Episode 8: Finding Your Voice and Living Without Fear | Adeline Perez Bondu | Yoga Teacher & Empowerment Coach
Adeline Perez Bondu has built a life that spans continents, careers, and passions. Born in France, she’s lived in Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and now Spain, where she balances a marketing career with teaching yoga and developing her empowerment business. Her journey is a masterclass in following curiosity, pushing through fear, and saying yes to experiences that expand your world. From scuba diving in Australia to leading body image workshops in Barcelona, Adeline’s choices reflect a commitment to living with purpose and connection. We talk about navigating big transitions, creating work that feeds your soul, and why being of service changes everything.
“It’s not the ego speaking saying, “look I’m more ambitious and I want to do bigger stuff,” in the sense that I’m in a race. No, it’s just that I’m doing something that makes me feel good, that makes people feel good. And I’m just happy. If it works that’s good and if it doesn’t work, well, it will because I need it. It makes me feel good inside.”
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France
Spain
Yoga Teacher
Barcelona
Luxury Industry
Sport Industry
Puma
Kids Footwear
South of France
Motorsports
Australia
Scuba Diving
Germany
Paris
Adidas
Herzogenaurach
Nurnberg
Powerful Ladies
One Day of Giving event
Yoga
Introspective
Stress
Hatha Yoga
Flow Yoga
Crossfit
Japan
Student Exchange
Hiroshima
Body Image Workshop
Switzerland
Life Coach
US
California
Women’s Movement
Boston
French Cat-Calling Law -
Follow along using the Transcript
Chapters
00:00 Meet Adeline Perez Bondu
01:15 From France to a life abroad
03:00 Lessons from living in Japan and Switzerland
05:10 Building a career in the luxury and sports industries
07:00 How yoga became a calling
09:15 Starting an empowerment-focused business
11:20 The power of saying yes when afraid
13:00 What travel teaches about resilience
15:15 Creating workshops that inspire change
17:00 Overcoming self-doubt and impostor syndrome
19:15 Finding balance between corporate work and passion projects
21:00 The role of service in personal fulfillment
23:10 Tools for managing stress and staying grounded
25:00 Advice for anyone ready to take a leap
It's not the ego speaking and like, look, I'm more ambitious and I wanna do bigger stuff in the sense of I'm in a race. No, it's just I'm doing something that makes me feel good, that makes people feel good and I'm just happy. And if it works, that's good. And if it doesn't work, it will, because I need it to work because I need it.
It makes me
feel good inside. That's Adeline Bondu de Perez and this is The Powerful Ladies Podcast.
Hey guys, I'm your host, Kara Duffy, and this is The Powerful Ladies Podcast where I invite my favorite humans, the awesome, the up to something, and the extraordinary to come and share their story. These are people that inspire me and remind me that everything is possible. I hope that you will be left, entertained, inspired, and moved to take action towards living your most powerful life.
Adeline was born in France and then upon graduating from university, started to travel the world. She's lived in Japan, Switzerland, Germany, and Spain, where she lives today, just outside Barcelona with her husband and cat. She's a yoga instructor who works in marketing by day and is crafting her coming soon, yoga plus empowerment business by night.
She's smart, powerful, organized, ambitious, authentic, beautiful, strong and sweet. We met almost 10 years ago, and she instantly became one of my favorite humans. Even though we haven't lived in the same country for almost seven years, we always reach out to meet up when we're in each other's city, or when we happen to both be in a visa and our husband approved turning one night of their honeymoon into a devil date.
I admire her hunger to see the world, to keep pushing herself and to share with others. I'm inspired by the life she's created, that she always convinces herself to do it anyway, especially when she's scared. And the purity of her intentions. On this episode, she shares how she found her voice and how she's in the process of finding her purpose.
She gives us tips on what it's like to take on the fear you have and do it anyway so that you can have the amazing life that's waiting for you. All that's coming up. But first, this episode is brought to us by our friends at York Athletics. York is a Boston-based, family owned performance footwear brand that believes the fighting spirit inside all of us has the power to redefine individuals, inspire communities, and change the future.
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Hi Elene, welcome. I'm so happy that you're here. Hi Kara. Thanks for having me. Course really good
too.
Yes. Uh, so how about we start by you introducing yourself? Yes, sure. So,
um, I'm Adeline. I'm uh, I'm French. I'm almost 35 and I currently live in Spain. Um, I'm working in marketing in the sport industry and.
I'm also recently a yoga teacher, so that's me in a nutshell.
And a new cat mom.
And a new cat mom. And I'm married as well since two years. So super happy. Living in the sun. Beautiful life, enjoying every moment.
Yes, you're definitely one of the Instagrams that I am so envious of as I'm going through at night, because either you guys are, I mean, you live in Barcelona, which is, or just outside.
Which is probably one of the best cities in the entire world. Um, if you're not enjoying life in Barcelona and at the beach, then you are traveling to some exotic destination around the world. And when I grow up, I wanna be Adeline. So, um, maybe in the next life that will be how lucky I am. That's good because when I grow up, I wanna be Cara.
So it's, it's a win-win. Yeah. We do travel a lot. We, we really enjoy traveling a lot. Uh, our work make us move a lot and during our holidays we love to go very far away. So, but we're trying to refrain from posting too much on Instagram because. Yeah, that's, that's too much sometimes
because we're all just getting jealous.
We're
losing, we're losing friends actually. So,
yeah. 'cause the, I think the question everyone asks is like, how do we get to have that life? So I look forward to answering that question a little bit during this, this, uh, episode. But let's start with, um, you know, tell us about your background, where you grew up, where you're from.
Kind of give us the rundown from like zero to 20.
Yes. As I say, I'm French, so I studied in France, uh, business school, and then I started working, uh, in the luxury industry. And, um, I didn't really like it. So the next. Industry was the sport. That was my second passion. So it was a perfect match. Uh, I discovered an international culture.
Um, I lived abroad. I started to speak good English, uh, to discover new culture, a lot of travel, great work environment. I met awesome people. Um, I lived in many countries, so I basically almost didn't work in France, which is good because being abroad really like opened completely my mind and my view about values and culture.
So that's amazing. And um, yeah, so after six years spend in Germany now, I'm, uh, since three years in Spain and I had, um, change of job, which gave me more free time to think. So it was amazing. I didn't realize this was really great.
And, and we know each other because, um, I hired you to work on my team at Puma when we were, um, running the kids forward department.
Yes, exactly. You gave me this chance. So I'm forever grateful. And you know that because, uh, starting from there was the beginning of a completely new life where I started to really grow as a woman in a business and started to learn and being empowered. And, uh, yeah, you were the first, um, female, female manager to do that to me.
So I, I was not sure if it was real. I was like, is that real? Because in France it's not really often the culture that we have. So I was super, super happy and starting from there, from there, I think I really, it just started and that I, I started growing and then I had you, and then I had another female leader that was also amazing.
Mm-hmm. So I just learned so much from you guys and now I'm trying to share it too with, um, with, um, new women in the industry and it's great. And in my new job, yeah. I have more free time for, I have more free time to start thinking about what I can do next to my regular job. Mm-hmm.
And
that was a big change.
So I learned how to use this free time. So it's good.
Well, I think that there's a, um, a lot of people don't realize that in the sportswear industry, and I think they're starting to learn it more now that there's so many women making the products that you see mostly men using in performance. So like there's women behind every sport that's out there.
I mean, I went from doing kids to motor sports and we had a very diverse culture, both like what countries people came from and what, um, genders people were. So I feel really lucky that especially in that puma microcosm, that it was very diverse from that perspective. Um, I think I was one of five Americans in the whole company, in the, in the office in Germany.
