From Burnout to Feminine Empowerment, Ancestral Healing, and A Thriving Wellness Business
Tradition Breakers: Episode 8 with Mimi Chau
Welcome back to Tradition Breakers, the podcast where we highlight the transformative stories of AAPI individuals who have chosen to break from tradition to follow their own path—be it creatively, spiritually, or in entrepreneurship. In today’s episode, I’m honored to introduce Mimi Chau, a Vietnamese-American entrepreneur and Consciousness Exploration Mentor who has created a thriving wellness business by embracing feminine empowerment and ancestral healing.
In this episode, Mimi opens up about her personal journey—from feeling overwhelmed and burnt out to discovering practices that helped her reconnect with herself, her roots, and her purpose. She shares how this journey led her to build a business that not only empowers women leaders but also integrates holistic wellness practices, such as Reiki and meditation, to help people find clarity, balance, and inner peace.
From Burnout to Feminine Empowerment
Mimi’s story begins like so many of ours: she was caught in the cycle of overwork, striving to meet high expectations, both from within her community and herself. As a mother and entrepreneur, she was juggling the responsibilities of running a successful business, raising a family, and dealing with the pressures of perfectionism. But it wasn’t until she reached a breaking point, physically and emotionally, that she realized she needed a change.
Through her struggles, she discovered the power of reconnecting with her feminine energy and the importance of self-care. Mimi talks about how embracing this feminine power, while still honoring her cultural roots, allowed her to break free from burnout and create a more balanced, fulfilling life.
Healing Through Ancestral Wisdom
Growing up as a Vietnamese-American woman, Mimi was deeply connected to her heritage, though it wasn’t until later in life that she realized how crucial ancestral healing would be for her own growth. Mimi shares her path to discovering how holistic practices like Reiki, meditation, and sound healing allowed her to heal ancestral wounds and break free from generational expectations.
By integrating these practices into her life and her business, she’s able to guide other women leaders through their own spiritual awakening and empowerment. Whether it’s through personal coaching or corporate wellness programs, Mimi has made it her mission to elevate the well-being of others while promoting the values of self-awareness and inner peace.
Building a Wellness Business
In addition to her work as a mentor and coach, Mimi has built a thriving business that integrates her passion for wellness with her entrepreneurial spirit. She started out with a juice manufacturing company, but after experiencing the strain of burnout, she shifted her focus to helping others achieve their own balance through her unique approach to business and wellness.
Her journey of creating a wellness business has taught her valuable lessons in entrepreneurship, leadership, and the importance of finding alignment between your work and your personal well-being. Mimi’s story is a testament to the power of resilience and how aligning your business with your values can lead to success on your own terms.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
In today’s episode, you’ll hear Mimi discuss:
How burnout served as a catalyst for change in her life and business.
The role of feminine empowerment and ancestral healing in creating balance.
Her journey to build a soul-led business that prioritizes wellness.
The impact of holistic practices like Reiki, meditation, and sound healing on her personal and professional life.
Whether you’re an AAPI woman seeking to break free from cultural expectations, an entrepreneur looking for ways to integrate wellness into your life, or anyone in need of inspiration to break through burnout, this episode is for you.
Links:
Schedule a free marketing consultation with Tasty Directives.
Follow Tradition Breakers on Instagram.
Follow Mimi Chau and Mary Vallarta on Instagram.
Visit Mimi Chau’s website.
Tune in to the Full Episode
Click below to listen to the full conversation with Mimi Chau. It’s a conversation about burnout, healing, feminine energy, and the power of embracing your true self.
Transcript of the Episode
For those of you who prefer to read, we’ve also included the full transcript of the episode below. Mimi’s words are a powerful reminder that it’s okay to prioritize yourself and your well-being, no matter the pressures you may face from external expectations.
Mimi Chau (00:00):
Okay, going back to that conversation, we hung up and I was pissed, and then I call her back and I was like, why Mom? Is that every time I talk to you, I get really twist up about things? And that second conversation of me communicating and sharing my frustration was when she had a time to process and step up and said, well, I'm not really quite understanding what you're talking about. [00:00:30] It's because I didn't have the education and understanding, and that was just a new breakthrough in our communication.
Mary Vallarta (00:40):
Hello everyone, this is Mary Vata. Welcome back to Tradition Breakers. This is where we share stories of API folks who broke from tradition to follow their own creatives, spiritual or entrepreneurial paths. I'm happy to be back after taking a [00:01:00] year-end break, and I've got some awesome stories lined up to share with you all in the next coming months. One of the things that I love about the API community is that we are so diverse, and because of that, I've been able to chat with so many individuals from all types of backgrounds and experiences from someone who lived out 20 years of their life undiagnosed with autism, to someone who turned a situation of heartbreak and financial loss [00:01:30] to a thriving fashion styling business. So make sure that you join us every other week to catch those conversations. Now, today's episode is a story of personal and spiritual revelation.
