The Dream I Almost Said No To (That Led Me to Bali)
People often ask me…
“How did you end up in Bali?”
The short answer: it started with a dream.
The longer answer, it started nearly two decades ago, in a tiny rented house in South Korea at 25, with one raw, frustrated journal entry:
“I don’t want to spend my life in a job I’m not passionate about, making someone else wealthy—while I have no time for the things that actually matter to me. I want to put my energy into creating financial freedom, doing work I love, and building a life I actually want to live.”
Brad + I teaching English in S. Korea, 1996
The First Big Leap (and Fall)
I grew up in Canada in a conservative, religious family (my dad was a minister). There was integrity, love, and a strong work ethic. But nobody ever said—you can author your own life.
The script was simple: university → job → .travel when you retire, maybe with some savings.
But loving what you do? Making more than “enough”? Designing a life that feels fully yours, now? That wasn’t part of the conversation.
So when I leapt at 25 to teach English in Korea, I thought I was being wildly adventurous.
Eighteen months in, two things happened:
- The Asian financial crisis hit — and we lost 80% of our savings overnight. Poof — gone.
- I realized no amount of money is worth it if you don’t love what you do.
Something had shifted. I couldn’t unknow what I now knew: there had to be another way.
The Door I Almost Said No To
When we moved from Korea to Australia (my then-husband’s homeland), I stumbled into network marketing.
I almost said no before I ever gave it a chance. I wasn’t “that type.”
But a quiet voice whispered: What if this is the door? What if this is the way?
So I said yes.
And that single yes became the seed—not because I was a born salesperson, but because it gave me what I craved most: freedom.
→ Freedom to step fully into my own rhythm.
→ Freedom to create a life that felt like mine.
And the best part? I could help others build that same freedom for themselves.
From Seed to Soul Craft
That hesitant yes grew into the income engine that allowed me to:
✔ Step fully into my own rhythm and design life on my terms
✔ Live around the world—Hawaii, Miami, Australia, and back to Bali
✔ Build Soul Craft—an entire brand rooted in freedom, purpose, and helping others align their business with who they truly are.
It was a wild dream back then. No roadmap. No capital. No grand plan.
But that single yes blossomed into a full brand and body of work: mentorship programs, masterminds, retreats—all designed to help others create businesses and lives they love.
The very first “Create A Life You Love Retreat” in Bali in 2014
music and dance nights under the stars, teaching and mentoring incredible women to build their dharma businesses…
…and of course teaching dance (one of my own biggest passions)—I can trace it all back to that single decision to say yes to something I almost didn’t.
Because that was the seed. 🌱
Your Turn
Maybe you have your own version of that hesitant yes—one that could change everything.
- What dream are you carrying that feels too big, too far away, or maybe just… not “you”?
- What possibility have you dismissed because it doesn’t look like what you expected?
Sometimes the seed of your dream is already in front of you—disguised in a form you might not recognize.
And sometimes, the thing you almost say no to…
…is the very thing that opens every door. 🌿
Drop me a line in the comments—I read every message.
Sending all my love,
Carmen xo
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