And, um. I feel grateful for that. Like there's a lot, it's very progressive and even now, like Adi is doing, Aidas is doing the, um, like big push for, uh, women and kids in sports, like finding freedom through sports. So I'm proud of what that industry's done to be progressive. So when you were, like, where did you grow up?
Uh, I grew up in the south of France, so I'm not from Paris because there are other cities in France than Paris. So I grew up next to the, next to the beach and spend a lot of time outside with friends and just running bikes and running around and,
mm-hmm.
Just enjoying the nature. So that was great. Then maybe that's why now I still don't like big cities because I don't feel comfortable in.
Mm-hmm.
So
Barcelona is a big city, but there's also a lot of nature around, and it's next to the beach, so, uh, that's a perfect match for me.
Did you, growing up, did you, um, for, was there any foreshadowing that you would be in the sporting goods industry or that you would be a woman, um, empowering others when you were younger?
Not really, because I was raised more as a, be nice, um, trying to please everyone, just get good grades. I don't know if my parents were telling me to do that, but I felt like I had to. Mm-hmm. So I grew up trying to please everybody and being nice, smiling, being polite, um, not really a empowered leader. Uh, very shy, not self-confident.
So this, I learned it. Um. After.
Yeah. And um, where did you go to university?
Yeah, also in the south of France. Mm-hmm. And as soon as I was 18, I left to do a, um, special preparatory school for getting into business school. And this time I went to the opposite side of France 'cause I was tired of seeing the south and I wanted to see the north and everybody thought I was crazy because in the north it's cold, but I really wanted to get some fresh air and see something else and go where I knew no one.
Mm-hmm.
So that's where I did my business school for four years. And then yeah, I started working abroad directly, so never really came back to the south of France.
Where was the first place that you worked abroad?
Um, Switzerland.
And that was for the, in Geneva, the luxury company.
Yeah, it was, it was for, uh, watches, uh, high, uh, high jewelry watches.
And they, this was so fascinating. It was really amazing.
Very well, it's such a different market, right? When everything is luxury based and premium.
Yes. Well, the way to price a product has nothing to do with how it is in the sport industry. Yeah. And it's more about the story around, and you just have to make your customer dream because they're paying a lot of money for a product that has to be worth it.
And you also have to create a beautiful story around it and explain all the, all the, all the values of the product and all the craftsmen and what they did.
Mm-hmm.
It, it was amazing to, to build a story around.
Yeah. When you were, when you were, um, growing up and going to university and figuring out your initial path in life, were there a lot of women that you were, um, inspiring to be or inspired by?
I think I was more scared of them because I was like, I, I think it's a personality thing. I could never be like that. I cannot speak up if there's something to say, I will not be the one saying it. Uh, for me they, they was just intimidating. Mm-hmm. I was just like, wow, they're so strong. Must be something they have seen childhood or, or something that is, they're gifted with that and I don't have that.
So I just be in the back and waiting for someone to speak up for me. Mm-hmm. Well,
yeah, I didn't know how to do that. And when did your relationship with powerful women change?
It's started changing when I left, uh, Germany, I learned a lot during my six years in Germany and in this sport brand, I learned a lot.
Mm-hmm.
But I just learned, I didn't put in practice.
Yeah.
I just learned and observe from really strong women what could be done or not. And I was like, wow, they can say that. We can say we can do this. And I was just. Amazed at them. And I was like, wow, they're so strong. Um, but I didn't put it in practice.
And it's when I left that I had to start in another company and I started from zero that I was like, okay, now time to use those, um, what they taught me, but in my, with my personality, because I cannot act exactly like really, really strong woman. It has to be with my personality. And I started doing that and I realized, hey, no one is telling me to shut up or to not do that, and I can just do whatever I want and what feels right and, oh, but actually people respect me when I say no.
No. You know? Mm-hmm. And I put set up bond boundaries and limits and I thought it was amazing to experience for myself. And then I was just calling my old boss like, I have to tell you what I did. It worked and you told me to do that. And it works. And it's, it's such an amazing feeling. 'cause at some point you're just like looking around like, Hey, did everybody see that?
And then you see other, uh, women looking at you like, thank you for saying that during the meeting. Or, thank you for speaking up. Or like, just even coming to me and sharing what they would like to say, but they're not sure how to say like, they're looking for advice to me. I think it's amazing. I wanna give them the number of who I got the advice from.
You know, like, I don't feel relevant. I'm like, oh, but wait, I'm new at this. Yeah. It, it's really a good feeling. And now, now it's natural that I, I do it naturally and I, I cannot go back now.
Yeah.
And, and when I see young shy women coming in the industry, I'm like, my, he beats for them. I'm like, come, come.
You have, you know, you, you have to know you can. I wanna share that because I was so lucky to have this gift that someone told me it's possible. I'm like, why we don. Why it's not only now that I learned this, you know, why did I learn it before? What, why at school they don't teach us how to be stronger.
Why, why you just like, no, get good grades, be smiling, be nice, try to please everyone as a good little girl. No.
Yeah. Like, you, you can do that and be powerful at the same time. Like, it's not like being, you can
be powerful and be nice. It works together.
It works better. That's what we don't
know. Yeah. And it works better because people don't hate you because you're like, yeah, if I'm not nice, people are gonna think I'm a bitch.
And no, there's a, there's a middle Yeah. In between and that's where it, it feels good and right, and not that you're just acting like being a leader. Mm-hmm. It's just like you're, you're just fair and you're just picking up when you feel something is unfair. And that's as easy as that.
Well, I think it's so cool to hear you, um, so passionate now about giving, paying that gift forward because I know what a pleasure it was for me to be a manager and mentor of yours and to give you the space to.
Like to just do it. Like, I remember there was a moment when, um, I had decided before the meeting that I was going to like, let you run it, but I hadn't told you. Um, 'cause I was like, no, she already knows everything. Like I'll just have her answer the questions. And I remember, I'll never forget the face you gave me.
'cause you looked at me like, like your eyes kind of popped up and you're like, wait, what? Like, I'm gonna do this. I'm like, yeah. You know it all. Like, just go ahead. It's not like, go ahead. You got this. Yeah. And like, it was, it was, um, really endearing to see you like, okay, I'm gonna do it. And like, you just started presenting and going and you kept looking at me like, am I doing okay?
I'm like, yeah, yeah, yeah. Keep going. And it's, it's cool to see, um, like people discovering their power like right before your eyes and like Yeah. Like I'm just, I'm honored that I've been able to give. Some of that space to you, like I know, I'm for sure not the only one, but like, thank you for allowing me the gift of giving that to somebody else.
Yeah, thank you. But it was the first time for me and I, I like the female leader I had in France. It was such a different culture, environment and a lot of competition and hierarchy was really strong. And uh, they made, they make me think ab they made, they reminded me that every day I were, I was kind of their slave or, or below them.
And, and women solidarity for me was just in books 'cause I never experienced it. And here was the first time and I was confused because I was like, is it real or is it, is it a technique to show me later that I'm really below her and she makes me think we're good? But you know, I was confused and I was like, no, no, I really, I feel I trust her.
I really feel it's right. Mm-hmm.
And
it was. I like, I, I was so happy. Like I'm, I think I told you every day how much I love you and how much I was grateful because seriously, I was like, it's possible, like women can help each other. Mm-hmm. To, to rise, you know, there's no competition all the time. Beautiful.
It is, it is. And, and I
also wanna give credit, like, um, my entire time, um, at Puma, I always had, um, a male manager and they were all amazing in the sense that they didn't care who I was, what I looked like, what was happening. Like we were all equals. And like, it was great to see in practice people preparing the next person in line to take over.
Like, you, you can't grow as an individual if you're not preparing the people behind you to be able to fill in behind you. And so I'm really thankful that that was the setting there like. There, it was very competitive in the sense that you had to be on top of your game, but it wasn't, uh, it was all merit-based.