(01:43):
So if you've ever or are currently dealing with a challenging time in your life where you feel so broken, overwhelmed, burnt out, even trapped, you need to listen to this episode. It's so relevant [00:02:00] for so many people in our community because a lot of us struggle with this high achieving work ethic that our families, our communities taught us. And unfortunately, some of us have taken on those expectations for ourselves. Somewhere along the way, a lot of us have also realized that we don't even want any of it. We want something else. We start to ask the question, [00:02:30] what am I doing this for? You might or maybe finding yourself, neglecting your health, your relationship, your friendships, your children, even your own happiness. And so this exact thought, this realization is what my guest Mimi Chauhow and I unpack in today's conversation. So Mimi is a Vietnamese American and describes herself as a exploration [00:03:00] mentor. I love this term.
(03:05):
She elevates women leaders on their post awakening journey through holistic, healing, empowered transformation, and connection to one's vibrant feminine energy. This part about connecting with one's vibrant feminine energy is so relevant right now even outside of the Asian American community because a lot of us women, I think, have become a [00:03:30] little disconnected with that part of ourselves because we're competing in this hyper masculine, capitalistic society. And I'm not saying that it's wrong to pursue financial wealth, financial abundance, but what I'm saying is it can help us know how to do that while also being super connected and just tapped into our feminine powers, our feminine energies. [00:04:00] Mimi also operates a unique concierge for Asian American led companies to help them develop effective wellness experiences designed to elevate the wellbeing and performance of their teams. So as you can tell, someone who does this type of work now has had to have gone through some life lessons and challenges. So Mimi and I talk about all of that from her upbringing to her journey [00:04:30] of entrepreneurship where she grew a business from the ground up, from her home to an actual commercial storefront with multiple revenue streams, and just finding herself in a place where there's just a lot of darkness and pain. Rather than me kind of try to summarize it, let's just go into the conversation. So here's my conversation with Mimi Chauhow.
(05:00):
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Mimi Chau (06:16):
I'm so happy to be here.
Mary Vallarta (06:19):
Yay. So let's dive right in. I want to ask you this first question, which is, what do you think makes you a tradition breaker?
Mimi Chau (06:30):
[00:06:30] I love this question. Well, actually, Mary, I want to hear about how you came up with this question for your podcast. Where did it come from?
Mary Vallarta (06:42):
The term tradition breakers? It came from my experience and what I've observed a lot of other API folks also experience, which is that pursuing one's own interests [00:07:00] or passions or calling is something that isn't really, or something that comes a little bit more difficult because at least for me, in my upbringing, the collective was stressed way more than the individual. And I think it can also backfire if it's too much of the individual rather than the collective. There's a nice balance in a nice middle, but [00:07:30] I find that a lot of people within our community struggle with that, and they tend to prioritize expectations from their parents, from their culture, from their community over theirs. So a lot of the people that I've come across, some family, some friends, a lot of them are kind of pursuing this type of life, whether that's in their profession or how they want to live. It's a type of [00:08:00] life where it's sort of not entirely really who they want to be or who they are. So my goal with the podcast is really to just encourage more of us in our community to follow our own path, whether that's career, spiritual, personal, follow that path, follow your curiosities. And yes, it can be a little scary, but there's a lot [00:08:30] of other people who are going through the same thing, and so hopefully that can give us a bit more encouragement.
Mimi Chau (08:36):
Oh, I love that so much. It's giving me a lot to Yeah, I totally resonate, and I definitely could see why we were connected and having this conversation. Yeah,
Mary Vallarta (08:49):
Yeah. So hopefully that can help you answer the question.
Mimi Chau (08:54):
Yeah, for sure. So as an immigrant, just growing up in Vietnam, being an [00:09:00] Asian American woman and coming to America and I have continuously making life choices, career choices, that really I shift me out of this cultural expectation. And so I definitely feel like my lifestyle and all the life choices that I've made after college had really continuously brought me on this path of being a tradition breaker [00:09:30] su college.
Mary Vallarta (09:33):
Yes. Which is the perfect segue to the next question because I want to get into your work, what your passion is, your calling, and right now you describe yourself as go as the consciousness exploration mentor, and then you also have a concierge business that beautifully aligns with that. So first off, [00:10:00] tell us what that label means, what that terminology means, and then I would also love to know within your practice why you chose to work with women leaders and also now Asian Americans specifically. Correct?
Mary Vallarta (10:19):
Yeah. So mouthful question. I know.
