Women's History Month: Stories of Everyday Women with Sacha Walton, featuring Elisa Boogaerts, founder of Inspiration by Elisa.
An interview with Sacha Walton, CEO of SWI Management Group
It’s Women’s History Month! I’m excited to take the opportunity to celebrate stories of everyday women making an impact in their communities in our Her Way Series. Women are the backbone of society, whether they’re activists and educators, scientists and doctors, lawyers and athletes, business owners and CEOs, or any other profession that calls for a diverse range of skills. It’s important to recognize the tireless efforts of these trailblazers. Thanks to these everyday women, we’ve seen so much progress and positive change.
This Women’s History Month, let’s lift up and applaud all the amazing, talented, and diverse women around the world who are making their voices heard. I had an amazing interview for our Her Way Women's History Month Series on Meidum.com with business owner Elisa Boogaerts.
Thank you for having this interview with me. I’m excited about sharing your story in our Her Way Series for Women’s History Month. Our readers would love to learn more about you. Please tell us who you are and a little something about yourself.
Hey! I’m Elisa, the founder of Inspiration By Elisa. I’m a Confidence Coach and Transformational Speaker. I want nothing more than to empower women, through self-confidence, to make positive changes in their lives so they can be happy. My passion is to help people confidently be themselves and put themselves first so they can go after what they truly want in their life. I believe confidence is the essence of living a happy life.
Extraordinary women are breaking barriers every day, blazing paths in “Her Way”. What is your “Her Story”?
I was at my friend’s birthday party one night at her apartment. She had just gotten back from a backpacking trip and brought out her photo album to show everyone. At that moment, I noticed I felt a bit of sadness. I was excited to see the pictures and hear all about the trip but I was also a little jealous. Going backpacking was something I wanted to do for years and never had. At the time I thought there was no way I could go. I had too much responsibility. I had a full-time job, a mortgage and just bought a brand-new car.
The truth is, I wasn’t happy. Like so many people, I was doing the daily grind, the same thing, day in, day out. I felt a bit down and bored but also felt guilty for feeling this way because what did I have to complain about? I was doing well and checking all of the boxes of life. But I wasn’t sure if my life was actually filled with things that I wanted. I knew I wanted to go traveling and explore the world, that’s for sure. I wanted a change but had no idea where to start.
I couldn’t help but think, “Is this it?” I thought, what about all the things I wanted to do? I wasn’t sure I had the confidence to change my entire life. Another friend at the party mentioned that she was going backpacking next year and I felt the excitement grow in my belly. I started asking her the details of her trip, it sounded amazing! She was going to Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. How cool would that be?? I built up the courage to ask if I could join her and she casually said “ya sure, let’s talk over coffee next week”. I was so inspired by her!
That night I went home, sat down, and finally gave myself permission to go after what I wanted, to travel. The next week at coffee, I made a commitment to my friend to go with her. She already had her flights booked so I went home that night and booked my flights. I just ripped the band-aid off!
Hitting the Pay Now button to book those flights gave me a huge surge of joy! That feeling was incredible and I made a vow to myself to remember that feeling. Not any time, anyone, or anything got in my way from going. I made a 7-month plan to pack up my life and I went! What was supposed to be a 4-month backpacking trip in 3 countries turned into me living abroad for 11 years and traveling to 37 countries in that time!!
To live an inspiring life, one must be inspired by something. Which quotes or affirmations inspire you?
These quotes inspire me:
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a simple step.” — Lao Tzu “Life is about becoming more of who you really are.” — Oprah Winfrey “Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.” — Dalai Lama “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.” — Oscar Wilde
These are some of my favorite affirmations:
What I want, wants me more!
Perfection of myself isn’t possible. I am perfectly imperfect.
I acknowledge my own self-worth; my confidence is soaring.
I accept myself exactly as I am. I’m confident, I’m relaxed. I love my life!
Our life experiences and lessons learned can inspire another woman. If you saw a woman struggling with anything that you have overcome, what would tell them?
To believe in yourself and your intuition. You have the power to create the change you want in your life. You deserve happiness. Give yourself permission to have it.
We celebrate Women’s History Month every year. How do you make a difference in the lives of other women each day?
I strive to empower and inspire women every day with my words, love, support, and encouragement.
I see you are definitely doing things your way in life and inspiring many people along the way. Your story is amazing. We know there are more things to come, so what’s next for you?
I’m launching my Confidently Get What You Want program which I am very excited about! I think it will make a positive impact on women’s lives.
It’s been such a pleasure sharing this time with you, thank you for your time. Before we go, please share with the readers some words of wisdom.
You are perfectly imperfect so love your authentic self, each and every part. Give yourself what you want out of your life and don’t let anything hold you back. Get support to help you along the journey, you don’t have to do it alone. Follow your dreams and don’t give up.
Elisa Boogaerts is the founder of Inspiration by Elisa, a Confidence and Health Coach. Her passion is to help people become more confident, let go of their fears, let go of perfection, think for themselves, and put themselves first so they can go after what they truly want for their lives.
To follow and find out more about Elisa Boogaerts visit www.https://www.inspirationbyelisa.com