It wasn't in regards to like the politics behind it, especially for the group that we were in. And I'm really thankful for that because, um, to your point, like it allowed everyone to get better through that experience. Uh, I know that you've also had some rough experiences. Uh, I don't know if you're willing to talk about them, of like, when you've been challenged as a powerful lady, do you wanna share, share a story, or would you rather not?
Um, which story? When I was challenged, um, are
I
thinking about something in particular that
Yes. Uh, of the, but with, um, oh my God. Like you forgot, like you've moved on so much that you forgot.
Oh my God, that's so true. Yeah. This was, this was this one time where there was this meeting. We were all around the table discussing shoes and everybody was there, all the team design development, and then this, this man that we didn't really, we were not really friend, but we didn't really hate each other.
And suddenly, among the sentences, I say something and then he is like, oh, here's a French bitch. And I was just like, so shocked. I remember I just froze. I was like, this what just happened. And I looked around and everybody was just like pucker face. And there was this awkward feeling and I was like. I think I should say something, but I was too scared, so I didn't say anything and I was just shocked.
And then the meeting started going on in front of me and I was just like, blank. Mm-hmm. Like, oh my God, what happened to me? I feel so shocked as a French person and as a woman, like French bitch. Why? Why? And we were not friend. It was not a joke. And I just, I waited, I think I waited until the end of the meeting, and then I don't remember if I talked to my manager or if I went to HR or, but I had to do something because I was just so shocked.
Mm-hmm.
And, and then, yeah, it all escalated and everybody was aware. And then he was like, no, I never said that we were 10 people in the meeting. Of course you said, ah, no, that was a joke. She didn't understood. That was not a joke. And even if it was a joke, that's not a funny joke. Mm-hmm. In any cases. So yeah, for me this was hard because I was not strong enough to get over it.
So it really touched me a lot. Mm-hmm. During weeks now you see now I almost don't remember the story. Yeah. And I will act completely differently and maybe he will not even have said it in the first place.
Mm-hmm.
But at that time I was, I was such a baby that it really, it really hurt. It really hurt even after he, he kind of apologized.
Mm-hmm. But it was not, I think that the relationship was damaged and as a woman it was, was really difficult. Really difficult to, to, to get an insult like this. And then just everybody acting like normal and me just being like, can someone speak for me? No, nobody speak up for me. I I had to do it for me.
I remember you calling me about it.
'cause I had moved to California, um, already when that happened. And I remember you sending me a text like, I need to talk to you. And we, so we set up a call and we, and you told me what happened and I was horrified and I had had, um, experiences with that person, but nothing like that. It was just more, um, like him being grumpy about things in general.
Like his disposition. Yeah. It wasn't a direct, anything like that. And I just remember like you wanted to make sure you were doing it the right way and that you weren't like pushing too much. Like you were being very considerate of everybody involved when you shared it with me. And I just remember thinking like, no, like it's, if you are this upset about it, it's not okay.
And it's hard, right? It's hard to know where those lines are about. What you, what you take a stand on all the way to the end versus what you take a stand on and like you can get over some things and move on. 'cause you have to, and I was proud of you for making sure that you took it through all the steps that you could to make sure that the everybody got the message that like, this couldn't happen to somebody else.
Yeah. I remember it was not easy and I was still trying to please everybody in the process.
Mm-hmm.
And yeah, and of course I needed guidance. I, every time something happened, I, I, I still wanna call you actually,
you're always welcome to.
I learned from, I learned, I, I read my kara books now I'm ready. But, um, it was helpful because you reassured me, you told me that Yeah, I trust you.
Like Yeah, you are right. Oh, okay. You know, like if I needed approval that something bad happened to me and mm-hmm. It's crazy like. You know it. Yeah. I was just feeling such like a victim. I don't know,
but I think it's normal. I, I mean, even I call people all the time to get another perspective, to make sure that I'm not presenting my, my situation or case in a way that I don't want it to show up.
And I, I think it's really important in like defining your perspective and, and who you are as a person to keep checking in with people because it's really easy to get sucked into just your own perspective. And if you've never experienced something before, like how else do you know what to do it unless you ask somebody else.
So, um, I really encourage people to ke ask more people for input, especially for big things like that. 'cause that could get really messy. And that's the last thing that you wanted it to have happen.
Yeah, I agree. And then what is funny, actually, so funny you remind me the story because something similar happened to one of the woman in my new, um, company.
Oh. And she came to me to tell me, and so I wa I was so ready for her, I was like, no, don't worry. I know exactly what, what I did, at least what she could do. Yeah. And it helped her a lot because she had racism on top of being a woman. So she was facing both attacks and she still wanted to dress like she wanted and she wanted to be proud of her, um, of where she was coming from.
But she was feeling so alone.
Yeah.
And small in this situation. And I was like, no, I'll stand, I'll stand with you. Like if you wanna say something in the meeting and then I will, I can say, oh, really? I didn't know. I can speak up with you and just support you. Like, oh, I didn't know we talked about it before, but I was supporting the meeting so.
Yeah. It gave her the confidence like, yeah, you can speak in front of everyone and I will raise my hand and back you up. And it worked by the way, it worked. So she was, uh, she was really feeling strong. Good job. Yeah.
Sharing the knowledge. Mm-hmm. Um, one of the, you, for the past couple of years, Jesse and I have tried to make it to Europe.
Uh, as much as we can. And two years ago we were super honored to make it out for your wedding. And one of the best weddings I've ever been to. I had never been to a, a French style wedding before. And you had such a great people. We had so much fun. I was really nervous bringing Jesse because he didn't speak any French at all.
Like at least I know how to say like five nice things. And, um, obvi within like four minutes, I think the joke was that he knew more people than you or your husband Johann did. 'cause he met everyone at the party without speaking French. So that's the magic of, and people
still talk about him to me, like, how is Jesse like, oh my god, you remember him?
Of course. Yeah. He's so friendly. It's crazy.
He's very friendly. Um, but so like, how did you meet your husband and um, how did you end up? We ended up getting to a place where we got to have a really fun wedding in France.
So I met my, he was working in the same company before, but I actually met him once.
He was already out of the company, so that was funny that we met, we met after, and yeah, he noticed me already before and I didn't, and he, then he contacted me for having a drink and I was, I don't remember this guy. Who is this guy? And then my friend, she was like, no, but it's, it's him. Blah, blah, blah. He's super cute.
He should go. And I'm like, no, I'm not going for having a drink with a guy. I'm not like that. She's like, yeah, what do you have to, to lose? Oh, okay. Then I go and I see him from far, I have seen pictures before. I see it from parm, like, ah, is way too handsome for me. That seems like a lot of work. Okay, I'm gonna be myself this time because I don't need to seduce him.
It's not gonna work anyway. It's too much. He lives in France, I'm in Germany. That's no. Mm-hmm. I don't need this trouble in my life. So I'm just going there being perfectly myself, like not even trying to look pretty or laugh at his jokes. You know? I'm like hundred percent natural and, and the more I talk with him, the more he makes me laugh.
And he is super original and he is like, oh, proposing new stuff, you know, not just having a drink. He's like, oh, you never heard about the haunted house in Paris? Okay, finish your drink. We go now. Okay. And the haunted house is like, uh, it's a ghost house with real actors in it, and they scare you. It's a full concept.
And I was like, he's really original. And, and then he didn't let me go. He kept calling me and I was like, what does he want? I am in Germany. He's like, yeah, I just wanted to make sure you had a safe trip back and I just wanted to talk and blah, blah, blah. This happened to me today. I did that. What did you do?
I was like, oh, he's not letting it go. And, you know, and, but I think my heart was cold at that time and at some point he started getting to me and at some point he's on the phone with me and I hear ringing at the door and I'm like, oh wait, that must be my friend. She's coming for dinner. And I open and it's him.