Mimi Chau (10:25):
Let's unpack that for sure. Yes. Cool. So [00:10:30] why I chose Consciousness Exploration Mentor, and it took a while, a couple years to do my own inner work, my own healing and transformational journey to really come to choosing this as my third business mentor. And I feel like as being Asian American, coaching is still very new, like a new industry. So two parts being a mentor is [00:11:00] offering my one-on-one coaching to high achieving women like you were mentioning, and then also to put on corporate wellness retreats for particularly Asian American led companies and their employees. Yeah,
Mary Vallarta (11:15):
I love that. So would you say your own experience as, because you mentioned you had a business before. What was that business by the way, that you had before?
Mimi Chau (11:27):
Yeah, so I bootstrapped a [00:11:30] pressed juice manufacturing company from my apartment to a storefront.
So it was just, and I'll unpack that and tie it into what I do now, but it was a full operation where we had the front full service, plant-based cafe, and that was in Newport Beach and SoCal. But on the back end of that, it was a full beverage manufacturing business [00:12:00] where we make all the coru juice, pasteurize it, and distribute it.
Mary Vallarta (12:07):
Wow. That's a major operation. So you don't do that anymore?
Mimi Chau (12:11):
No.
Mary Vallarta (12:12):
Okay. Got it. Because quite a lot in terms of, I shouldn't say a lot, but it definitely keeps you busy
Mimi Chau (12:24):
A
Mary Vallarta (12:24):
It was a lot. Yeah,
Mimi Chau (12:26):
Was a lot.
Mary Vallarta (12:27):
You have a storefront and then you have [00:12:30] sort the CPG business on the backend. So would you say that you created what you're offering now for you women like you, is this what you needed, which is why you came up with it?
Mimi Chau (12:47):
Yeah, it was exactly what saved me. It was so much going on within the business investors and employees and customers and vendors and [00:13:00] our wholesale account. There were just so much going on within the business, which is the professional aspect of itself. And I was so overachieving, overworking, I was striving to be the next press juicery that I wanted to franchise and exit, and I had a 1-year-old at that time. So I definitely created this for women [00:13:30] who are like me and for their employees and communities, all the people that they influence as women leaders.
Mary Vallarta (13:37):
So you're a mom too.
Mimi Chau (13:39):
Yeah.
Mary Vallarta (13:40):
So that in itself is a lot. So how did you, let's back up a little bit. So you were there, right? It sounded like there were a lot of challenges. I guess [00:14:00] how was life? Was it affecting your health? Was it affecting your physical, mental, and how did you find the pathway to where you are now? What led you to the practices and modalities and basically what you do for women now? How did you go from A to B?
Mimi Chau (14:27):
So I have a particular [00:14:30] image that I always remember from this moment. So it was 8:00 PM I was at the coffee shop and I remember just serving everybody. They're still dishes. My employees already left. I closed the door, it's 8:00 PM and I just had a mental all by myself in the shop. So I hit behind the counter just on the floor, and [00:15:00] I didn't know, I thought this was my dream. I worked so hard to get here, get here. Oh, I have goosebumps. It was really pivotal moment
Mary Vallarta (15:17):
On the
Mimi Chau (15:17):
Floor.
Mary Vallarta (15:18):
Yeah,
Mimi Chau (15:20):
You're
Mary Vallarta (15:20):
Just feeling it all. And then what happened?
Mimi Chau (15:24):
I broke and I was just like, I built this dream. Here I am. Everything. I've worked so hard [00:15:30] from the apartment to here now in this beautiful shop and having everything from the outside of the family life, the business life, but my mental health took a toll. It was so chaotic. There was just so much going on.
(15:48):
And at that time, I didn't have a support system. I wasn't going to therapy, wasn't do anything but work, barely see my friends [00:16:00] no day nights, which is wild. And any time I had, which is dedicated to brighten, who was one at that time, and even then I have this huge mommy guilt of I'm getting off at eight now. There's very many time, take care of my 1-year-old. And then the next morning we just rinse and repeat. And even going on vacation, my phone never stopped ringing an employee quit, [00:16:30] things burned out, and it was just constantly putting out fires.
Mimi Chau (16:37):
So that moment had led me something, maybe I just put things out in the universe. I needed help. And then we were vening selling our corporate juice at a vegan festival. And then I met a woman who was running my favorite vegan restaurant at that time. [00:17:00] And then she said she was a reiki master where I was like, what's that? I'm still curious. Just like, I was like, what's Reiki? So that was my first exposure to it all. And then I later on became a reiki master as well.
Mary Vallarta (17:16):
So did she do a treatment on you? Were you like, oh my God, this is what I needed?
Mimi Chau (17:21):
Yep, yep. That's so cool. So Reiki became just my favorite.
Mary Vallarta (17:27):
So for those of us [00:17:30] who don't know what Reiki is, can you briefly tell us what that is?
