Today’s career profile interview is with Practical Spirituality Expert yvette Soler (yvette uses a lower case “y” for her first name because she says it just feels right to her). While I don’t always understand yvette’s work, she is one of the most creative and interesting people I have ever met. When we became friends in Seattle many years ago, yvette worked in high tech. Since then, her adventurous spirit has led her through several career changes to her current field of expertise. I hope that you enjoy my interview with her.
yvette, how would you describe the main responsibilities of your work?
As a Teacher, Healer, Author, and Speaker, I run a company called Eternal Light Energy. I am also CEO for an entertainment company, Infinite Connections, that is active for special events. I teach people tools to bridge the gap between the spiritual force behind physical life and the practical realities of being human using Practical, Spiritual tools. In general, I help people manifest their dreams using Practical Spirituality tools. In order to do that, I have to take care of all the technical and marketing pieces of ELE as well. In some ways, you can say that I am lucky that I am both a right and left brain person. The right part of my brain is the more intuitive and creative part. My connection to Source (or god, light, spirit… any name you want to use) guides my work, showing me which paths to take. I write classes, provide counsel through consultations and writings, and empower people with energy work. The left part of my brain takes care of all the details. Websites, social marketing, marketing materials, scheduling, budgeting…everything that it takes to successfully run your business. At this time, I have a Production Manager that helps coordinate the audio/video aspect of my work (specifically around video press kits and my meditation CD), but in general, I still have to make sure that everything gets done and promote the final product.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Wake up, meditation/rituals, get dressed, hop on the computer to answer e-mails, go through social networking sites/groups (I participate in many groups to provide support and learn), and coordinate projects such as upcoming trips or new media. That takes me through the afternoon where I break for lunch. After lunch, I dedicate my time to client projects: writing classes, appointments, answering questions for my column, “Inspirations from Binah,” blogging or generally doing things that are more creative. The beauty of working from home is that if I get blocked, I can go into meditation or astral travel or do dream work. In general, I usually do something spiritual in the late afternoon/early evening to ensure my connection is flowing. In the evening, I will work on personal studies, which include language studies and whatever spiritual topic I am investigating at the moment (right now it is mandalas and energetic cords). Of course, I take time out now and again to visit with friends, either by phone or in person. I am not very rigid with myself anymore. I know my general schedule, so as long as I feel productive, I give myself time off when needed. I may work without leaving my house for two or three days and then take off to the mountains for a weekend. I see my spiritual work and study in everything, so I always carry a business and personal notebook with me so I can jot down ideas as they come. This gives me the freedom to release the energy instead of worrying about it while I am doing something else.
What do you like best about your career?
The ability to help people, including myself. I have seen my life change over the last few years as a result of my work. I have finally become the person I want to be. I see the same changes in my clients. They tell me all the incredible things they are doing and I love seeing them blossom!
What are the most challenging things about your career?
Building trust. Because I travel often for my work, people don’t always have a chance to meet me before I come into a city. I have to make sure that all my materials online reflect who I am and what I can do for people. Even though people are looking to bring spirituality into their daily life, there is information overload out there so when they come to my site, they are hesitant to sign up for something for fear of scams. I spend many hours working to answer every question a client may have. I want them to feel confident that they can trust me. On that same front, the information overload makes it hard for people to even find me at times. I’ve been working extra hard lately to make my message more clear and simple. People need to recognize that all any teacher can offer them are tools, they have to do the work. Some people are looking for quick fixes, which don’t really exist. Transforming your life is a process that takes an investment of time and energy. This sometimes translates to missed appointments, people that don’t show up to classes they’ve registered for or a desire to get help for free.
Please tell us your background and how you chose this vocational focus.
I grew up like most people, with many dreams about what I would do with my life. Somehow I instinctively knew that if I followed my passion, I would live the life I wanted. I have a passion for the arts, but I am not a performer. I love to dance, but I am not a ballerina. I am good at math and I realized that I could do something with that. I decided to study music engineering and made the decision to not focus on one career path; instead I followed my passion and experimented with jobs and internships where I could use my skills and talents. My love for music and technology took me into the corporate world. I worked at RealNetworks and Microsoft, which showed me that I could help people reach their dreams through different mediums.
Ten years went by and I realized I really wasn’t doing the work I wanted. Something was missing. I felt removed from the people who needed my help, the end user in the technology world. I had a life purpose, but I was on the wrong path. I went back into the arts and started taking acting and singing lessons, then performing. It was great to be back among artistic people, but it still wasn’t right; I still wasn’t helping anyone directly. I was cast in a show that changed my life. Here I met a group of people that were not only studying spiritual matters but were also working on how our thoughts and energy affect us and the Universe. These kids were LIVING their spirituality.