It just came from seven hours of driving from Paris to Germany. And I was like, okay, here's my heart. Take it. And he, I'm in. Now I'm in am. Since then, we, we didn't, we didn't live each other and he's just amazing because he gives me the strengths that I'm missing. Um, he really pushes me and he is teaching me from a male perspective what it is to be, to empower a woman.
Mm-hmm.
I'm learning a lot from his side and his way of be, because he has a, a higher position than me. So he's really used to all this. Politics and whatever strengths struggle. So I learned a lot from that. And he makes me laugh all the time. He is surprising me all the time. He, he's a true support, really.
A true support. So, yeah, I, I was like, okay. I was, before meeting him, I was like, I'm gonna be alone with my cat, but I really believed it, you know, Uhhuh and then 31 years old, you meet the one and you're like, it's possible. It's possible.
Yeah. You guys are adorable together. Mm-hmm.
One year after he proposed, we were in Australia, we were scuba diving, and then we were all eight meters under the water, and he pops up a ring and I'm like, what is going on?
Just almost drowning because I'm under the water, you know? It's crazy. He's crazy. And it's, and it's craziness every day since then. So I'm really, really happy.
I'm really happy because, um. Obviously I adore you. You're one of my favorite humans, and I also know, um, like who you are and what I would wish for your partner to have.
And I love that he is such an adventurous spirit that he like, pushes you to push your boundaries too. Like to see you open up more and, and have this energy about you where like if you follow the rules, he, he maybe never follows the rules, right? And not that he doesn't follow rules, but like he's always pushing them for sure and kind of creating his own path through things.
And I really like seeing the balance that you guys have, um, together because you're equally similar and equally opposite in some areas from what I can observe. And I like the push pull that you guys are able to contribute to each other. Um, and so, so I think it's great. So I'm very happy that you found someone that.
Um, supports you and really contributes to you and, and is helping you grow. Like you're helping each other grow in a different way. And part of the reason that you moved, um, you left, um, Germany and moved to Spain was because of marrying him, right? Or meeting him. You were dating when you moved there. So what was it like to to decide to leave, you know, uh, what you were familiar with and take the risk to move to another country essentially for him and have to kind of start over a little bit in, in where your career was?
Yeah.
That's a funny thing because usually. I am always putting myself first in my life. Mm-hmm. I wanna go to Switzerland, I go to Switzerland, I wanna go to Germany, I go to Germany, I wanna go to Japan. I leave everything behind and I left to Japan and, and, and my, my friends, my family, they know me. They're like, oh my God, she's gone again.
Whatever. Who was the boyfriend? He's out because that's it. She, she's gone. And that's more or less my, my pattern. And that's how I've been working. And for the first time, my priorities started changing. I was super happy in Germany, but only in my work.
Mm-hmm.
I was happy inside the company. And then, uh, in the evening and in the weekend, I just wanted to jump out of the window because I was like absolute depressed.
But I was really happy in my job. I had the best job ever. So, but at some point I was like, Hmm, maybe my priorities started shifting and I was less about my job. And I was like, I cannot continue like this. I need to be with the men that I love, but I cannot just. Go there without a job. I cannot be dependent on someone.
I will, I will hate him. At some point I will be like, it's your fault if I'm here being unemployed.
Yeah.
And um, yeah, the next company just, um, headhunted hunt me. Mm-hmm. Uh, three months after he got the job in Barcelona, so living from Paris to Barcelona. So, and they told me, yeah, you have to go to Barcelona and then we hired you to Boston.
I was like, oh my God, I have to go to Boston. But first Barcelona, I was like, you must be assigned. So, okay. I mean
mm-hmm. So
I left to Barcelona and they told me, okay, in one year you moving to Boston. Okay. Okay. I have one year to convince them to leave me in Barcelona. And yeah, you can be very creative when you want, really something for your heart.
And I find a way to convince everybody that it was best if I could stay in Barcelona. And now everybody's super happy, works for everyone, and I'm with him. So it was super easy for me to live everything, because that's more or less what I did all my life. Mm-hmm. Changing countries and cities all the time.
But this time I truly miss the, the friends and family I made in Germany. I truly, truly miss them because you know how it is. Yeah. You're, you're all along in Germany, everybody in this situation. So we all hang out each other. We're family to each other. Yeah.
And I, I think to explain that a little bit more to, um, everyone listening, um, Puma and Aidas have their global headquarters in a small village, uh, Hertz in Germany, outside of Nuremberg.
And obviously they're huge global company. So you literally have people from every continent, every country. Well, not in Anta, Antarctica, but you know what I mean. So every co continent, every country. And we've all been crazy enough to leave our countries and what we know to show up in this random place that isn't on the map for like sport and fashion and like all this culture.
Um, and because we're kind of in this small, super charming town, city, um, it's just us. Like we, you, you recreate your entire experience because you have to. There's this beautiful element of the people who have been there before you teaching you like where to go shopping and how to get a driver's license because even though we're adults.
It's like being five because you can't do anything by yourself. 'cause you don't speak the language, you don't understand all the, um, rules that no one tells you about. All the cultural changes. And I think kind of like going to college or uni, like you instantly become friends with people because you kind of get adopted by these different people and then you pay it forward.
Like I remember being in Germany for six months thinking like, I finally had a headache go away. 'cause I was translating German all the time and you don't realize you have a headache until it goes away. And then a friend of mine moved there, I picked her up and was like giving her the lowdown and I was like, oh, I know all this stuff.
I actually know things. This is amazing. Um, but it's true. Like you, you bond instantly. And it was really hard for me to leave also because it's, it's, it's such a unique experience when you're in this international community. You're traveling around the world all the time. You are having these experiences that most people will never get to have.
And you, it's a little bit nerve wracking to leave that wondering like, will this experience ever happen again?
So it's like a bubble. Mm-hmm. We are all in the bubble. Yeah. And we are all like, oh, when are we going out of it? We have to go out of it at some point. Yes. Then you go out of it and, and in the end you're like, oh, wasn't that bad actually.
Yeah.
But you have to move on and create new experiences and that's, that's it for me after six years was I was ready, I think, to, to see something else and, and move. So I didn't mm-hmm. Moving to Barcelona was getting me closer to my family, closer to a city where I would feel better because it was next to the beach and there would be sunlight and that would be amazing.
And I needed that.
Yeah. Yep.
So it was not only for my husband, there was a lot of things around that were showing me that's the right way.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And since you've been there, um, you were one of the first people to be a Yes. When powerful ladies started and we were doing the charity events. And do you wanna tell people about why you said yes back then?
And what was your experience hosting, uh, powerful Ladies, uh, event?
Um, why I said Yes, to be honest, was because I like you. And then I was like, Hmm. Charity. Hmm. Not really into it, like asking money to people. I don't like that. And okay, that's for fair cause, but I don't really like the process. But then the way you put it was completely different.
You were like, yeah, sure, we are raising funds for women, but then you will know which woman you helped and where, and this made a complete difference. So when I organized the event, I linked it to yoga, my passion and everything. But when I explained all the people that were there that they will know exactly the name and where the woman, uh, where was living and what she was doing.
And, and thanks to the money, what she could do.
Mm-hmm.
I received so many emails after of like, thank you for doing that. Now I understand the sense of charity because it's real.
Mm-hmm.
It's, it's so human. Like the connection was so strong. Yeah. It was, it was beautiful. So that's, that's when I decided to maybe, uh, review a bit my values on charity, because it was a beautiful thing.
And I'm so happy I participated, like after the event, people were coming to me and I have, I had tears in my eyes because connection, love, humanity, all those things that I, I don't know. We're in business. It's not really our stuff, you know?
