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THE TRUTH ABOUT TURNING YOUR PASSION INTO YOUR DAY JOB
Do you sit at your desk and dream about what you’d rather be doing? Or crave a career change but have no idea where to start? Read on to meet three women who’ve been there, done that, and ditched the fast track to find more balanced living. Their paths all led them to B3, but their journeys can serve as inspo for anyone contemplating taking that big leap. Ready, set, jump!
KATE ARES
Currently: Owner at barre3 Tucson
Formerly: Registered Nurse
HER STORY
After four years as an Intensive Care Unit nurse, Kate Ares was on the verge of burning out. She loved her co-workers, caring for others, and that she was always learning something new, but the long shifts were taking their toll. “I had no balance,” she says. “When I was at the hospital, I ate things I would never normally eat, and I was so exhausted it was hard for me to get workouts in. I was giving so much during my shifts, I didn’t have anything left for myself.”
It wasn’t until she was in Portland visiting her parents that Kate took her first barre3 class. It was instant love, so she kept up back home by doing barre3 Online. It wasn’t long before she decided that this is what she wanted to do—and the rest, as they say, is history.
THE AHA MOMENT
“I was actually contemplating a move to Oregon, thinking I could continue nursing and become an instructor. Then it hit me: B3 is so special and there’s nothing like it in Tucson, so why not bring it here and share it with my community?! I continued working part-time until I got close to the studio opening. Then I stopped nursing in April 2014.
MAKING THE LEAP
“My shift was gradual because I was still working part-time as a nurse, but I felt like I had been lead to this path. My first degree was in retailing and consumer science with a minor in business, and my second degree was in nursing. I felt like this was the perfect marriage of the two.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“After I opened the studio, I started sleeping better, I lost weight, and really, I just felt lighter. I was happier, more grounded, more centered. I love that with B3, I am able to give to others and myself. I’m still always learning and growing as a person, a business owner and an instructor, but I now have the flexibility and balance in my life that I was craving.
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Try new things! Without my experiences and the choices I made, I may never have found barre3 or been led down the path to open a studio. Follow your gut and intuition, and don’t look back.”
MISASHA GRAHAM
Currently: Owner at barre3 San Carlos
Formerly: Intellectual Property Litigator
HER STORY
Misasha Graham was an intellectual property litigator for 11 years, during which she rose through the ranks to Senior Associate at a major firm in the Bay Area. The hours were long, the stakes were high, and the whole “leave work at the office” thing wasn’t possible. “There was no typical day, which I both loved and hated,” Misasha says. “What all days had in common was that they were high-stress. I loved the intellectual challenge of it, though—the bet-the-company type cases that involved cutting-edge technology and cool clients. That part was rad. But I didn’t love the hours (turns out, I do like sleep!) and often putting my life on hold because a client decided on a Friday evening that he or she wanted something on Monday. I could and would literally work all weekend.”
After her second son was born, “me” time became even more scarce, and Misasha got into barre3 Online workouts. “I loved how I felt after each one—and I wanted to have that feeling again and again.”
THE AHA MOMENT
“There was this two-week period where I would get to work at 9 a.m. after dropping one kid at school and making sure the other was with the nanny, work until 4:45 p.m., drive home for an hour, do the whole meal/bath/bed routine until my husband arrived at 8 p.m., then drive back to the office to work on expert reports until 5 a.m. I’d then go home, shower, and start it all again. I knew this was impossible to maintain, and I wanted to be present for my family. I knew I needed a change.”
MAKING THE LEAP
“One of my closest friends, May Bartus, is the barre3 San Mateo studio owner, and she nudged me a little. It was exactly what I needed! I had a lot of fear: of the unknown, that I wasn’t going to be good at it, that I was making a big mistake. I did my research though, and went through the whole franchising process while still at the firm. It was hectic for sure, but I knew that in the end I’d be happier and have more balance.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“Through opening this studio, I found my own voice. I thought for a long time that I was really great at mimicking other people’s voices, but along the way in this B3 process, I found my own. I have to say, it feels really good. I’m also healthier. I’d spent so much time sitting at a desk all day that keeping up with my two active boys after work used to HURT. Now I feel great doing that (I mean, I’m sore a lot of days, but it’s a good sore.). I feel more present, more centered, and I’m able to connect with my community, which is something I absolutely love doing.”
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Don’t overthink it—to a degree. I mean, the type A in me would still say to make sure any big career change will work with your life and lifestyle. But if you will forever regret not doing it, you need to try, when the time is right. Make sure you have a support system in place, and then take that leap!”
