Authenticity through Self-acceptance brings Gentle Resilience, Crystal-Marie Sealy, Mom, MBA

I started my own business in 2009, mid-MBA, but incorporated officially in 2011. As president and founder of Crystal-Marie Sealy—previously Successiory (2011-2019)—I began as many other professionals-turned-entrepreneurs begin. Excited, passionate and going 24/7 to bring those ideas to life. Combine that fluid fire with the conflicting, stagnating trauma-based traits of paralyzing perfectionism, debilitating imposter syndrome and a hyper-analytical mind, and you can imagine how drained I was. Forever torn between working hard enough to keep proving that I’m good at everything and honouring my intrinsic needs, focus and passions—in both my corporate life and then in the entrepreneurial space. It even seeped into my one non-workaholic passion, as a part-time Modern, Jazz and Latin dance performer. It hurts to look back and realize that I have never felt free enough to fully throw myself into the joy and magic of the performance. Each time, saying, “I’ll do better next time. I’ll just let go”, and each time getting caught in the space between perfection and passion.

If you’re paying attention to your own life, you will find that life doesn’t just give you one major lightbulb moment—this is why mindfulness is not just a buzzword. You see so much more when you slow down, but only when you’re intrinsically motivated to do so. I’ll share one major lightbulb moment, which I shared in “DYNAMO Diaries Volume 1: Success Secrets of 21 Shining Stars”. I hope it helps you pause and look inward.

In 2015, I think, I learned about adrenal fatigue, working with James R. Elliot. I really wish I knew what he taught me, back in 2007, when I’d blacked out, leaving a dent in my head, and in 2009, when I really crashed and doctors had no idea what was happening. I fell, and had no energy to get up again. Thankfully, a neighbour and friend, (R.I.P. Tina) picked me up and took my home. Once she left, I lay down in bed and, again, couldn’t move. I was paralyzed for about 5-mins—which feels far longer when you’re 27 years old and always on the go.

In 2007, after the blackout, I was sure I had learned my lesson—self-care first, or there’s no “self” left to care for others. Clearly, I had fallen back into the same patterns during the MBA.

By 2014, I had become a lot gentler with myself in many areas. I had loosened the reigns on my A-type personality during the MBA (2008-10), and the lessons I learned thanks to my business had finally invited me to accept and embrace the fact that I am feminine, an empath and an introvert. Once I started to truly own that, everything opened up. Honouring those three inherent traits slowed me down, allowing for deep self-discovery, self-acceptance, which introduced me to my inherent pace—my own rhythms and cycles. Enter authenticity. Again, not just a buzzword. Being authentic, especially born of mindful, slow introspection, has been the path to true resilience for me. That resilience stems from so much, not the least of which is the energy you find when you operate from a place of love over obligation, and truth over conformity. Synchronicity also comes more frequently, the more you live in authenticity—it is absolutely real.

As an author, this may be the last time I tell my story this way, as I am shifting to a more positive perspective, as a part of my own personal awakening. As I share it this way once more, I hope my story invites you to see how authenticity can truly heal every area of your life. Authenticity, starting with self-acceptance, leads to self-love, and that overflows for a better world, for all of us.