I Don’t Want To Be A Career Herbalist

I do not want to be a Career Herbalist. I do not wish to build a super-sized business and become the Walmart of herbal healing. This may be confusing since I started an entire business based on being an herbalist. Let me explain.

I love herbs. I love healing in natural ways that support the strength and power of our bodies. I also really feel called to heal my community members and share my knowledge. I do not feel called to be a #BossBabe. Pass. I am not here to hustle. I am not on my grind and I do not want to be either. In our capitalism-driven culture of go go go as fast and as hard as you can this approach is unusual but not unheard of. I just simply am not driven by making as much as I can and I value my healing and wholeness too highly to give it all away for the almighty dollar.

According to the American Herbalist Guild, an herbalist can earn between $20,000 and $120,000 annually. While in the U.S. there is no overarching accreditation available as an herbalist, there is a process to become a “registered herbalist” with the American Herbalist Guild. You can find lots of ideas about growing an herbalism business on their website and there are countless books on the subject. I understand the business model and if that is your calling, I am here to cheer you on loudly. It is not mine. My calling involves a lot more naps in the sun and chasing a herd of children.

Rest is integral to our healing and our health. If we honored our natural rhythms and our body’s needs while already healthy, we would not be as sick or injured as we are in the hustle culture. I have spent years and years on the racetrack of capitalism, and it did not serve me well, it also was not what I think I was made to do. It did not fill me up and the world is best served by people who are filled and joyful not stressed and drained. For most of my life REST was a four-letter evil word. If I was forced to rest I was super cranky. Why? Because I measured my worth by my productivity, my bank account, and how much I was serving others at the expense of myself.

Pssssst. That is a wack measuring system. I do not recommend it.

As I leaned into my calling to the earth and plants and the natural rhythms of the world I started to heal my relationship with rest. I started to let go of that voice inside always pushing to do more, be more, work more, make more, more more more. It was not easy though, as I was working on the plans to start MoonFlower I had visions of a HUGE enterprise and how I could create it dancing in my head. I COULD make that a reality. However, that comes at a cost and the cost is too high for me.

One of those costs would be the lack of time I would have for my family. I have six kids, and five of them are homeschooled (our oldest is an adult and married). I am not willing to change how we approach school and life- it is integral to our values as a family. I am also not willing to be absent for them because I am working as being a homemaker is what I value above all else. Hearthcraft is my sacred space. They are only this little for so long and I am going to soak up every glorious moment. Another cost of that enterprise would be to me, I only have so much emotional and mental energy to give and if I give all of it away, I will have none left for me and that will make me ill and cranky and not the Mom or Wife or person I aim to be in this world. The last cost would be passed on to my clients, I know natural healers spread so thin they cannot keep up and that is harmful to them and their clients. There are no winners in the burnout board game.

I could girl boss it up and hustle late into the night and early in the morning or I could make some bread, brew some tea and read a story to my littles. I pick the latter, every. single. time. It can be daunting to step off the racetrack and take a breath but if you feel drained by the day-to-day I encourage you to permit yourself to stop. Slowing down is magical, healing and so necessary. There is an old adage, we can stop and rest when we need it or our body will make us stop-dealers choice.

For this reason, I limit how many clients I see a week, how many services I offer, and how often I hold classes. You deserve a life that is full and beautiful and that you can enjoy. Feel free to leave the #bossbabe track any time and join me for a walk amongst the trees! Get out there. Get wild. Heal.