Mimi Chau (17:33):
Yeah, so Reiki derived from Japan, and for a lot of us who are used to our upbringing as Zen Buddhism, very similar to that type of teachings, philosophies. So it's an energy healing method, and it's like hands-on the practitioner channel, the universal energy. [00:18:00] And so the way I see it, it's just like a form of unconditional love type of energy that really a clear any energy blockages or Q or life force energy. And so say if you're constantly overthinking, then you might have blockages in your mind. And so the reiki can help facilitate that flow.
Mary Vallarta (18:27):
It reminds me a little bit about [00:18:30] acupuncture, except I know reiki, I've had both done. Reiki doesn't use needles. You don't even touch the person. And same premise, there's stuck energy. Things are not flowing, and you're just kind of helping things flow better. And those are one of the modalities that you utilize in your practice now, correct?
Mimi Chau (18:57):
Yeah.
Mary Vallarta (18:57):
Okay. Tell us [00:19:00] other modalities that you use.
Mimi Chau (19:04):
Yeah, so I would say going back to the reiki is really the intuition of the practitioner that's working on you. And so it's a lot of, and the way that I work with my client, I love it. I always say it's kind of like a telephone call, both of us. So what happened is that I use guided meditation in my coaching space as well with my clients. [00:19:30] And so what we do is that I helped my client tap into a alter state of consciousness. So going back to the consciousness exploration aspect of it. So what we do is we go into meditation. We really both tap into our intuition, and that's with reiki or just guided meditation. And the way I say it, it's like a telephone. So we go in there, I will guide [00:20:00] based on my intuition of what the clients need, if it's some sort of clarity or problem from work or from home, and then they'll tell me what they receive. So even in the guided meditation, they'll speak out loud. And so it's a really two way channel between both of us as we dive, whether it's in GA meditation or in reiki. Oh, wow. Does that make sense? That's interesting.
Mary Vallarta (20:27):
Yeah, it does. I've never experienced that before. [00:20:30] That's really cool. And collaborative. Yeah. What are the, I guess, problems or I guess I would just want to understand why do clients come to you? What are they dealing with when they come to you?
Mimi Chau (20:52):
I feel like the biggest thing is definitely lack of clarity. That's the first thing. So a lot of time the women leaders that [00:21:00] seek me out or find me and work with me is because they're in transitioning. So whether she's going through a big career, transitioning, moving out of a 12 year, 18 years career in a certain industry, could be exiting the company. She sold her company or she's looking to start a new startup. So as an entrepreneur, I naturally, [00:21:30] and I think that comes back to your question, Mary, the woman leaders and why I choose. It's just like I'm her. I get her. I know what's going on in her mind while she's in our coaching session or while we're in reiki, it's constantly nonstop thinking. We're having business meetings in there
Mary Vallarta (21:51):
Already happening. We we're planning vacations and oh my goodness, all [00:22:00] of the above. It's like work, family, personal life, friends, relationships, all of it.
Mimi Chau (22:06):
I would just say imagine you are on the massage table and you're getting a massage and what is happening in that massage session, right? Yeah. So if that was me for a decade,
Mary Vallarta (22:23):
Wow, I can so relate to your experience [00:22:30] big time. When I had my first business, I had an agency, a marketing agency. This is my second marketing agency. But the first one was when I was much younger and it was my first entrepreneurship journey, so very first business that I made. And it was a very stressful time. I didn't really have much of a support outlet. [00:23:00] No therapy stopped seeing my friends, I wasn't even working out. I live in Venice Beach and I was not going out and enjoying my environment, and I was so stressed out. And we were at a music festival and I couldn't even enjoy myself. And my fiance was trying to really get me to have fun, and it was so hard to have fun because I was just thinking about my business. And then [00:23:30] I also had a baby, and that's when I was like, oh my gosh.
(23:34):
Yeah. I was like, I can't keep doing this. It's like I need to do something different. And it was actually my fiance who basically told me, I think you need to just go back to work and just focus on one thing. I know you're not going to be satisfied with just staying at home. He's like, you need something, but just do something where you can kind of focus [00:24:00] on one thing and take a little break. And it was one of the best things I ever did, honestly. And when I did that, that's when I started finding support systems like you did. I found obviously therapy, but then I started joining different women's groups. I started really getting into wellness. So tried reiki, tried [00:24:30] Veda and loved it. It was so amazing for my health and to the point where I became a certified Ayurvedic health advisor.
Mimi Chau (24:40):
Amazing.
Mary Vallarta (24:41):
But isn't it interesting how these times where we feel so broken down is when we find really what we're meant to do?
Mimi Chau (24:53):
Yeah. I feel like there's a divine plan. There's something behind the scene [00:25:00] that's happening to facilitate the journey.
