two months in: box + flow

work hard. livyoung.

Starting a business is really fucking hard. But do it anyway. Pursue your dreams. #liv don’t limit. urge others to do the same. box + flow is hard. operating a space is hard. managing people is hard. managing myself is hard enough. everyday is unpredictable. but life is unpredictable, so liv it fully. follow your dreams.  two months into box + flow, and i'm proud to say that ive been able to pay my rent on time + pay all of my staff. thank goodness. i have big dreams. this is just the beginning.

my mantra and mindset haven't changed. i still believe in balance, probably because I tend to be an extremist, so balance is something I always strive for. Everything I write or post on insta (mine + @boxandflow), I believe in: magic, people, life, love, fairy tales....

daily sweat is still my meditation. boxing fuels my fire + yoga slows me down. I still practice both daily – but not as intensely as I used to. i don't have the time. since opening, im getting into a pseduo groove, and attempting to focus on my own life balance: juggling business, space, team, beer with friends, and finding my prince charming. it ain't easy. but i never liked easy anyway. i believe its possible. and I won’t settle for anything less. Nor should you.

liv young is still my name + I believe in living, not limiting. but my initials are OY, for a reason. OY! Im stressed! How could I not be?

its insane how fast the word is spreading and that there are people coming to class + coming back! the press is overwhelming, and the amount of love filling into 55 Bond Street is wild. I’m sweating + hugging + laughing + crying with so many people. but just because there is noise doesn’t mean its all gravy baby.

ITS NOT. I invested my savings into this business. And firmly believe in proving the concept before asking anyone else for $$. But I invested in it because I believe in it, the business, concept, workout, brand. And I believe in myself and in people, even those that disappoint, the friends that show up + those who don't. ive lost some + gained many, especially those on my box + flow team-- take their classes. ive realized how evil jealousy is...and hear the naysayers who judge, assume or scream copycat. those are my favorite! I wish I copied someone. this would be way easier if it was unoriginal. but no, all of this box + flow #livyoung crazy belongs to me.

AND so does the $7K lawyer bill i received friday evening, before a sold out weekend of back to back classes. im jealous of everyone who doesn't have those bills to pay :)

this past weekend, by sunday, between stress, teaching, managing, practicing + social plans, i was spent.  with lawyers + worrying about filling classes on my mind, i needed a pause. so i had the ultimate early bird 4pm dinner and was sound asleep by 6. thats my balance. and I still woke up 5AM Monday to fight the good fight. I knew I had a room full of editors for class at 730am, so I pulled on my sneakers and went for a run. I didn’t know how cold it was and I didn’t check. The weather doesn’t influence my decisions. The cold makes me run faster. I just run. The tears streaming down my face were either from my emotions or just my eyes reacting to the 15 degree winds. no big deal.

so all in all, my life has certainly changed. My days of eating fancy food, going on fancy vacations and having shoes delivered weekly to my office are fondly remembered. these days my diet consists of eggs, avocadoes, sweet potatoes, peanut butter, energy bites from Baked Tribeca, bananas, Italian canned tuna, sardines, beer + as many burgers as i can get my hands on. and im actually ok with that + grateful for it. Ill save the money I have left to pay off my lawyers.

im the most present ive ever been because im simply too busy to think about anything else. my biggest takeaway thus far is that i'm still in the business of people and its the business that I love. meeting people + learning about their dreams makes the work worth while. So come hang out and chat about your fire, your fight, your flow + mine. I'm typically free at 5pm before evening classes or afterwards for a beer. You're buying :)

#workhard #livyoung