A Roundtable with Anjalé Perrault of Raise Your Vibe

Today we are delighted to host the latest roundtable in our series spotlighting different small business owners and entrepreneurs. Today’s guest is Anjalé Perrault, a creator and artist co-founder of the brand new LA-based business Raise Your Vibe! A new business focused on spiritual empowerment and creativity.

Please give a warm welcome to Anjalé, everyone!

The Book Smugglers: First, talk a little about your business. What is your underlying idea and mission? Why did you decide to take this idea into reality, and how did you get to launch?

Anjalé Perrault: I still kind of pinch myself when I talk about the birth of the business. It’s surreal to think that the first seed was planted just two months ago when I called Christine and told her about an idea that popped into my head out of nowhere during a meditation. All I knew at that point was that we were supposed to be in business together, and that it would be called “Raise Your Vibe”. This story honestly cracks me up because in the moments leading up to dialing Christine’s number I was completely nervous – my heart was beating out of my chest, my pits were sweating – and when I launched into this story about a vision I’d had for a joint venture I told her, “I feel like I’m 15 and asking you to date me!”

What had me sweating was the that the logistics of Christine and I being in business together made no sense at all. At the time Christine had a flourishing 20+ carer in aerospace, and I had been the owner of an art school for the last 13 years. We are both moms, and have lives that were pretty on track with the way we had imagined they would go. Yet here I was, calling my friend up with only a business name and the crazy idea that we were meant to shift our lives’ focuses completely. The crazier thing is that after I finished my pitch, Christine told me that she had a meeting with her boss scheduled later that day to tell him she was going to phase out of her company. Unbeknownst to me, she had made this choice without a safety net, without a backup plan, moved by an inner stirring that her life’s work was greater than aerospace. She had no idea what was next for her, just that a deeper purpose to connect with and contribute to the planet was calling. It felt in that moment like our souls had answered each other’s call, and that made it crazy easy to get to work and never look back!

It’s a sweet beginning for a company whose intention is to create alignment and community. At it’s core, Raise Your Vibe is a movement which inspires people to raise their own consciousness and awareness so that we can then collectively raise the vibration of our planet. We offer events, and will be rolling out meditations, podcasts, and a marketplace, all designed to support our community in their soul work.

TBS: As a female independent business owner, what are some of the unique challenges and opportunities you face?

AP: As I mentioned, before launching Raise Your Vibe my sole career was as the owner of an art studio, Canvas & Clay, in Redondo Beach, CA. Since I opened this business right out of college, I’ve never climbed corporate ladders, or jostled for position within a company. Christine’s career in aerospace, however, looked completely different. She learned to function in a highly competitive industry where success was measured by hard deadlines, barking orders, and being stronger and faster than your competitors. Talking to her about her experience as the head honcho in a male-dominated industry versus this new, gentler way in which we’ve chosen to structure our startup is fascinating. And this, I think, is really a message that applies to all business owners, regardless of industry.

Creating a company culture that supports your personal value systems is essential. As mothers and women dedicated to our own spiritual practices and well-being, we are firm in our commitment to life balance. Our business meetings start with a short check-in and meditation, and we are mindful to schedule work time outside of family time. It’s a unique challenge, but one that we are committed to unconditionally. We work odd hours (and sometimes all hours) of the day, and maintain flexible schedules that honor the unique roles we play as business owners, mothers, and entrepreneurs committed to our own development and personal growth. We appreciate that balance looks and feels different to each member of our team, so we provide the flexibility and support that each individual needs to get their job done in the way in which they choose for themselves.

The company culture of Raise Your Vibe honors not only life balance, but also inclusion, community, and the celebration of our unique differences and gifts. Gender, race, and socioeconomics are the things that tie us together as humanitarians rather than driving us apart. We are here to evolve together, and that feels damned good.

TBS: RAISE YOUR VIBE talks a lot about finding your community. Who is your community? Why is it so important to you?

AP: I’ve always walked around feeling like a chameleon. I know who to be and what to say in any given situation to keep relationships and communication running smoothly, but what this has meant is that I’ve lived a life that’s not completely aligned with my inner truths. I’m a rebel, an artist, and I cuss like a sailor. Most people know these things about me. But do they know that underneath all of my tattoos and bravery I’m a total book nerd, a spiritual junkie, and pretty much always insecure about something?

To be seen for who we truly are is essential to our evolution as human beings. Raise Your Vibe is a place where we can claim our truths, out loud, to a community of like-minded souls who will accept and support us unconditionally. It is powerful to find your voice, and even more transformational to have this identity reflected back to you through the voices of others. I often think of our worldwide community as a vast forest of trees, stretching our roots laterally across the earth so that they intertwine with one another. It is within this support network that we all become stronger, deeply grounded, and capable of reaching our branches skyward.