Mary Vallarta (25:05):
I agree. And I really appreciate you being so honest and open about that turning point in your life when you were just on the floor just bawling and having that moment. Because that [00:25:30] to me, a lot of people don't allow themselves to have that moment and then they keep continuing this life that they have. So thank you for sharing that. You mentioned earlier that you come from an immigrant family, you all are Chinese, you're from Vietnam, moved to San Jose. What aspects of your upbringing [00:26:00] influence your approach to life? Professional life. Personal life.
Mimi Chau (26:12):
Well, thank you for giving me this time of reflection, and I think that before I get into what you just asked me, I also want to pinpoint the commonalities [00:26:30] that I'm hearing from my journey and your journey and what you just share about Vedic training. The fact that we're just so innately high achieving, it wasn't even about our wellbeing of just getting into wellness, but it's all about studying it and you know what I mean? Can you see that comment of just like I was introduced to and then I want to study it, and then I just want to learn [00:27:00] everything. I'm like, what? I don't know if you're doing that professionally, but I study.
Mary Vallarta (27:08):
I'm not. I was just like, this is amazing. It helped my problem. I want to learn more. I'm very obsessive. Me
Mimi Chau (27:18):
Too,
(27:21):
Right? I just wanted to learn everything. And so I love you brought acupuncture, I love [00:27:30] it. It's so transformational. And when you have any physical health issues, and so I'll talk about the burnt out and there's clear physical health issues that came after that. And all these holistic modalities, back pain from just running on a full on brick and mortar restaurant business is what it was, and just the mental load. And so how mental health, mental stress [00:28:00] can really create chronic pains and all the stressors, and it's these incredible holistic modalities that as Asian American, I feel like we have an innate connection.
Mary Vallarta (28:16):
I agree. Yes. It's very deep within our lineage. I know I just asked you a question, but something [00:28:30] else came up for me. Can you finish telling us about the other modalities that you use in your practice?
Mimi Chau (28:38):
Yeah, for sure. So it's pretty much a toolbox that I've really curated through my journey and also of investing and going on retreats globally and really taking in, for example, when I was in Costa Rica on a plant [00:29:00] medicine ceremony, and one of the shaman brought up a ho Nono, which is a teaching from a teaching the forgiveness work, which I've read the book, and that was brought up again. And so it's just a tool that I've put it into that toolbox when I'm working with my one-on-one clients. And so [00:29:30] there are reiki, and then the Ricky even evolved into purely us in meditation, and I'll have my intuitive gifts of energy clearing. So sometime it's not always reiki and it's more intuitively coming into me like, okay, this is coming out of my toolbox. And so sound healing. I've also studied sound healing as well. It's just profound. [00:30:00] The more I study it, I'm like, oh my gosh, that makes so much sense. And there are just scientific facts that just share about in terms of sound healing and the effect it has in ourselves, the way it affects our state of mind and how energy really works through the organs. And so I feel like whether it's acupuncture or Reiki or Ayurvedic, [00:30:30] there's just common learnings that we just learn from all these modalities, like, oh, that's why it works. Totally. Yes.
Mary Vallarta (30:40):
Yes. And what I recently came across is from this, I forget which Sufi philosopher it was. It's either Fees or Rumi. But one of them was talking about, I know, me too. I named my daughter that I love them so much. Oh [00:31:00] my gosh,
Mimi Chau (31:01):
What?
Mary Vallarta (31:02):
I
Mimi Chau (31:02):
Know. Wow. Okay, really quick, really quick. Have the Rumi Oracle deck that I travel in my bag with me. I don't know if you have it
Mary Vallarta (31:13):
Right now. I have a deck, but it's not Oracle. It's just small little quotations from Rumi. And I have it in my daughter's room so she can kind of take a look at it. She hasn't really gravitated towards it yet. I think she's still a little bit [00:31:30] young and doesn't really care for it as much, but hopefully it's there for her when she needs it. It's so deep. I don't even know if most adults will understand. I know. No, I remember someone from my family, she was like, what did you name her? Rummy? I'm like, Rumi. Wow,
Mimi Chau (31:58):
That's
Mary Vallarta (31:58):
Incredible. I know [00:32:00] My judgmental side was like, I guess someone's not well read. But anyway, but what I wanted to say was one of them said how you can easily make someone feel horrible and you could even to the point affect how they're feeling chemically when you say something mean to them. So imagine the same type of effect [00:32:30] when you say something positive. And if you do that consistently with yourself every day, what can be the effect? That to me is the oldest form of sound healing is what you say with your words. I love that you brought it up. Yeah.
Mimi Chau (32:47):
Have you heard of the Japanese water experiment? Have that came up?
Mary Vallarta (32:51):
I think I have. How water behaves in different ways. When you say something positive and negative, is that the one
Mimi Chau (32:59):
And then they [00:33:00] froze. It's a Scion experiment where they froze the water and then you can see the shape.