Mm-hmm.
And here was coming to life and people were happy that they helped and they had fun doing it.
And like, I felt like Mother Teresa for one day. For
one day. Yes. Yeah. Where did you develop your passion for yoga?
So, I always liked, uh, loved sport. Mm-hmm. But yoga I always thought was super boring, so I never liked it, but I could, I kept going there because afterwards I was still feeling good. Mm-hmm.
Must, there must be something, but I really don't like it. It's too boring And, um. When I arrived in Barcelona, I had the job that allowed me to have time for me
crazy idea. So I started,
yeah, it's weird. You could have a work and life balance. Woo. And I started, um, getting a bit of introspection, checking what's going on inside.
I noticed a, a lot of stress, a lot of anxiety, a lot of fears. Mm-hmm. I started reading books, listening to podcasts, and start just digging, digging, what can I do? And I was like, and it's running in my family since so many generation and why nobody's doing that. We're just like, oh my God, we're so stressed.
Let's take medicine. No. So it started from there, from this stress that is always inside me. And since I'm a child, I cannot even remember not being stressed.
Mm-hmm.
So it started from that. I was like, I need to learn now. I have time. I need to learn all the tools. To not be stressed. Like I thought it was a miracle, something I could learn to never be stressed again.
Mm-hmm. There's not, but you can strongly reduce it. And every time, yoga, yoga, meditation, all this thing was coming around that. And I was like, maybe I do a, a yoga retreat. And I see, and at this time I met, um, a strong woman from Lululemon. Mm-hmm. She was coming from there and she, she was also amazing. I learned so much from her too.
And she told me, you know, yoga, some poses can release emotions. You can cry. And I was like, haha. And she was like, okay, you didn't, you didn't met the right yoga teacher. Okay. And then we started talking yoga and I was like, maybe I do yoga retreat. I wanna meet one of those teacher that makes you cry because you open your heart or whatever.
I wanna see that. This is so weird. And after looking, I was like, oh, retreat is still two to three weeks. Holidays. I need to take a lot of money. Maybe I get. Something more. Maybe I get a diploma, maybe I do yoga, teacher diploma. And everybody around me was laughing because I'm as flexible as a wall. Like there's no flexibility in my body.
Everybody was laughing like, oh, you're so stressed and you're not flexible and you wanna be yoga teacher. So it gave me even more, um, motivation to do it.
Mm-hmm.
And that's more or less how I ended up there. But I didn't wanna do it for teaching. I just wanted to do it for knowing myself better and seeing how react two weeks with mm-hmm.
Nobody I knew somewhere, I don't know. And just learning about yoga and, and it was an amazing experience. An amazing experience. I met, like we were, I was afraid to meet weird people, maybe like smoking and being weird, but I was not at all the, the spirit. And when I went there, I understood what was, what yoga was about.
And that's why I thought it was boring before, just because I didn't understand all the. All the richness and everything it has to, to learn from. It was amazing. So I learned a lot from that. I learned all the tools. Mm-hmm. And coming back, I was just stressed again to teach because I was feeling not relevant, you know, like how, but yeah, I can, wow.
Who am I to teach? You know, lack of self-confidence again.
Mm-hmm.
And that's when my colleagues were super helpful. They were like, yeah, but you still learned a lot of stuff and we wanna know, can we just try it together? Okay. Okay. The first classes, I was so nervous, I think I didn't sleep the two nights before and I read all my books again.
And I think you, I, I read somewhere like you, you learn by, by studying and you master by teaching.
Mm-hmm.
And that's really when you, because people ask you question and you don't want them to get injured, so you really have to prepare and to know better and to anticipate the question they will have.
Mm-hmm. And as I thought yoga was boring. I had the answer also to show them how it could not be boring and, and it was amazing. And since then I didn't stop teaching. Now I'm teaching every week. Very cool. And it's my, it's my sunshine. I need this now. What
style of yoga do you teach?
I teach Hatta yoga and Vinyasa.
Mm-hmm. So hatta is a, like, posture. You hold for a couple of seconds and Vinyasa is more flow. But as I teach to very sporty people, cross feature and, uh, I put a lot of power in my classes because they need to have their amount of sweat, otherwise it's not enough. Yeah. And once you understand what yoga is, you, you do sweat.
'cause it's, it's very challenging. But it's not only about the, the physical thing. So I'm always trying to add my little Adeline touches around the classes and inspiring quotes and special technique for, um, relieving all the stress in two minutes. You know, like magical tips. Yeah. Breathing technique to calm down because I am the best person to know what is possible, to calm someone down.
So I'm, I'm using this stress that is my, my problem since forever to help other people and help me at the same time. So it's, it's getting, it's getting better and it's, it's super empowering to, to teach something super empowering.
And I think it, it's interesting to me that you've, um, struggled throughout different parts of your life with your self-confidence and knowing how powerful you really were.
And yet you never thought twice about, to your point, earlier of like jumping on a plane and going to Japan. So why don't you tell people how you decided to go to Japan and, and what you did there and, and what you got out of it.
Yeah. Japan was the first time I really left so far. And I also left by myself without knowing anyone with two years of Japanese lessons in my head, which was not enough.
And I dunno, yes, I've always been scared of everything, but inside there was like a second personality of always pushing me. Yes, you're scared, but do it. Yeah, yeah. I know it's scary, but still do it. So. It's always a constant struggle of like the inner child, like that wants to stay home and don't wanna talk to people.
And, and the, the other personality that is like, yeah, yeah, you go girl, you take your book, your flight, you have to go through an interview to get this Japanese trip. You do it and you prepare it. And there was always this push.
Mm-hmm.
I, I dunno how to explain it. There was this push and then I, I did everything to get to Japan, everything I could, and I saved money and I worked part-time after my studies to really organize everything.
And then finally I, I got selected to go there, super happy. So I'm like, what, 20, 20, 20 years old or something? Or 21. Mm-hmm. Quite young. And I arrived there. That's the cultural shock in my face. I know no one, I'm at the other end of the planet. I cannot speak the language. My English is Hmm. And way useless because they don't speak English.
So I feel, I feel lost and I question everything. Why I did that? Why now I'm there for what? I'm just sad and far from my friends and family and what am I learning from that? I was just crying every day, just
mm-hmm.
Being so homesick, why I did that. So I'm so stupid. Okay, now I wanna come back. Okay. That was nice.
I'm, I'm ready to go back. I'm talking to my friends, I wanna come back. I hate it. I wanna go and no, it just started a couple of days till you adjust and then I didn't want to leave.
Mm-hmm. '
cause then you start discovering, you start making friends, you discover the culture, you start traveling around and you understand.
How, how better of a person you are when you understand that your value and your culture are just one point of view and there's many other, and and since then I was, had the impression that, yeah, the culture was too rude for me. Mm-hmm.
After
being six months in Japan, I was afraid when I landed in Paris, I, I was just smiling to everyone, like, please don't be mean to me.
I cannot handle it. I'm coming back from Japan. Okay.
Yeah.
Yeah. So beautiful experience. Really beautiful.
What were you doing in Japan?
I did a exchange, a semester program. So I was learning, um, at the economy university over there in Hiroshima. So not Tokyo, like really proper Japanese, traditional Japanese.
Uh, my roommate was blonde and people in the street were just taking picture of her. She's blonde. Yeah. Call this,
it makes me remember about the first time that I went to China and I went with a woman who looks like Barbie. Um, I went with a woman who was six foot two, like very tall. And then there was me as a, you know, redhead and then my boss. And everywhere we went, people kept stopping us. 'cause we were in some random small city.
And this girl was super cute. She worked at a kiosk where we were getting some food and she's like, she's like, it's so weird. She's like, in my country, everyone has the same color hair in the same color eyes, but all of you come from the same country and you look so different. Like, she's like, does everybody look different?