Above photo: Andrew Pau Photography
KARYN PLESS
Currently: Owner at barre3 Rosemont
Formerly: Marketing Executive
HER STORY
Karyn Pless had always dreamed of being able to do something on her own, and after 27 exciting, accomplished, and utterly exhausting years climbing the corporate marketing ladder, she was done. She happily stepped away from her all-consuming job and made a plan: “I never intended to work again,” she says. “People told me I’d be bored. I wasn’t. I went for hikes. I made dinner. Our home life was more stable. Of course, being me, I felt guilty that all the pressure was on my husband to support us, but I didn’t have any desire to go back to a corporate job.”
Lucky for us, Karyn stumbled on barre3 Online while looking for a new workout. At the time, she was running 20-25 miles a week and “hating every step.” Faced with the thought of spending the approaching winter on the treadmill, she did one online workout and never looked back. “I was so sore the next day that I couldn’t stand up straight. I drove to owner Lauren Ziel’s gorgeous Newtown studio an hour away, took her class, and knew I wanted to open a studio of my own.”
THE AHA MOMENT
“I wasn’t working at the time, but we were about 5 to 7 years away from my husband being able to retire—something he desperately wanted to do. So I had to decide whether to take a significant chunk of our savings and throw it back on the table, or sit tight for a few more years. It was a tough decision, but my husband believed in me. He was all in. I made him promise me that when I came home every day, he wouldn’t ask me how many people came in, how much I made or if I was on track with projections. He assured me that he would absolutely ask me that every single day. But I said yes anyway.”
MAKING THE LEAP
“I signed in December and went to instructor training in Portland in the spring. I worked front desk, childcare, and taught at the Berwyn studio while I looked for space for my studio.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“Owning a studio has made me realize so many things. That I’m stronger, both physically and mentally, than I thought I was. That I can be successful, kind, and generous at the same time. That I can be exactly who I am, and that’s enough. I love that being me is part of what makes us successful. It’s comical now that I was once told that being kind in business was a flaw or weakness. It is challenging owning a business—there’s no doubt about it. It’s a lot of juggling and a lot of hours. But I was used to that, except that I had no flexibility before. Now I can tailor my business to my life (like grocery shopping during the weekdays!), and I have the freedom to make it my own. B3 is a tremendous gift for me. I LOVE going to work every day. I never thought I’d say that.”
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Sometimes you have to work hard—harder than you think you’ll have to—in order to do what you love.”
Have you ever done a career 360? Or have you been dreaming about it but haven’t quite jumped yet? Tell us your story in the comments below!
Do you sit at your desk and dream about what you’d rather be doing? Or crave a career change but have no idea where to start? Read on to meet three women who’ve been there, done that, and ditched the fast track to find more balanced living. Their paths all led them to B3, but their journeys can serve as inspo for anyone contemplating taking that big leap. Ready, set, jump!
KATE ARES
Currently: Owner at barre3 Tucson
Formerly: Registered Nurse
HER STORY
After four years as an Intensive Care Unit nurse, Kate Ares was on the verge of burning out. She loved her co-workers, caring for others, and that she was always learning something new, but the long shifts were taking their toll. “I had no balance,” she says. “When I was at the hospital, I ate things I would never normally eat, and I was so exhausted it was hard for me to get workouts in. I was giving so much during my shifts, I didn’t have anything left for myself.”
It wasn’t until she was in Portland visiting her parents that Kate took her first barre3 class. It was instant love, so she kept up back home by doing barre3 Online. It wasn’t long before she decided that this is what she wanted to do—and the rest, as they say, is history.
THE AHA MOMENT
“I was actually contemplating a move to Oregon, thinking I could continue nursing and become an instructor. Then it hit me: B3 is so special and there’s nothing like it in Tucson, so why not bring it here and share it with my community?! I continued working part-time until I got close to the studio opening. Then I stopped nursing in April 2014.
MAKING THE LEAP
“My shift was gradual because I was still working part-time as a nurse, but I felt like I had been lead to this path. My first degree was in retailing and consumer science with a minor in business, and my second degree was in nursing. I felt like this was the perfect marriage of the two.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“After I opened the studio, I started sleeping better, I lost weight, and really, I just felt lighter. I was happier, more grounded, more centered. I love that with B3, I am able to give to others and myself. I’m still always learning and growing as a person, a business owner and an instructor, but I now have the flexibility and balance in my life that I was craving.
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Try new things! Without my experiences and the choices I made, I may never have found barre3 or been led down the path to open a studio. Follow your gut and intuition, and don’t look back.”
