What flavour is your shit sandwich? A quote Cassandra relayed to me during our interview that she recalled from the great Elizabeth Gilbert (writer of Eat Pray Love). There will always be one part of your life that won’t be great at any given time. We need to find our warriors to keep us going through the smooth times, rough times and the can’t get out of bed times. Cassandra is focused on mental wellness and self care; dedicating her time toward educating others about what they put in and on their bodies.
She is mother to Marigold, a beautifully fitting name for the child of a woman who concentrates on teaching others to take care of themselves using nature. As owner and creator of Planting a Practice, she infuses oils with medicinal plants. Her goal is to create a garden where she can host workshops and teach others to produce self care remedies of there own. For now, she personally concocts these amazing blends to soothe the mind and soul.
Before Planting a Practice and raising her daughter; Cassandra was a Montessori teacher for four years. This background influenced her to teach others to take care of themselves. Although she loved teaching children, she hit a period of mental and physical stress and became emotionally exhausted. This led to a shift toward wellness and self awareness. In the aftermath of leaving her teaching career; she learned to advocate for herself and say no when needed. It is important that during or after every work experience, we reflect on the pieces we can take from the job itself, our leaders, our peers; and use them to create a better future career.
Montessori values influenced Cassandra to find energy from being outdoors and get in tune with nature. Indoor life can zap our energy and drag us down. This topic really resonates with me. Days I am stuck inside with my boys can feel long and sluggish for all of us. We need to move and breathe to awaken our physical and mental liveliness. Cassandra’s current mantra is simplifying her surroundings and nature is a sure-fire way to get back to basics.
Cassandra’s daily life revolves around little seventeen-month-old Marigold. Parts of her job can flow while Marigold is awake, and parts must wait for moments of help from her husband or neighbours or during a period of sleep. Since becoming a mom, she feels she has had to adjust her expectations of having time for herself. Not to mean she doesn’t get moments of alone time, but those moments may not be exactly when she plans. Many new parents come to discover that the alone moments do come but not always when we want them to. Sometimes we must get creative or ask for help. Yes, this is the dreaded asking for help dilemma. How often should we say yes to help or ask for it? When should we just try to get by on our own just to show ourselves, we can actually do it? What is the perfect balance here, so we don’t get too overwhelmed but also build confidence? These are some of the questions Cassandra and I discussed during our chat.
When Cassandra has a down day her business keeps her accountable and helps her be proactive about her needs. After a busy period, she does something grounding in order to keep balanced. Daily she makes it a priority to go outside even for a few minutes on her back deck for some energizing fresh air.
Having warriors, which she mentioned to me on more than one occasion, helps guide her practice, parenting and self care. These warriors are in the shape of therapists, family, neighbours and spiritual leaders. She uses what she learns from these people to teach and inspire others. I appreciate receiving this wisdom whenever I interact with Cassandra.
A quote that will stick with me from the bookmark Cassandra includes in her lovely Planting a Practice parcels… “Before deciding, make sure you eat, sleep, hydrate and pee first.” These are words to live by. Thank you, Cassandra, for sharing your story and wisdom with the Career Pump followers.
If you want to learn more about Planting a Practice and witness Cassandra’s beautiful alchemy, visit plantingapractice.com or follow along @plantingapractice on Instagram.
Stay tuned for our next Career Pump interview with another awe-inspiring woman who just so happens to also be a mother…
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