Love your space, LOVE your life….if there’s ever been a fitting statement for the past year that so many of us can relate to, this is sure in the top 10! We are so excited to bring Red Bra Guest, Laura Staley’s story to you. It is one of those reminders about the trans-formative power of de-cluttering and really loving your space that is so great anytime of the year, but especially at the New Year!
In Episode 66 on The Red Bra Project we were delighted to chat with Laura Staley, founder of Cherish Your World. Laura’s focus is to help people thrive by guiding them to holistic transformation of space, heart and life. Laura learned through her own unique experiences that there’s a relationship between the conditions of our homes or workplaces and the quality of our lives. Given the wild and unexpected year 2020 brought to so many of us, the blend of work, school, home, fitness and alllll the things under one roof and in one space can certainly be a challenge to find a balance in the relationship of them all, especially when they blend into one another given the circumstances.
Laura is trained and certified with the Western School of Feng Shui and seasoned by almost two decades of working with a variety of clients, Laura uses her intuition and expertise to empower her clients to produce remarkable results in their lives. Laura serves people through speaking, writing and compassionate listening.
We will dive into more of this in a bit, but Laura is also the published author of three books: Live Inspired, Let Go Courageously and Live with Love: Transform Your Life with Feng Shui and the Cherish Your World Gift Book of 100 Tips to Enhance your Home and Live. All extremely helpful when identifying where to start, understanding the connection that tangible “things” have to our mental, emotional and spiritual well being and even how the placement of furniture can shift the energy we feel in our own personal home space(s).
Laura reflects on many pivotal parts of her own story and journey that helped her to discover exactly how and why she does what she does today. Prior to creating her company, Laura worked as a full-time parent and an assistant professor at Ohio Wesleyan University. She earned her PH.D. in political science from The Ohio State University. (Hey, hey Oh – io….that’s where Shawna and I grew up. ;-))
Cherish Your World was launched in 2004 after a flood in Laura’s finished basement helped her to realize that she could live with items she LOVED and not hand – me – down stuff she truly didn’t like at all when thinking about it. Through her own process, Laura discovered how much she was inspired by the relationship we create with our physical spaces and the actual opportunity that exists to make conscious choices about furniture arrangement, the optimal placement of beloved treasures and creating comfort and flow to nourish our own lives. The correlation is so powerful. It is from this place she knew she wanted to help others make the connection and guide them through the healing process to transform their quality of life in positive and miraculous ways.
Nature has always been a huge part of Laura’s life and is where she thrives to heal, think, re-energize, create and so much more. After spending many years in Ohio, raising her children and working to discover herself she created the opportunity to move to Black Mountain, NC and it is like her magical nature dream come true! She talks to us about exactly how this idea became reality in our episode with her.
We mentioned that Laura has published three books which are a fantastic place for our readers who are curious to start off with. These books are the perfect ways to begin / end the day with a 5 – 10 minute read that will leave you with ideas, inspiration and a guide on how to live a life full of meaning and purpose. Seriously just starting with 5 – 10 minutes a day will add up to big, positive changes.
Live Inspired by Laura Staley is such an inspiring, relatable and beautiful read of Laura’s journey through recognizing various areas of her life that she chose to shift and change in the process of choosing to live her best life. She shares a refreshing perspective on the power of letting go to make room for not just better, but better than one ever could imagine and shares several of her real life examples.
Let Go Courageous and Live with Love: Transform Your Life with Feng – Shui and Cherish Your World Gift Book of 100 Tips to Enhance Your Home and Life are also wonderful options to start with that allow you to make bite sized changes that aren’t overwhelming.
Laura’s kindness and compassion radiates from her as felt from the very beginning of our conversation. When we asked Laura how she empowers other women she shared:
“I empower other women by being the compassion I want to see in the world, by honestly, bravely, vulnerably sharing my stories, learnings, wisdom gleaned along the way. By seeing myself as a guide, someone who asks meaningful questions and listens deeply to another person’s answer so they can see, hear and value themselves from the mirror I can hold up for them of their beauty and resilience rather than an expert with a fierce, toe-tapping, arms crossed over my chest agenda to change women. I see my life unfolding only as an invitation for others to create their own beautiful life lived from their centers, knowings, preferences, deep yearnings and passions.
Laura’s Red Bra Moment:
The moment when my whole life turned upside down, my son was struggling, my daughter moved out for college, the marriage ended and I was just so confused, I had no idea if I could go full on 100% with Cherish Your World or needed a survival job. There is a gentleman I am forever grateful to, Ken Lazar supported me as I was building my LinkedIn profile and listened to me as I expressed my doubts and he looked at me and said, “Laura you have to be Cherish Your World. It is who you are. It is you heart, passion and purpose,” he said. To this day, his seeing me bigger than I could see myself in that moment gave me the courage to be here in this moment with you right now. Still vibrant for Cherish Your World, still adapting, shifting, growing. Three books published and out in the world. I am forever grateful for Ken because sometimes it is in that tiny conversation that another human being sees the goodness in you, speaks it and fuels it.
What a pivotal moment for Laura and such a powerful Red Bra Moment in her life. We just loved it.
Loving what you have read so far?
Please share Laura’s story with someone who needs it in their life. Thank you so much Laura for opening your heart, wisdom and story to us. We know it is going to inspire & support many people out there who NEED your guidance in their life. Speaking of which, you have to hear what Laura’s clients are feeling and sharing after working with Laura. Take a look, here.
A huge thank you Sejal Thakkar (a former amazing Red Bra guest of ours from #57) for making the introduction, we always love Red Bra guest nominations! (If you know a woman you would like to highlight their story, reach out to us. We would love to hear from you!)
Here’s where to connect with the brilliant Laura Staley:
LinkedIn Laura Staley – Click Here
Thank you for stopping by, you are so appreciated! We hope this story inspired you or someone you know on some level. We know it did us, please share away. Always wear that red bra underneath it all and make sure to join the party over @theredbraproject!
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Xx,
The Red Bra Project
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