think that you would be here?

No, I mean, when we started working together, which was what, 2021? I mean, this wasn't even a concept. Yeah, it's not on my radar. Yeah, yeah, it has been so fast. Yes, but I'm just so grateful. I just feel so much gratitude, um, for, you know, all of the things that are falling into place, but also that I, that I was able to come back to myself, or to— I I might even say find myself for the first time.

Yeah, 100%.

I just feel so like, this is it. I can say that with 100% confidence. This is it. This is what it was all leading up to.

Yeah, and like, that's it. That's it. Like, that's the whole thing.

It's the whole thing. And I feel so I want to share the story because it took a long time. It really took a long time.

Yes.

I really— so many of those years I thought, oh my gosh, I might never find it, you know. I was always doing what was interesting to me, but they weren't coming together.

Yeah.

That thing.

Yeah.

And I remember early on, one of those early days with my mother-in-law in the kitchen, she said something to me, you know, like about someone she knew who had just consistently followed his passions, and then a bit later in life it all came together and he just blossomed. And I thought, yeah, I hope I get there someday.

Yeah.

I have.

And you did.

Um, yeah, it's been wonderful.

Wow. Well, I'm just so proud of you and just like constantly in awe of you. I'm your number one fan. I'm always talking about you inside my containers, just as like what's possible, you know. I think this— you're sharing this story is so inspiring, and I hope you'll share it, you know, even more. Just like, I think for people to hear what's possible when they find their quote thing is so important, because it is possible. Everyone has the potential to create what you've created. Everyone. Like, and I always say, like, I'm not special, you're not special. Like, all we did was we slowed down, we got support, and we took the time to allow the clarity to come through, and then we took action based on that clarity. That's it.

That's it. And your support was so instrumental, and I think I had never participated in coaching in my life before, and Um, I think there might be this idea that you go into that situation because you're looking for answers, someone will give you answers. And what I felt like I got from our sessions together that was so instrumental was just you showed me how to clear those things away and how to get the answers myself. For me, that was the value of working with you, was you know, not to have someone say, well, based on what I'm seeing, this is what I think you should do. It was like, let me help you find your path. And yes, I wouldn't have found it without you, so thank you.

You're so welcome. It's been my absolute honor, and I cannot wait to see where you take this thing.

Will come over soon.

I hope so. Oh my gosh, I hope so. Hopefully I want to come with Wild Trains. Maybe Lauren and I We'll come together. It'll be so fun. I always like to close with the same 3 questions, and I'm so curious about your answer to my first question, which is, what does prosperity mean to you?

Prosperity. I think when I hear that word, I think my mind goes to abundance. To, um, prosperity is, is a richness in life, and that, um, should involve enough financial stability to live the life you want. But that is not where the riches are.

Yeah.

The riches are in fulfillment, in work, um, in good relationships. Um, and I think a lot of what I see as prosperity is being in that pocket where things are easy, and the work that you put in, the effort that you put in, brings you the results that you're after. Yeah, and that— to be able to have those things sounds like a prosperous life to me.

I, I love, like, prosperity is ease. Like, that's one— I think that, you know, I— my definition of prosperity expands with every episode as I'm hearing people's responses. And I think one thing I hadn't thought of, like, for me, prosperity is ease.

Yeah, I think it's, it's not always about what you accumulate or what you earn, right? It's about what you're able to let go of and eliminate and make space for.

Totally, totally. What is the next dream that you are devoted to creating?

The dreams of expanding the Mirukashi Salon, and that's happening right now with the building.

Yes.

I'm already seeing the next step in that the salon offerings, the sessions that we do when people come and spend time with us, is very much what I can give, and it's a— it's growing out of my life and my experience. But I really want this whole Mirukashi Salon to give back in some way. And I feel like that has been the missing piece as I sort of see its future. Um, and with this land that we have, we have a beautiful terrace of sunny land that I really want to start producing food on. Plant vegetables. And rural Japan is still struggling with, um, there's a very minimal organic food movement. And without going into a large, long story, a lot of agriculture is controlled by the centralized agency. People use chemical fertilizers, they use a lot of pesticides. It's very hard— people are surprised by this, but it's very hard to find good clean ingredients.

That is surprising.

In rural Japan, unless foraging or fishing on your own. But there's a growing movement in a part of Nagasaki Prefecture where they're growing, rediscovering and growing heirloom vegetables. So vegetables that are native to Japan, promoting organic growing practices. And I want to incorporate that into this land and this place to show that it's possible and to show the importance of it. And if I can give back to rural Japan in that way by helping to move the needle forward on creating more variety and more healthier ingredients, that would be extremely fulfilling to me.

Wow. I love that. Mirakashi CSA box or something. I don't know. I love that. Wow. Okay. Well, I have ideas for that, but we'll talk about that in another— amazing. So where's the— everyone's gonna wanna like get in your world. So is Instagram the best place?

Instagram's a great place because you can link to things through there. And then my website, which is, uh, Slightly odd one. It's mirukashi.life.

Okay.

A website.

And your Instagram is— is it the Mirukashi Salon or just Mirukashi?

Just Mirukashi Salon.

Okay, and we'll link all of that. We'll link Hanako's pottery because it's so gorgeous. And, you know, Prairie, I'm just so grateful that you were willing to share your story and your experience and, you know, our journey together. It, it's so inspiring, and I just continue to feel inspired by you so often. So thank you for being here, and I'm so excited to see what you create next.

Oh, thank you so much. So am I. We'll see.

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. Don't 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 prompt Prosperity Activation Course as a thank you. It's my way of investing in you and your dreams.

Thank you.