I'm like, yes. Just like, everybody looks different here too. But it was, I never thought about the fact that it was, it's just expected there that you're going to have brown hair and brown. And here it's like, you never know what's, what's gonna pop out, literally. So it was a really interesting cultural moment of getting that perspective.
So now that you are living this, a magical dream life in, um, in Spain and really enjoying your job and teaching yoga, like what do you think is next for you in your personal development and what are you working towards yourself?
So that's, um, that's a question I'm working on every day. Uh, what is next?
Because I feel that there's something more. Mm-hmm. I don't have a hundred percent clarity on what it is, but, um, in January I did a, a body image workshop in Switzerland because, um, a friend that opened her, her fitness, uh, studio, she, we, I help her and then she wanted to help me. She was like, oh, not at your teacher.
And you have so good vibes, please come to my, um, my fitness studio and just do a full afternoon workshop and do something good for January. And I'm like, ah, January. People feel bad because they ate too much. So usually that's when they're on diet and they want to do too much sports to get back on track.
Maybe I do something about like, Hey, let it go. Accept your body, everybody, you know? Mm-hmm. Something beautiful. And, and I did that and it was so powerful. I had people coming in my arms crying of emotion, but, but positive joy, you know, like, oh, nobody told me that before. Or we, I did something completely original.
There was a mix of yoga. There was a mix of ex, a mix of exercises for accepting your own body. I bought notebooks, beautiful. Keep notebooks where I wrote. Nice sentences for them. And I gave them to them on their mats. And they were also touch of having the little attention. And then we did the exercises together and we really connected.
And I was afraid because we were 30 people.
Mm-hmm.
I was like, I cannot connect with 30 people in a class. It's just gonna be a crowd. And then I'm scared. And, and no, it was not because they were all connected to me and I could feel it and I could share the exercise and it was so powerful. And in the end, yeah, some people came crying to me and like, you know, something hard happened in my life and what you said, I, I learned it the hard way.
So it's good that you're sharing those kind of things with people, but accepting yourself and just. Like re questioning a bit the, the cause of the society who said that a beautiful girl has to be distal and this thin and, and I shared my story. I have scars on my face and I never wanted to do surgery to remove them.
And people told me, you know, now we've laser, we couldn't make them almost disappear. And I was like, no, you know what? I kid them, this is my story. I'm the only one in the world having those cars on my face. And that's it. That's, that's my story. Just accept yours. Maybe yours is, do you have three kilos too much on your legs?
So what? Mm-hmm. Get over it. Your legs, they can walk, you know, you will not have them, you will cry. So be happy. And all those kind of positivity. And then I, I let them, my email and I received like, you have no idea of the letters I received. And I was feel, I was just crying like, oh my God, it's, I'm so happy I could help and just give the tools mm-hmm.
To, to give a bit hope. Sometimes you just feel stuck and you just hating yourself because. People told you, you don't look like what you should look like. And actually it's no, it just love yourself. A bit more of, more of self-love is is very difficult to get because we are not used to it, but because of the exercises that I learned and I could share, um, there's a bit of delight at the end of the tunnel, so it's good.
Well I think it's so amazing that you created this program from nothing, right? Like your friend called you and you're like, okay, now I gotta put something together and yeah. Yes. You relied on a lot of the work that you had done before and your yoga training and your personal story, but so many people who our friend would call and ask them to do something like that, would immediately think like, I can't do that.
I'm not qualified, or I don't even know where to start. Oh, that's
what I thought as well. Yeah, I thought the same. But remember there's always the inner voice pushing. Like, yeah, you're not ready, but say, yes, you find a way. I was like, oh yeah, sure. When? And she was like, in January. Oh, in one months. Yeah. Yes.
I'll be so happy. Okay, sure. No problem. And then during one month, I worked on it all the time, but I didn't feel like I was working. I just enjoyed it so much. And that's when I realized, okay, I enjoyed doing this so much. I bought books and everything around. Mm-hmm. To be a hundred percent ready. And I just enjoyed it.
And then I did it and I was so nervous, but I felt so good afterwards. And that's when I realized, okay, those kind of workshop, when you spend time with people could be something. Maybe I do it around the world, maybe I create something and now I'm working on this and I'm gonna have a meeting with a life coach next week to talk about this and see what I can do.
Because the advantage I have now is I have a job. Yeah. So I'm not in, in, in, um, monies scarcity mm-hmm. Situation. So I can think about. I can dream about a business project, you know, I have time for that.
Yeah.
Um, so it's a good thing and I want to take advantage of the situation of being in a good place to think clearly about what could be next and how I can not make a lot of money, but how I can live a normal life with a regular salary out of this that gave me so much joy, you know?
Well, I would, I'm
working on that. It's not clear yet,
but No, I love it. And I would be more than happy to support you in any way. And if we can do a showcase through powerful ladies to get that message out to more people, I would be honored. So we'll talk more about that for sure.
Thank you. Yeah. It's because now I feel stuck again.
I'm like, how do I go there? How me entrepreneur? No. Cannot be. So I'm back again to the old pattern, like, no, I cannot do it. So now I need a life coach that is gonna tell me, I more or less know already somewhere in my head, but it's gonna prove it, you know, it's gonna give me the kick. So I kind of need help, but mm-hmm.
Like you said, it's normal, so I'm fine.
Well, I, people go through life and you go through one phase and you hit a ceiling, and that's when all your doubts and fears and the panic sets in again. And then once you break through, you flow all the way up to the next layer and the same thing happens again. So your story is a great example of how each phase as you go through, like you have that scary moment and then you break through and it's like, oh yeah, this is great.
I love it. And then you, because you continue to expand and share and, you know, learn yourself like you're, you just keep hitting a bigger and bigger, you know, ceiling to break through. So I'm super proud of you and think it's, it's a really inspiring story of like, you're, it's never complete, it just keeps growing.
It, it keeps growing. Yeah, that's right. And it feels good and it feels, it feels real, you know, it's not the ego speaking and like, look, I'm more ambitious and I wanna do bigger stuff in the sense of I'm in a race. No, it is just, I'm doing something that makes me feel good, that makes me people feel good, and I'm just happy.
And if it works, that's good. And if it doesn't work, you will, because I need it to work because I need it. It makes me feel good inside. You know, it's not a, it's not a ego race and that's what I love in it.
That's what I love about what I'm doing right now with powerful ladies. Also, like the, the level of peace and everything else that's coming with it, and the fact that I get to have amazing conversations with people, not just while recording a podcast episode, but.
You know, I had a, two days ago a guy called me about business insurance that I had signed up for somewhere and we're talking and he's like, oh yeah, like I have two businesses. And I'm like, ask him what? And it happens to be in, uh, he has like a fitness studio and then he does some personal coaching. And I'm like, oh, I'm also a coach.
And like, we start talking about that and he's like, well, what's your business? And I tell him about powerful ladies. He's like, oh, I have three daughters. We should, I wanna be involved. Tell me more. And this guy called me about insurance. It could have been a super dry, boring conversation, but we, we like got to share and contribute to each other in such a way that, and I was having one of those days where.
I started worrying about all the other things, like the financial part and mm-hmm what am I doing and who do I think I am to take this on? And I had the conversation with him and I went, Nope, thank you. Thank you universe. That's what I needed. Like, 'cause it really put it all back into perspective that just by sharing for 15 minutes on the phone while getting insurance figured out, like it made an impact.
And he was going that night to go speak to high school students and he's like, I can't wait to tell them about this. And I'm like, yes. So it was just cool to like be able to make this impact that keeps going on. Right.
Yeah. It's a good feeling. And I'm happy you're doing podcasts because I'm so in love with podcast.
