Today we’d like to introduce you to Genevieve Harris.
Genevieve, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I began my fitness journey in the early 2000s after having two children. I was always active in sports as a young person, but adulthood brought less time for exercise and required more for work, marriage and parenthood. I enjoyed the gym environment and hired a personal trainer after my second son as born in 2005. I learned a ton of information regarding nutrition that was the major factor in losing weight and feeling healthy. I continued working in corporate America until 2012 when my third son, experienced a traumatic brain injury and my husband and I decided that it would be best for me to stay at home and become an “around the clock” caretaker, stay at home mom to our two older sons. I continued exercising and it became the only time I had to myself in a 24 hour period. Becoming a special needs family took its toll on my husband and I, but I found refuge release and community in my local boot camp. I obtained my group fitness certificated in 2014 with the American Council on Exercise, so I could conduct fitness classes as a part-time job.
In 2015, I took my first yoga class and I gradually became drawn to the emotional wellness it brought after I would attend a class. The “bliss” I experienced from class would last days until the next time I stepped on my mat. I was so encouraged by the benefits of yoga that I signed up for Registered Yoga Training (200 hours) in 2016 and opened a studio with my husband in 2017. Our studio is located in West Georgia, in the heart of our local city in downtown Douglasville. My husband continues to work full time as a network engineer and assists me with making decisions for the yoga studio. We also operate a non-profit, Special Needs Strong (www.specialneedsstrong.com), that serves special needs professionals, caretakers and parents with free classes in our studio. I have learned these past several years that everyone, all souls in this world have special needs and yoga has given me the knowledge to not only understand anatomy but the mind, spirit and heart. After one year in Summer 2018, we have close to 100 members. serve special needs community as well as anyone who is in need from grief, trauma, etc for free, & we operate seven days a week with over two dozen class options in one week. I now know the truest meaning of caring for the mind & body, this season is one of the most exciting, yet healing seasons of my life.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not been a smooth road to making the decision to pursue yoga as my profession. We have help with our youngest child, but we also care for our two older sons and want to be present for their adolescent years. When we began construction on our studio, we experienced unforeseen costs thousands of dollars over our budget. We were extremely blessed with funds that would arrive in the mail or a notice in an email stating that we were “owed” money from a decade ago. It was just enough to pay the constructions costs. My advice to other women starting their journey, quiet the noise, most specifically other people’s opinions, suggestions or advice on your vision. It takes a lot of commitment, fierce defense, and handling of a mission that is great in size, perspective and benefit. Money cannot be at the top of your list for the “reason” to turn your passion into a profession. Being an entrepreneur is thankless for the outside world, you have to be filled inside. You have to be enough to stay motivated. The validation you need to persevere is inside of you.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into Keep It Moving Yoga and Barre story. Tell us more about the business.
Physical and vigorous yoga practices are my early styles of classes that I taught. Now, I still offer power classes but I am able to serve all levels of yoga and make it a priority to bring yoga to the person, not trying to “train” the person to fit yoga. I am most proud that the community we serve in Douglasville has been diverse in age, income levels, education, occupation and the list goes on and on. What sets me and my studio apart from others is that I make an intentional decision to speak with everyone that comes to the studio. Two hours after classes, our lights are still on because our staff and students talk and fellowship because we feel a connection to one another as fellow parents, discovering we share common interests or we love to share and laugh out loud together.
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
Women are afforded many more opportunities than the past, but we will always face opposition where success is just over the horizon. Nothing is “easy”, all good things come with a price. The price is not always monetary, it can be humbling yourself, sacrificing time with your family, cutting back on wages to refine a craft, etc. Women are well positioned to establish nurturing relationships with other women and their local communities. We are intuitive, caring and can apply our personal experiences to make wise, professional decisions.
Contact Info:
- Address: 8493 Bowden Street Douglasville, Georgia 30134
- Website: www.kimyb.com
- Phone: 770-842-0777
- Email: gharris@kimyb.com
- Instagram: KeepItMovingYogaBarre
- Facebook: KeepItMovingYogaBarre
- Other: www.20westyogafest.com
Image Credit:
Kelly Dickinson, 20 West Yoga Fest photographer, Lisa Zunzanyika Simple ZEE Imagery (black and white photos)
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