I often write on Instagram asking people to fly their freak flags high. Your weirdness, your quirks, and your differences are the things that make you authentically YOU. The world is less boring and more passionate place when we all shine our light in the unique ways that only we can. And, of course, our planet needs us now more than ever. In whatever ways we feel called to step forward with our gifts and talents – whether as an activist or an artist, a gardener or a teacher – Raise Your Vibe calls you forth to do the work of becoming exactly who it is you are meant to be.

TBS: What words of wisdom would you give to other women or entrepreneurs thinking about taking their product or business from ideation to reality?

AP: I’ve said over the years that I’m a serial entrepreneur, and that I should be in the business of startups because I love the energy of having the initial spark of vision and birthing a new concept into being. The hardest part for me has always been getting those concepts to take shape in the practical world, and in seeing a project to fruition. I love the big ideas, but get bogged down by daily operations. Luckily my business partner LOVES daily operations…woot woot!

One of the first things that we did, even before we had a solid concept of what RYV would become, was to make lists of our personal strengths and weaknesses. The intention behind this was, of course, to determine our Yin and Yang, our balance, and our division of labor. But something really brilliant grew out of this that has been a powerful factor in our growth, and that is what we refer to as our “Place of Genius”. The idea is that each of us only take on what is EASY for us. What is in alignment with our gifts and talents. This doesn’t mean that we won’t work hard, hammering our computer keys into the wee hours of the morning, but rather that we focus on celebrating our strengths rather than bolstering our weaknesses.

What is the thing that takes you thirty minutes but takes someone else three hours? What is the thing that feels effortless for you, or that you can get lost in for hours? Do THAT, and find people who feel this same way about marketing, or web design, or scheduling.

Having a team like this shouldn’t mean shelling out a ton of payroll, either. Align yourself alongside others who are new in business, or who believe in what you are doing. The idea of collaboration is a whole new way of doing business for me, and it’s blowing my mind. To think that we can create a network of people and companies who support and nurture one another is in such contrast to the competitive capitalist model that I bought into for so many years. There is another way to function, and that is with walls broken down and ideas shared. It’s a completely liberating concept, and one which has truly changed my view of where I stand in partnership with the world.

TBS: Are there any other independent businesses, female-owned or otherwise, that you particularly admire?

AP: From the beginning our goal was to align with other individuals and businesses who are engaged in conscious enterprise – bringing intentionality into their business models and giving back to global good. We recently partnered with Conscious City Guide as a forum to spread the word about our upcoming Women’s Intention Circle on 10/14. Conscious City Guide is an online resource that connects people with workshops, events, and retreats that inspire a more conscious life in big cities across the United States. 10% of all proceeds go to charity, and community funded tickets are offered to many events as part of the Bharani Exchange non-profit trust.

We love looking to businesses such as this one as a model for how to create change on a country-wide or even global scale, which is our plan for Raise Your Vibe. It’s heartening to know that there is a vast community out there in our field to connect and partner with. We have received dozens of invitations to collaborate via Instagram, which we are finding to be a powerful platform, and are honored each and every time. When we were asked to join in this round table discussion my heart just about popped! Collaboration is new for me, and I’m finding such support and community in it…so thanks, Book Smugglers!

About Raise Your Vibe:

Anjalé owned an art studio. Christine worked in aerospace. They were two soul-seeking mamas looking for light outside of the work that they had dutifully committed their lives to. After decades of pursuing hustle, achievement, and control they found their inner light fading, burned out by the identities that no longer served them. It was in this dark night of the soul that they began their search for light, and in the blink of an eye the universe answered back and gave them each other.

Raise Your Vibe is a movement, belonging to all of us. The premise is this: in doing the work to raise our individual consciousness, we simultaneously raise the vibration of the world. Whether you smile at a stranger on the street, take up meditation, pick up your pen and write, or move off the grid, our hope is that your connection with a community of authentic light workers like yourself will support you in shining your stunning light in the way that only you can. Join us for events, inspiration, and soulful support from a group of like-minded soul-searchers and change-makers, and keep an eye out for our podcast, membership program, and marketplace which are coming soon.

We believe in humanity. We believe in each other. We believe that the time has come for us each to do our part in lighting up the planet.

Follow Raise Your Vibe online at www.raiseyourvibe.org, on instagram, and email them at hello@raiseyourvibe.org.

A Kickstarter Reward Made Of Awesome

The women behind Raise Your Vibe have donated us an original work of art! Want this piece of awesomeness? It’s up for grabs over on our Kickstarter!