I spend so much time in my car because traffic in Barcelona I think is more or less like in la. Yeah. I was like, I need to find something not to go crazy. And podcasts are my. Lifesaver.
Mm-hmm. And
I'm so happy you're doing this 'cause you're so inspiring. You need to do something like this. You need to share your light.
For sure.
Thank you. You too. Yes. So speaking of podcasts, what are some that you love that you think other powerful ladies should check out?
Um, my favorite one at the moment is, um, super Soul. Yep. From Oprah. Mm-hmm. Of course. Uh, this, I, I love her so much. And the other one is, uh, there's a lot of French podcast, but
that's okay.
We have French listeners.
There's the podcast called and she's basically translating podcasts. She heard why she was living in California, she's translating it for the French and it's super practical. Like she's giving exercises this really thinking about what we might think like, oh, it's so cheesy, and she's explaining why it's not.
It's great that this, there is, um, a feminist podcast, podcast, French podcast called LA. She's also doing interviews in, in English now, and super su super helpful for, for women. And what else? Um, oh, a big magic from Elizabeth Gilbert.
Yep. Mm-hmm.
Um, tea With a Titan. Uh, the one from Gabrielle Bernstein. Yep.
Uh, don't want, I, I, I had note of them, but no, I didn't take note. But those are the. Biggest one that really inspiring. But I have thousands of them. Yeah, thousands of them. But at the moment, uh, those are the ones I'm reading, uh, all the time.
Awesome. I can't wait for it to get your feedback on this one 'cause you're listening to some good ones that we wanna be in the company of, um, in addition to podcasts.
I loved it
already.
In addition to podcasts, um, for women who are on the path of their own self-discovery and finding their own power, like what are other tools, resources, or even just practical advice that you have for them?
Well, if they can find a community of women like you are building, um, that's great.
Like one of my yoga teachers, she's building that, uh, in Barcelona, so I'm like, I'm signing it, where is it?
Mm-hmm.
Um, I have friends in Canada also having one. Um, so if they can find something like that, that's, that's great because it's practical advices, so it's good. And then I'm getting inspiration from books.
Podcast a lot. Mm-hmm. And yeah, if you have the chance to meet amazing colleagues that can open the door for you and show you that straight away, just go there, run for it, then, then that's the best gift you can have.
Mm-hmm. Do you have, um, so when you are feeling unsure and, and having low confidence, what do you do to get yourself back on track?
Usually? Um, when I feel stuck, I try to do something physical, like go for a run or just like shake the body because sometimes that can just trigger the mind. And then I try to remember, I list all the things I achieved in my life. Like, look, you didn't think you could did that, but you did it. And I have my list.
And also the list of the failures and everything they, they taught me because. The more you fail, the more you're close to succeed. And I'm trying to remember that, that sometimes I'm just scared and it's my own roadblocks because no one is preventing me from anything. It's just myself being scared of, of what?
So just the fact that I'm trying to be aware of what I'm scared of will give less power to my fear. And a lot of advices that have been given were really, really helpful. Like, just why you could not do it, why someone else did it, or think about someone you admire and think about what you did. Mm-hmm.
And
so if she did it may, how did you get there?
Maybe if she was in your shoes, how would she act? This is something I, I use a lot, uh, in business. Like referring you or, uh mm-hmm. Or another woman leader that I had in my life. Like what would they do in this situation? And usually that thing that triggers the thing. So I'm trying to, to reference that.
Yeah.
Um, what do you do when you're feeling stuck? Oh my goodness. So many things. Um, I agree with like doing something physical because often you just need to get out of your own head, and if you can't breathe well, 'cause you're running or you can't, you're focusing on not falling over in yoga class. Like it really helps to stop thinking about yourself.
Um, I call people. I, I'm obsessed also with some really great podcasts that I love to just kind of, I think it's really important to hear people's stories that made it through, because no matter what their challenge was, it just reminds you that like humans make it through, like humans survive. And so much of what separates us from people who have done these amazing things is just that they did it and kept going.
So keep going. Um, I think one of the things that I'm really interested about, you know, we've talked to quite a few people that are based in the US or based in California. What is the women's movement like in the Barcelona area and what is it, uh, like in Spain and France in general? And you being someone that travels to the US quite a bit, like, do you see differences between how it's discussed, um, from America to Europe?
From my experience, I see differences in the three countries. For example, in Spain, I see some demonstration from feminist, but there's not so many people and it doesn't seem so powerful. And the society here is, from my experience, still very. Um, but patri, patriarch, I dunno how to say patriarchal. Yeah.
Still very like that. For example, we moved in, in this little town next to Barcelona. And when we moved in, all the people I met, whether it's the um, the landlord or the person of the agency or the person coming to clean the garden, they all assumed I was a housewife. And I was like, okay, can we do it quickly?
I have to go to work. They're like, you are working. Yes. I'm just dealing with the paper because my husband is working too, but I'm, I have to go to work. Oh, okay. And they were all so surprised. And I was like, I was feeling often like, Hey, which, which, which center is that? Mm-hmm. You know, but that's the experience of this small city next to Barcelona.
So I don't wanna speak for the full country. Yeah. But that's my experience. So I was a bit, uh, didn't experience that. And in France, I'm listening to so many feminist podcast and followings. The movement of, we have our hashtag Me too in France, a similar one. Mm-hmm. And I'm following so much the news that I have, the impression that it's changing, that you know, people are, are awake.
My husband's like, oh really? Girls are being harassed in the street, but you're never harassed when you're with me. Oh really? You wanna let me walk by myself? And you watch behind and you see what happened And he's like, nah, come on. I'm like, sorry. It's a daily life for women, especially in France. Oh yeah.
To be annoyed in the streets. Sorry. It's like that, I'm so pissed of that. And now people are starting to realize now in 2019 mm-hmm. That it's a problem we have and for us, we are living with that since. Forever.
Yeah.
And now male are like, oh my God. But it's horrible. And, and are we all dominant? And you all, we must be scared of us at night.
And they're like, yeah, hi. Like they're waking up.
Yeah.
But it's good because now there is more awareness, awareness around, and they're going to, if they're being caught on the fact they're gonna get, um, fine for insulting women in the street. So let's see where it goes. I think that's
a really big thing.
Right? Like France has that, is it in Paris or all of France has that fine?
Uh, no, all of France. Mm-hmm. So I, I dunno if it's being done, because usually when you're being annoyed, usually there's no one around. It's just this guy. Yeah. And you're like, okay, what do I do? Do I change the sidewalk? Do I run, do I scream?
You never know where it goes. So it's a real, a real problem that we have. So it's, and in the US I never been annoyed. But I'm trying to speak with the, the other ladies at the office, and I don't know if this is the people I'm talking to, but they don't have the same feeling about it, so.
Yeah. Yeah. I think like my experience when I've gone to, especially Paris, it's been, it's always been extreme, whereas like Boston, France is
extreme on that
Boston where the Germany
is not.
Mm-hmm.
And never, and in all the US cities, uh, um, Boston where your other, your other offices is, I've also not had so much of it. Like, it's, it's been rare from my personal experience. Yeah. Um, but I've always had experiences in Paris that I was like, really? Like, are we still doing this? Like, it's always shocked me.
And I've also had experiences, especially at night, walking back from like dinner to the hotel, that I always feel like I have to be on guard in that city where I don't feel like walking around Barcelona. I wouldn't feel that way. But I, and it's not, so, I'm glad that they're, that they're doing something about it.
For sure. Yeah.
I hope this helped. But I mean, this is also with education, it has to start very early and guy guys start to understand. Now they're complaining like, but how do we, how do we seduce women? How do we meet women if we're not allowed to talk to you anymore? Like, come on. You see, when you're annoying someone and you're being rude, you see the difference between a smile and she doesn't smile and she goes away, you don't insist.