Mary Vallarta (33:08):
Oh, I don't know that part of part. Tell me about that. Tell me about that part
Mimi Chau (33:11):
More. Well, I love that you said it. It totally resonate because it's one of the thing is so funny. Okay, so I used to, in my juice company where I was part of an international networking group that I go weekly, right? Business meetings, there's accountant, [00:33:30] there's real estate agent, and it just like professional networking group. And I would give my presentation on consciousness and based on my juice business. And so I would show them the consciousness ladder, and then I would talk about the water experiment. And it was where they use water and you can speak either positive mantras or you could play any type of spiritual [00:34:00] music, and they would freeze the water and you can see the formation of the frozen water and it would be snowflakes and very beautiful as if the other experiment was with the water of just really music that have bad words and you're just saying all these negative things to the water, and when you freeze it, it was really fragmented and the formation wasn't beautiful at all.
(34:27):
And then it was funny because, [00:34:30] and then people are starting to really understand in terms of how. So I think that ties back to what I do now, that it was always about consciousness and it's about whatever form that took, if it was Jews or what we read and how our thinking, our being, how we show up in our work, what we create, what we put out into the world. That was some of the things I share [00:35:00] in that professional settings. And I love this. There was a time I was in the garden and I was meditating, and then I had a thought, I was like, do I really have to meditate or can I just sit here in a meditative state? I don't know. I'm curious. I would just think random. I was just like, can I do that? And then I took a selfie with my iPhone and all of a sudden in the iPhone selfie, my aura that was purple was like this big, [00:35:30] whoa. And so I always leave my presentation with that picture of my selfie and my aura. I was like, okay, I love that.
Mary Vallarta (35:48):
Oh my gosh, how cool. What a gift. That's so cool. Okay, well, I want to now talk [00:36:00] about the so new business, right? You left your old one.
Mimi Chau (36:08):
Yeah.
Mary Vallarta (36:09):
I'm assuming it was a transition. How was that transition for you? And also I want to know how did your family receive that transition? Were they welcoming, were they not? Were they like wellness, especially coming from [00:36:30] immigrant, immigrant parents, they're like, what whatcha going to do? I dunno if that was your experience, but curious to know what yours was.
Mimi Chau (36:43):
I think that I've just completely accept the fact that I think when I gave the moment where I gave my parents my bachelor and literally shook their head was like, my mission is complete, right? You want me to go to school [00:37:00] and I did it. Here's my degree. I love you and
Mimi Chau (37:08):
Just coming to here in SoCal. And so I'll give you just a quick answer on what you said about transitioning from walk to San Jose. And now I live in Southern California, and
(37:24):
That transition, like Fu walk was the island life. [00:37:30] Everything is beautiful, and it's simple. There's not much going on. And even when I went back, my cousins are so happy and they're so generous and just like the paradise, and I asked my parents, why do we leave paradise come to America? Where it started to be so chaotic and it was challenging. So we're talking about transitioning. So [00:38:00] I think that's also why it's such an important part of my work to help women who are transitioning or taking what I've learned as very ingrained in our DNA as Asian American of being hardworking and high achieving. So full life was very different coming to San Jose, and my parents were so busy working that I worked [00:38:30] three jobs to go to school and have learned that hardworking ethic very young from 14 to even in college. I was always working and always studying. I don't know how many Asian American women or even men can really relate to that, that we're so used to that hardworking ethic. And so yeah, I feel like my life now in [00:39:00] SoCal is really the meeting those two places, two pitiful important life stages in my life. I have this thing where I process and I called San Jose Mimi, you know what I mean? The time from, it was about that time where it was just grind, grind and hustle
(39:29):
Of getting through [00:39:30] college and then having my first career out of college. And I probably worked for two years and I quit. And I just started my business at early twenties. And I feel like now looking back, it's fairly young, so much to learn and completely reckless. So my parents were probably like, what is she doing where? So I don't think they still really understand what I'm doing now. [00:40:00] They're still not yet a connection. I feel like they're trying to embrace it with the sound healing. And they meditation,
(40:14):
They say, so there's certain element of the Chinese Vietnamese culture in our tradition that they understand and they'll relate [00:40:30] that. And I think that even last year, I've had some really great accomplishment in what I'm doing right now that I feel like gives me some sort of credibility in the work that I do. And then sometimes I feel like if I say it out loud, it's sort of just like they sort of bypass it. And then I have to tell my mom, Hey, mom, I had such a great [00:41:00] June in my income of what I'm doing, and I feel like it was so balanced of being a full-time homeschool mom and being able to build my business. And in that conversation, she was just like, oh, okay. And then start talking about something else. And I was like, wait, hold up.
