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Learn the New Work-Life Balance from a Seattle Business Owner

  

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As the world adapts to the new normal of working remotely, we’ve found ourselves facing two contradicting challenges. How do we transition our work life and business online? And how do we unplug and find moments of relaxation at home?

We asked Karen Terrado, the owner of THE SIX, a hip-hop fitness studio in Seattle, to help us tackle the two contradicting challenges. Like many industries, gym owners and fitness trainers across the country have had to learn to adapt their in-person classes into the virtual space. They’re also devoted to helping people lead healthy lives, both physically and mentally.

Karen shares how she’s made the transition online as a business owner and how we can still find moments to relax and recharge at home.

Listen to your community

If you’re struggling to know where to start when transitioning your business online, Terrado and THE SIX immediately turned to their community. “We wanted to continue engaging with them and that prompted us to provide Instagram LIVE classes through our Instagram account very early into the stay-at-home mandate,” said Terrado. “As of today, we've taught over 150 classes to engage our current membership and engage new people who don't know us.”

Embrace your new audience

One of the unexpected benefits of the virtual world has been THE SIX's ability to reach new people, inside and beyond the Seattle community. “We've had viewers from all over the country, and it's been so rewarding to meet new people who we could've not reached without this pandemic,” said Terrado. “We've also had great opportunities to work with groups like WISE Seattle, and other organizations we've previously worked with reaching out to us to teach private classes like Dashdot and Amazon. It definitely hasn't been easy, but we are making it work.”

In April, Terrado led our very own members through a virtual workout class at our “Sweatworking” event. “The event with WISE Seattle was full of energy and positive attitude,” said Terrado. “I am always so impressed by the leadership and membership of this group, people know how to show up fully for themselves and each other!”

Create a place where people feel seen

When asked about why their virtual workout classes have become so popular, Terrado replied, “At-home workouts provide more than just the physical aspects of working out, we thrive in communities, we thrive in connections, and we thrive in purpose. At THE SIX, we provide more than a killer HIIT and Yoga classes, we provide a space where people are acknowledged and seen.”

Terrado embodies what it means to be a positive and energetic person and that translates through the screen during her virtual workouts. As we all try to adjust to the new normal, we asked her about her favorite ways to recharge and relax at home, when she’s not leading high-energy workouts for THE SIX.

Cultivate a space for positive energy

“Channeling positive energy at home to me means cultivating a space for that,” said Terrado. “It can be as simple as starting the day with your rituals, for me that is a nice shower, hair and make-up (very minimal, just enough to feel like I'm put together), a new set of yoga outfit, coffee and journaling three things that I am grateful for. It's taking time to breathe in between meetings and emails, and content creation, it's taking time to check-in with myself how I'm feeling today and not judging myself if I feel off some days.”

She also sees the power in unplugging from email, turning on your favorite music, and having an afternoon dance break. No matter what you do to find space to recharge, Terrado reminds us that “there's so much we can do to choose positivity all day long.”

Practice mindfulness

No matter if you recharge with a dance party or a great cup of coffee, you can also find relaxation in stillness. “I believe in the power of meditation, even just five minutes a day to breathe deeply and notice what's coming up, and noticing it without an intention to fix it or deny it, the practice of mindfulness,” said Terrado. “I love playing Solfeggio music when meditating, check it out! I think we have to honor all of our feelings ---- like ALL [of our feelings].”

Find a playlist to fit your mood

Music can provide the perfect backdrop to whichever strategies you use to recharge. For Terrado, “my go-to playlist depends on my mood at the moment. I love a huge array of music, I mainly play hip hop/ pop/ Latin/ soca to pump up, r&b/reggae/ instrumentals for chill vibes.” 

We loved dancing and laughing with Karen at our April “Sweatworking” event and looking forward to when we can sweat together in person. To experience one of Karen’s classes in person, follow THE SIX on Instagram and check out their website for their latest studio updates.

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