MISASHA GRAHAM
Currently: Owner at barre3 San Carlos
Formerly: Intellectual Property Litigator
HER STORY
Misasha Graham was an intellectual property litigator for 11 years, during which she rose through the ranks to Senior Associate at a major firm in the Bay Area. The hours were long, the stakes were high, and the whole “leave work at the office” thing wasn’t possible. “There was no typical day, which I both loved and hated,” Misasha says. “What all days had in common was that they were high-stress. I loved the intellectual challenge of it, though—the bet-the-company type cases that involved cutting-edge technology and cool clients. That part was rad. But I didn’t love the hours (turns out, I do like sleep!) and often putting my life on hold because a client decided on a Friday evening that he or she wanted something on Monday. I could and would literally work all weekend.”
After her second son was born, “me” time became even more scarce, and Misasha got into barre3 Online workouts. “I loved how I felt after each one—and I wanted to have that feeling again and again.”
THE AHA MOMENT
“There was this two-week period where I would get to work at 9 a.m. after dropping one kid at school and making sure the other was with the nanny, work until 4:45 p.m., drive home for an hour, do the whole meal/bath/bed routine until my husband arrived at 8 p.m., then drive back to the office to work on expert reports until 5 a.m. I’d then go home, shower, and start it all again. I knew this was impossible to maintain, and I wanted to be present for my family. I knew I needed a change.”
MAKING THE LEAP
“One of my closest friends, May Bartus, is the barre3 San Mateo studio owner, and she nudged me a little. It was exactly what I needed! I had a lot of fear: of the unknown, that I wasn’t going to be good at it, that I was making a big mistake. I did my research though, and went through the whole franchising process while still at the firm. It was hectic for sure, but I knew that in the end I’d be happier and have more balance.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“Through opening this studio, I found my own voice. I thought for a long time that I was really great at mimicking other people’s voices, but along the way in this B3 process, I found my own. I have to say, it feels really good. I’m also healthier. I’d spent so much time sitting at a desk all day that keeping up with my two active boys after work used to HURT. Now I feel great doing that (I mean, I’m sore a lot of days, but it’s a good sore.). I feel more present, more centered, and I’m able to connect with my community, which is something I absolutely love doing.”
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Don’t overthink it—to a degree. I mean, the type A in me would still say to make sure any big career change will work with your life and lifestyle. But if you will forever regret not doing it, you need to try, when the time is right. Make sure you have a support system in place, and then take that leap!”
Above photo: Andrew Pau Photography
KARYN PLESS
Currently: Owner at barre3 Rosemont
Formerly: Marketing Executive
HER STORY
Karyn Pless had always dreamed of being able to do something on her own, and after 27 exciting, accomplished, and utterly exhausting years climbing the corporate marketing ladder, she was done. She happily stepped away from her all-consuming job and made a plan: “I never intended to work again,” she says. “People told me I’d be bored. I wasn’t. I went for hikes. I made dinner. Our home life was more stable. Of course, being me, I felt guilty that all the pressure was on my husband to support us, but I didn’t have any desire to go back to a corporate job.”
Lucky for us, Karyn stumbled on barre3 Online while looking for a new workout. At the time, she was running 20-25 miles a week and “hating every step.” Faced with the thought of spending the approaching winter on the treadmill, she did one online workout and never looked back. “I was so sore the next day that I couldn’t stand up straight. I drove to owner Lauren Ziel’s gorgeous Newtown studio an hour away, took her class, and knew I wanted to open a studio of my own.”
THE AHA MOMENT
“I wasn’t working at the time, but we were about 5 to 7 years away from my husband being able to retire—something he desperately wanted to do. So I had to decide whether to take a significant chunk of our savings and throw it back on the table, or sit tight for a few more years. It was a tough decision, but my husband believed in me. He was all in. I made him promise me that when I came home every day, he wouldn’t ask me how many people came in, how much I made or if I was on track with projections. He assured me that he would absolutely ask me that every single day. But I said yes anyway.”
MAKING THE LEAP
“I signed in December and went to instructor training in Portland in the spring. I worked front desk, childcare, and taught at the Berwyn studio while I looked for space for my studio.”
MAJOR CHANGES
“Owning a studio has made me realize so many things. That I’m stronger, both physically and mentally, than I thought I was. That I can be successful, kind, and generous at the same time. That I can be exactly who I am, and that’s enough. I love that being me is part of what makes us successful. It’s comical now that I was once told that being kind in business was a flaw or weakness. It is challenging owning a business—there’s no doubt about it. It’s a lot of juggling and a lot of hours. But I was used to that, except that I had no flexibility before. Now I can tailor my business to my life (like grocery shopping during the weekdays!), and I have the freedom to make it my own. B3 is a tremendous gift for me. I LOVE going to work every day. I never thought I’d say that.”
ADVICE TO OTHERS
“Sometimes you have to work hard—harder than you think you’ll have to—in order to do what you love.”
Have you ever done a career 360? Or have you been dreaming about it but haven’t quite jumped yet? Tell us your story in the comments below!