Mm-hmm. I don't know. It is a bit of a, of intuition here, and so I dunno. But really France is extreme on that, so I hope we can make things change.
Mm-hmm. What are the challenges that you face on a regular basis in, um. Like either being a woman, kind of like the experiences with the, with the apartment. But are there other things that you deal with regularly or do you feel like you're, um, treated pretty equally on your day to day?
Um, that's what people say that we are equal and they say it. Mm-hmm. But in action you have to fight for hoping to be equal. Mm-hmm. So there's a lot of fights that at work also, where we claiming that we are equality company and we have a lot of women being directors mm-hmm. And blah, blah, blah. But then everyday life I have to show my, my teeth
mm-hmm.
To be respected if I'm just the nice version of Adeline. So once in a while when it's worth it, I show my teeth and then I get respect. Mm-hmm. So I have to do it. Yeah. And sometimes I'm depending on the people, sometimes there's a lot of jokes like, oh, how are you dressed today? You know, and you just wanna be a bit fashion.
You play with fashion. There's always a lot of, uh, I don't know if they wanna be funny or if they wanna just say something about what you're wearing. So I always have my, my comebacks ready and usually they, they will shut up. Mm-hmm. And that's a good thing. So I play with humor or I show my teeth. Yeah.
But I, I stop just being ignorant or just ignoring them or smiling. I stop that. I don't do that anymore. Yeah. I reply either nice or not nice, but I always, I don't let it go anymore. Yeah.
Perfect. Yes. Well, as we're wrapping things up, uh, a few things that we ask everyone is we talk, we ask where you are on the powerful lady scale.
So if zero is regular human and 10 is powerful lady, where do you feel on an average day? And where do you feel you're at today? On zero to 10. Yeah. Where
are you? Yeah, 20. Where are you? I dunno. The powerful ladies. I dunno where I am. I'm, I'm not at zero anymore, which is good. Um, as I'm, people ask me for advice sometimes.
Um, maybe I'm around five or six getting there. I think it's, I could be, it could be better, could be stronger. And, uh, but I dunno. Today I feel really good because I'm doing a podcast. Even though I was scared. I was like, but is it interesting enough what I have to say? How long is it? Maybe it's gonna be 10 minutes only.
I don't know. So today, I feel like at 12, so it's good.
Awesome. What are some last bits of advice or encouragement you have for women out there?
Um. There's a lot of, um, listen to your intuition. Listen to this voice insight. Not the one telling you your shit and you cannot do anything. That's your ego. Yeah.
But the one telling you there's something you have to do. Listen to it. And, and, and trust. Trust the process. I go step by step. Like if 10 years ago you would've tell me some of the things I've done, I would just not believe it. Be super scared and, and not understand it. Mm-hmm. And now I understand and I enjoy every pass of the way.
And I, I can't wait to see what's coming because I'm like, oh, it has been, it's hard. But then I like it and then I'm getting better. So what's coming next? And now I know I have this little business idea that starts to grow and I'm like, excited of what it might come or not. Mm-hmm. And I'm like, yes, it's gonna come.
I'm so scared. When is it gonna come in One year, in five years, in 10 years? I dunno. But. Yeah. Trust the broad process and, and I notice a lot, I'm just worrying too much
mm-hmm.
For thing that I should not, and I'm trying to calm this down. So yeah. Trust, trusting the process is, is something I would say. And, and one of the advices that I learned was it's okay to say no.
Mm-hmm.
And it's okay to ask why and what was the other one, and do not make assumption that something really strong. Like if some, and this is something I use recently at work. Someone said something to me in a meeting and it was kind of not clear. Mm-hmm. And instead of just not saying anything and worrying about it for days and days, I just ask in front of everyone, like, what do you mean by that?
Sorry, I, maybe I don't understand what you mean exactly. And then the guy was like, of course he said something mean, you know? Mm-hmm. And I was like, no. But uh, just saying, I'm not just saying what can you precise, be more clear. So I'm sure I heard your message and there was no message. It was just being mean.
So like, ah, that's a good advice I've been given. So that's the advice I would also share. Yeah.
Thank you. Thank you so much for being a yes in my life. Thank you so much for our friendship. I can't wait for us to meet somewhere in the world again and have a great time. Um, and just, yeah. Thank you for being part of powerful ladies from the very beginning.
And choosing me on this podcast. I think that, you know, your story is so powerful and I'm so proud of you and I'm so proud of who you are for the other people and women in your life and what you're creating, that I can't wait to see it come to life and support you in any way that I can. But thank you so much.
Oh my God, Kara, I love you so much. Thank you. Thank you so much. And remember how you've been a, a game changer in my life too. Thank you. Thank you.
Don't you just love Adeline and doesn't wisdom sound so much cooler with a French accent? I think so. A lot of people think being powerful means you've made it, you've figured it out, you've achieved everything you imagined and more. But the truth is, being powerful just means that you're taking your life on and that you are in charge of where it goes next.
I love that Adeline came on at a time when she can both reflect. On what she's accomplished and how much she's grown already, and also be really authentic and vulnerable about how she's just discovering this new power inside of herself and doesn't know where it's gonna go yet. I'm so excited and proud for her of where she's at, and that she's finding this ability to be of service to people and make an impact.
She's right on the cusp of taking what she's discovered as her purpose and igniting it into the next phase of her career. You can feel her excitement about creating connection in her workshops and giving people hope and practices they can use to make their life better. Putting yourself in a position of being of service to others changes the whole game, the game for you, the game for the world, and that's where you actually get to make a difference.
I'm so excited to see where she takes this, and I can't wait to be part of one of her workshops. You can support and connect with Adeline by. Following her on Instagram at Adeline, A-D-E-L-Y-Y-N-E, and on Facebook, Adeline Bundu de Perez. You can email her Yoga by adeline@gmail.com where you can tell her what was your favorite part of this episode.
Learn how you can take one of her yoga classes or how to join her next workshop. If you'd like to support the work that we're doing here at Powerful Ladies, there's a couple of ways you can do that. Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast, Stitcher, Google Play, or anywhere you listen to podcasts. Leave a review on any of these platforms.
Share the show with all the powerful ladies and gentlemen in your life. Join our Patreon account. Check out the website, the powerful ladies.com. To hear more inspiring stories. Get practical tools to be your most powerful. Get 15% off your first order in the Powerful Ladies Shop. Or donate to the Powerful Ladies one Day of Giving campaign, and of course, follow us on Instagram at Powerful Ladies for show notes and to get the links to the books, podcasts, and people we talk about.
Go to the powerful ladies.com. I'd like to thank our producer, composer, and audio engineer Jordan Duffy. She's one of the first female audio engineers in the podcasting world, if not the first. And she also happens to be the best. We're very lucky to have her. She's a powerful lady in her own right, in addition to taking over the podcasting world.
She's a singer songwriter working on her next album, and she's one of my sisters. So it's amazing to be creating this with her, and I'm so thankful that she finds time in her crazy busy schedule to make this happen. It's a testament to her belief in what we're creating through Powerful Ladies, and I'm honored that she shares my vision.
Thank you all so much for listening. We'll be back next week with a brand new episode. I can't wait for you to hear it. Until then, I hope you're taking on being powerful in your life. Go be awesome and up to something you love.
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Episode 265: She Was Too Shy to Speak. Now She’s on French TV | Adeline Perez | Comedian, Author, Writer
Episode 311: Thinking of Startng a Podcast? | Judith Kargbo | Writer & Senior Producer at Sirius XM
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Created and hosted by Kara Duffy
Audio Engineering & Editing by Jordan Duffy
Production by Amanda Kass
Graphic design by Anna Olinova
Music by Joakim Karud