Mary Vallarta (41:19):
Yeah, yeah. I was like, mom, I'm doing so great. Yeah, you're like, I'm sharing something that I'm so proud and excited about [00:41:30] with you
Mimi Chau (41:31):
Worked so hard to call. Let's just celebrate that. Can we just take a moment, can we and celebrate?
Mary Vallarta (41:40):
Yes. It's those little things. Really similar things happen to me when I tell my mom things. It just flies over her head. And I think that over time I've gotten more, well, the way that I used to cope [00:42:00] with it was I just ignore it and then I get mad later. And now I'm thinking about how do I want to interact with her in the future
(42:15):
Because I know how she is. She's not going to change. I can't expect that from her. But what I can do is maybe change or shift how I communicate it with her. Maybe I can ask her questions. [00:42:30] Do you know what that means to me? Or I don't know. I'm just kind of thinking about how do I best interact with my mother who I wish I had a closer relationship with, but I don't. Or I have the choice of just ignoring it all together and just finding that from other sources, like elder friends or, yeah, I guess that's where I'm at currently with my relationship with my mom
Mimi Chau (43:00):
[00:43:00] Totally resonate. It totally resonate, and I feel like I'll call it out, and it's a sad thing to say, but I feel like it's a testament to the work that I've been doing and the work that I would like to work with other women on. It's on the phone where she said, it's so sad for me to say it out loud. [00:43:30] And she said, it must be because I'm not educated enough to actually understand
Mary Vallarta (43:38):
What did you say to that when she told you?
Mimi Chau (43:44):
And I think that, oh, it makes me want to cry of just understanding. And I think that comes back to the legacy that you and I are both caring and I teach my son of the privilege that he has [00:44:00] and the privilege that we both have to study, having a bachelor. But also, I was just courageously saying it that I really feel like I have an MBA in entrepreneurship, in a work in healing modalities. You know what I mean? BA,
Mary Vallarta (44:23):
You have real world experience
Mimi Chau (44:26):
All the years in study and just utilizing [00:44:30] our personal life or experience to really walk that path, walk that talk
(44:37):
To now, I feel like I hear everything you're saying because I can feel that pain of having that disconnection with the people I really love. And I had to walk away from the environment 13 years ago when I [00:45:00] moved, and I have to walk away from my circle. Everything I knew to start a new life that I knew there was so much more, which goes back to the inner work and the studies. And really tying back to your first question of being a traditional breakers, it's really not about dismissing all the things that we've learned from our parents [00:45:30] and all culture, but for us to now make a conscious choice of which tradition really serves me. Which one do I want to pass it on to my child? And so where she apologized, oh, actually, oh my God, no.
Mary Vallarta (45:51):
Having been a manager, director and head of marketing for several national brands, I've seen firsthand the unique needs of businesses from the inside. [00:46:00] I also had the opportunity to work with a lot of agencies, and one thing stood out so clearly to me, a lot of them are more concerned with providing a service rather than creating value. That's why when I founded Tasty Directives, I made sure that creating value for our clients is our top priority. We understand your goals, dive deep into your market, tailor integrated strategies and execute them flawlessly to deliver real measurable results. So if you're ready to see real growth, let's connect. Visit ww [00:46:30] tasty directives.com/contact to schedule a free marketing consultation. Let's scale your business with taste, not hassle. Now, back to the show.
Mimi Chau (46:40):
Okay, going back to that conversation, we hung up and I was pissed, and then I call her back and I was like, why Mom? Is that every time I talk to you, I get really twist up about things? And that second conversation of me communicating [00:47:00] and sharing my frustration was when she had a time to process and step up and said, well, I'm not really quite understanding what you're talking about. It's because I didn't have the education and understanding. And that was just a new breakthrough in our communication.
Mary Vallarta (47:20):
That was powerful. That was really powerful because oftentimes, avoidance is usually the [00:47:30] right. A lot of people in our communities ignore it. Avoid it. But if you
Mimi Chau (47:37):
Had sweep it under the rug,
Mary Vallarta (47:39):
Yeah, sweep it under the rug,
Mimi Chau (47:40):
That's our go-to.
Mary Vallarta (47:41):
Yeah. But you instead we're feeling hurt, in my opinion. It was hurtful for you. And instead of you ignoring that, you kind of just asked her those questions and that allowed you to better understand where she was coming from. And I think from [00:48:00] what I observed is that perhaps that allowed you to be more compassionate with what she's going through and why she reacts that way. So conflict can be so healing or confrontation can be so healing.
Mimi Chau (48:21):
And I feel like as, or cultural conditioning, we [00:48:30] don't do that as much to address. It doesn't have to be confrontational. It's just addressing the elephant in the room that her and I haven't talked to for 36 years of my life.
