Beware of Stopping in Meditation Gardens and Other Spots of Power on Earth

18 years ago, I arrived in the US with one suitcase and big dreams of becoming a biology professor. Little I knew that one stop at a purely touristic destination will shatter all my plans for life and set me up for a very different course. 

2006: 

I landed in San Diego to visit my brother before starting grad school. 

One day, we went to Encinitas, CA, to hang on the beach and stop by the famous SRF Monastery Meditation Gardens, which was a cool spot overlooking the Pacific Ocean. 

There, we talked to a monk who was the head of the Monastery. 

I looked into his eyes and was lost for words. 

My rational mind detected no human being in his gaze. 

Only the vastness of the Universe.

Perplexed, I pondered it for a minute but then moved on with my life. 

Without realizing that my fate was sealed. 

2013: 

I now have a PhD and a toddler, and I hate my job. 

My love for bench science evaporated when I started my postdoc at UC San Francisco. 

Long commute, minimal wage, and a project from hell. 

And I am yearning for something radically different. Like a career in alternative healing. 

I have no clue how to get to that career or make money with it. 

Every person I know is a scientist and seems to be highly dubious of alternative healing. 

I am stuck and desparate. 

2014: 

I got my "lucky" break - I am now pregnant with my second kid. 

No more time for inertia and indecision. 

I need to pay for the second daycare, and I am already in debt trying to pay for the first one. 

I love writing. So, I choose to become a medical writer. 

That would pay my bills while I figure out how to be a shaman. 

2015: 

My perseverance is rewarded - I am hired for my first medical writing job at Amgen. 

2018: 

I got my 500-hour Meditation Teacher Certification. 

2020: 

I quit my corporate job to launch an online meditation business in partnership with my meditation teachers. 

2021: 

Hit a major milestone by generating $1.8M for my company (with zero business experience). 

2022: 

Hit major burnout from running a startup for 18 months. 

2023: 

A year of nothing. 

Or so was what I promised myself. 

I didn’t hold my promise and started business #2 as a medical writing consultant. 

2024: 

Scheduled and ran my first 5 meditation workshops for biopharma and tech. 

My current mission: 

To teach stress reduction strategies that work for busy and analytical minds.

Heaven sees, too many strategies don’t work for us. 

I am here to fix it. 

Morale of the story: beware of stopping in Meditation Gardens and other spots of Power on Earth. You never know where it can take you. 

P.S.  If you’re looking for a practical way to manage stress and regain your focus, let’s connect. 

If your team, company, or ERG is looking for a highly informative, relaxing, and fun workshop on Meditation for Busy Minds, shoot me a DM. 

Looking forward to meeting you all!

P.S. What’s one thing meditation can help you with?