I founded my first company, Infinite Connections, around this time. Infinite Connections works to connect people to new experiences through art and music. Here I could produce events that allowed people to let down their guard and experience something new in a safe environment. IC is also a booking agency, which allowed me to help artists reach their dreams. I was back on the right path, working on my life purpose. At the same time, I started studying with two different mystery schools, augmenting my knowledge with Kabbalah, sacred geometry, and continual self-study and reflection. This flowed into working with different teachers and schools coordinating events and doing marketing. My studies eventually lead me to start teaching small classes while IC continued to grow with bigger events. By this time I was the co-owner of a circus so I was busy teaching and promoting on multiple fronts. An opportunity to go on tour with Cirque du Soleil in Europe presented itself and I took it. While on tour, I realized that my spiritual work was most important to me and decided to focus on developing that.
When I came off tour, I decided I wanted to stay in Europe and bounced around taking French classes in France and then to Portugal to work with some wonderful Lightworkers I met on my travels. I founded Eternal Light Energy, my spiritual practice, at this time. I decided Portugal was not the right place, so I went back and settled in Spain. I decided to put all my energy into ELE, with an occasional break for IC work when appropriate. Through my work I became an expert in something that really matters to me: practical spirituality — making spirituality a part of everyday life. I hope that answers the question. Because I have always followed my passion, my path has gone through some changes, but every time I felt like I was doing what I should be doing…following my life purpose of helping others bridge the gap between where they are and where they want to be. Sometimes I did it with technology, other times through music and dance, and now through spirituality.
What type of education have you completed?
I have a degree in Music Engineering and Electrical Engineering. I’ve trained in many different tools in my life, from technical to spiritual. I study with two different mystery schools, private Kabbalah teachers, am a member of the theosophical society, work with several groups and generally study non-stop. You could say I am a breadth, not depth, person. For depth, I send people to specialists.
What skills are most important to succeed in your career?
Flexibility and receptivity! The ability to read the messages you are getting and know when it is time to adjust something. Also, know your own limits. There are many things I can do on my own, but there are also many things where it would be better for me to hire or refer someone.
What advice do you have for someone who wants a career similar to yours?
Trust your inner guidance and forge your own path! Oh, and realize that your gifts have value. Sometimes that value is paid in cash, others in trade, but always have a fair energy exchange with your clients.
If a mid-career professional decided he/she wanted to make a career change to pursue this type of work, what are the steps he/she should take to make a successful career transition?
There are many different types of spiritual work and healing, so it is easy to get lost in the crowd. It is important to determine what you want to offer and be clear about it. Remember to treat it like a business. Many friends and family members are going to ask you for “advice” and while there is always some knowledge you give away because that is part of being in “service,” you need to value your work enough to know when to charge.
Are there any commonly held misperceptions about your work that you would like to clarify?
Where do I start? Just kidding. I guess the biggest misconception is that all healers and teachers do the same thing. Not sure how to clarify that though. It takes research to figure out who you feel most called to work with. I give my clients a wide range of options, which may involve other practitioners that are a better fit. Ultimately, I want people to evolve and live their dreams and will do whatever I can (including stepping out of the way at times) in order for them to achieve it.
What is the income range for persons in your type of work?
There is a really wide range! Some people work as healers and teachers on the side, while others, like me, do it full time. That means that your income can be a few thousand a year and up. To be honest, I have no idea what an average is because there are so many different kinds practitioners out there.
What are your long-term business goals?
I want to have my own television show where I can offer practical, spiritual advice to everyone and to grow my advice column into more publications and books. In general, I want practical spirituality to be accessible to everyone. Classes, television, radio, books and websites…people should be able to get the help they need to transform their lives, and I want to give it to them.
Any other comments?
I really appreciate the opportunity to speak about my work. I think that like many spiritual workers, there are times I feel like the mainstream career world doesn’t understand that my business has many of the same challenges as any other small business. I love speaking to other Lightworkers about how to offer the best services in this competitive landscape. I also feel incredibly blessed to be able to do what I love 24/7. I work hard to build my businesses so that I can be there for my clients when they need me. I am rewarded daily through my growth and the growth of those with whom I work.
Thank you, yvette!
.
To learn more about yvette’s businesses, please visit Eternal Light Energy.
.
.
Read more career profiles.
.