Mary Vallarta (48:45):
Yeah. I guess being honest, right? It's not always easy, but that's really helpful and valuable, especially [00:49:00] like you said, for people who are going away from tradition and trying to make their own path. So now in this field of wellness, I guess if there are, what are some challenges or I guess things that have surprised you about working in [00:49:30] this field?
Mimi Chau (49:36):
Well, I think just you ran a marketing agency, and I feel like just what set myself apart to organize wellness experience and working in coaching. And I think that it really comes down to that deep understanding, the cultural understanding being Asian American and why I choose specifically to work with Asian American [00:50:00] leaders and companies because it's just that even our commonalities in terms of how we're so curious and we want to learn that desire to study and to learn and to share and to create impact.
(50:24):
And so the biggest challenge is introducing something [00:50:30] new. And I think it's about the balance between bridging that gap of something so ancient. And so when you look at something that is as ancient as mindfulness or consciousness, and we are introducing it into the world in a new way and especially in a corporate environment. [00:51:00] And so I feel like that brings a certain element of finessing to introducing meditation in a new way that allow people to not write it off as something they already, I know whether it is tied to a certain religious tradition or to a certain element of spirituality, [00:51:30] and make it in a way that we can really resonate in understanding the benefit that it has to our modern lives like here in this life. And so work and life balance has been a huge thing in my life, and I'm still working on consciously making that choice every single day.
(51:53):
And so burnt out was a huge thing in my life. And so I really want to support [00:52:00] leaders and organization understand what burnout look like and how does that affect our mental health, how does that affect our physical health? And so even yoga has been around for so long, or Tai Chi or Qigong, but then bring it in a way that people can really understand. The underlining of yoga is really about connecting [00:52:30] to the present and about connecting, being that we're aware, we have that awareness of our mind and how it's connected to our body. And so most people haven't tried yoga. We think it's been around for so long, and you and I are probably just enthusiast, wellness enthusiasts that we're like, everybody's doing yoga.
Mary Vallarta (52:56):
I mean, I've been doing yoga since I was 18. I'm 38 now, so
Mimi Chau (53:00):
[00:53:00] Oh my gosh,
Mary Vallarta (53:01):
It's been a long time. But my fiance keeps it real with me. He's from the Midwest and he's like, Mary, it's not like this everywhere. I grew up in la so this is my world. And then other places that I've spent time in are like metropolitan cities, San Francisco, New York, so it's all I really know. But he always tells me, you're in this little bubble, and [00:53:30] people everywhere else in the country don't live like this. And so that just reminded me of what you said. It's like not a lot of people do yoga. A lot of people around us do yoga, but it's not as popular as we think it is here in SoCal. And I think also, I think a lot of people always look at, not always, but tend to look [00:54:00] at yoga and meditation as separate entities from their everyday life. And I think what I'm getting from you is that you're helping people understand how to use these modalities and make it a part of their life in their toolkit. You have a toolkit. It's kind of like you're helping professionals, women leaders, create their own toolkits so that this isn't something that's separate. This is something that's [00:54:30] going on a walk, nobody thinks of going on a walk as this practice that is so foreign to them. So I really like that because
(54:46):
You're giving people way more tools and mechanisms to live their life healthier
Mimi Chau (54:56):
A hundred percent
Mary Vallarta (54:57):
So Mimi, if someone wants to work with you, how could they get in contact with you?
Mimi Chau (55:09):
My website is Mimi Chauhow.com. Very straightforward. Just my name and yeah, all the information's on my website, whether it's corporate wellness that they're interested in and they want to introduce to their companies, or it's coaching
Mary Vallarta (55:25):
One-on-one coaching. That sounds really cool [00:55:30] because of how you do a collaborative version of Reiki. So I'm curious myself, and I'll make sure to put all of Mimi's details in the show notes. Mimi, is there anything that you want to leave us with today that you might have not gotten to?
Mimi Chau (55:53):
It doesn't have to be so complicated. There are just so many different modalities, and I think [00:56:00] it's just really trusting your intuition if you are ready for just wanting a change. I know change is hard, and so if you want to change whether it's your health, your relationships, or just a whole new career or just I starting a new business, that was a really hard transition for me. And so I think that just [00:56:30] knowing that there's support out there, whether it's working with me and my team, or just being open to trying therapy or trying a different modality that could really just support someone on their journey, I think that's just, there's always help available. There's always support. We're never alone.
Mary Vallarta (56:52):
Thank you. Well, thank you all so much for joining us. Thank you, Mimi, for being [00:57:00] a part of the podcast and sharing your experience and your journey, and we'll see you next time everyone. Bye bye. Thanks here. If you like this episode, consider subscribing and leaving a rating and review. Tradition Breakers is produced by TAs, music professor.