You Are Already a Trailblazer in Your Own Story

What does it truly mean to shatter a glass ceiling? Rachel Patton's song "Broken Glass" sparked a profound realization during a morning drive with my toddler. For years, I believed trailblazers were only those making headlines as the "first woman to..." in their industry or field. This limited perspective prevented me from recognizing my own revolutionary acts.

The truth is more personal and powerful: trailblazing happens when we choose paths different from our families, communities, and the expectations placed upon us. When I left my corporate career during the pandemic to pursue yoga teaching—something I'd saved for since college—I encountered unexpected resistance from those closest to me. This wasn't just a career change; it was a conscious decision to break generational patterns of hustle culture that defined success in my family.

Growing up with women who prized executive positions and burning the midnight oil, my shift toward intentional living, presence, and redefining success represents a different kind of ceiling-shattering. By choosing authenticity over conformity, we all become revolutionaries in our own stories. Think about your own journey—the times you've chosen differently, despite pressure to maintain the status quo. These choices matter profoundly, even if their significance is measured in the quality of your life rather than public recognition.

Your authentic self is your greatest gift to the world. We need your unique perspective and courage to chart your own path. Join our community at ModernZen Collective as we explore holistic practices for joyful, purpose-driven living. Subscribe to our podcast and connect with like-minded individuals who understand that sometimes the bravest act is simply being true to yourself when everyone expects something different.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Hi, I'm Lizzie and I'm Nikki.
Have you ever felt that yourlife was missing purpose, joy or
deep connection?
Welcome to the Modern ZenCollective podcast, where we
embrace holistic living for ajoyful, purpose-driven life.

Speaker 1 (00:29):
In this podcast, we'll explore holistic practices
, consciousness expansion andspiritual alignment.
We will dive into personaldevelopment practices that
connect mind, body, spirit andshare secrets that ancient
cultures have known forcenturies.
Together, we aim to guide,educate and connect individuals
eager to transform their lives.

Speaker 2 (00:49):
Join us weekly on the Modern Zen Collective podcast
and elevate your mind, body andspirit.
And now on to today's episode.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
So this morning I was on my way to my mother-in-law's
house to drop off my son,jackson, who's two and a half
year old.
She's so sweet and she helps meout and watches him on
Thursdays for me, which is ahuge help.
I'm sure you other moms know ifyou don't have someone helping

(01:27):
out with that toddler it is sohard to get anything done,
anything.
It was.
We were listening to some musicon the way there.
Sometimes we listen to podcasts, sometimes we listen to Healing
Hurts music, but today we werejust bumping out to some tunes
and having some fun and thissong came on called Broken Glass

(01:51):
, by Rachel Patton, and I usedto love this song.
I hadn't listened to it a longtime and I was singing along and
listening to it and it's justone of those really
inspirational songs that talksabout shattering the glass
ceiling and dancing on thatbroken glass and doing it even
though you've had people tryingto stop you and tear you down

(02:14):
and all these different things.
And it just got me thinkingabout that glass ceiling and, as
a woman, how we think about itor how it's portrayed to us and
for me.
I'm not sure how you all see it, but I often think of people
women in particular who areshattering glass ceilings, as

(02:36):
trailblazers or people who arethe first doing something.
And I think I've often feltlike that wasn't me, because
everyone's already done thething already and I'm not a
trailblazer or a glass ceilingshatterer.
And then I realized that beinga trailblazer doesn't

(03:00):
necessarily mean being the firstin the world or the first in
the industry or the first ofthis or that.
It's about trailblazing in yourown community, in your own
family, within the people thatyou touch and the people you've
come from, and doing somethingdifferent that follows your true

(03:25):
, authentic self, somethingthat's hard, that doesn't follow
the norm that you have beenaround and you've experienced
and maybe you feel pressured toconform to.
And I know that when I leftcorporate during COVID and then
started my yoga teacher trainingsomething that I've wanted to
do since college I had beenputting money aside since

(03:47):
college.
That's the only reason I coulddo it is because I had all the
cash already saved upspecifically for yoga teacher
training.
So you know, the universepresents you the opportunity
when it's the right time.
And when I transitioned into myyoga teacher training and really
leading into that yogini andyogi lifestyle, shifting how I

(04:10):
see the world, my perspective,opening my eyes to different
things I hadn't seen before.
I met a lot of resistancewithin my family and from people
that I thought would alwayssupport me.
And then it was interestingbecause people who I didn't
think would support me were sohappy for me.
So I only tell you this littlestory to say you know, that

(04:33):
could be considered trailblazingfor me and my own family is
stepping back from the go, go,go, the push, the hustle, the
need to always be the leader,like right, working on that
track, to become that C-suiteexecutive, to be the big
decision maker, the one who'sburning the midnight oil and

(04:56):
burning the candle at both ends.
You know the saying.
That's literally all the womenin my family, and it's wonderful
.
It's a great thing to learn howto be independent and learn how
to get things done and beefficient and productive and
work with all these differentpeople.
However, it doesn't leave a lotof room, you know, for
relaxation or being around withyour family.

(05:18):
I was raised by nannies and so,for me, moving into this slower
lifestyle, this more intentionalway of living, really leaning
into who I am and how I viewsuccess instead of how I was
taught to view success.
That's shattering the glassceiling in my own way, in my own

(05:39):
family, and changing thetrajectory of my children's
lives, of my future generationsto come.
Don't view ourselves as thatperson, but I know, if you think

(06:01):
back on your past three years,five years, 10 years, 15 years,
your past lifetime, that youhave done things that have been
outside of the norm, that youhave decided to chart a new path
and do something different thanhow you were raised or how you
see people living around you,and so just think about that
time and know that you are aglass ceiling shatterer.

(06:23):
You are a trailblazer.
You are by living your true,authentic self and choosing for
yourself what your life lookslike each and every day.
So thank you so much for joiningus on the Modern Zen Collective
Podcast.
We're so happy to have you here.
You're so special, you're sounique and we're all also one.

(06:49):
So it's wonderful.
Lean into your uniqueness.
We need it.
We need your authenticity everyday.
Love you guys.
Thanks for listening.
We'll your authenticity everyday.
Love you guys.
Thanks for listening.
We'll see you on the next one.

Speaker 2 (07:08):
Don't miss out on our journey to living an authentic,
purposeful and joyful life.
Join our membership andsubscribe now to the Modern Zen
Collective podcast on all majorplatforms and take the first
steps towards elevating yourmind, body and spirit.
For all resources mentioned inthis episode and to connect with
us and our conscious community,check out the episode show

(07:29):
notes for all links and ourcurrent offerings.
See y'all next time.