I’m Jessica Silverman, creator of the vision behind Mo’Zen Wellness.
Blessed and pleased to “meet” you virtually!
I am fortunate to share my sacred space with you, and feel compelled to share my story so we can get to know each other better. At a glance, I am a dreamer, a spiritual diamond, a modern-day mystic, an eternal optimist, and a beacon of light + laughter + love. My deep loves in life include distance running, yin + restorative yoga, hiking in the wilderness, jamming to the Beatles, and studying the teachings of some of my favorite mentors, including Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, and Osho to name a few. While my story has many layers for which to uncover, I would like to share with you how I have uncovered my calling to becoming a sustainable wellness coach.
Since birth, I have been a true nonconformist, always keeping an open + questioning mind to the true meaning of life + my place in the world. I was an aspiring actress in my adolescent years, until the world hardened me into pursuing what I thought would be a more “lucrative” profession. My family nurtured and supported my love for the arts, but like any loving parent, only wanted the best for their child. Education was the pinnacle of success in my family, and was the focal point of my life for many years.
Thus fueled my rebellion against the status quo + who everyone wanted me to be in the world. I always found solace in food, which led to weight gain that continued from childhood into my college years. Within the struggles of my yo-yo weight, I had a lifetime attraction to fitness. As a child, I was a devout fan of the ESPN power hour with Denise Austin + Gilad’s Bodies in Motion! In college, this attraction led me to working as a Facility Manager at the University of Florida’s fitness center.
While I loved my time at the University of Florida as a die-hard Gators football fan, I left college at my heaviest weight, both physically and mentally. I graduated with a BS in Finance, so I assumed that was where my path was headed, and continued down the yellow-brick road to find this magical wizard called true fulfillment + purpose.
On this quest, I knew the first step in taking back my health was to shed the layers of confusion, sadness, and despair ever present on my body. My inner guide (the little voice within) continued to follow me, showing me the path to my salvation. First, I joined a weight loss program, then was guided to a “Yoga for Stress” class with Yoga Jane who introduced me to the teachings of Deepak Chopra in the “Seven Spiritual Laws of Success”.
While I had tremendous success with the weight loss program, I had reached a point of being under a healthy weight, starving myself for fears of gaining back the layers I had so desperately tried to uncover.
After a family scare, I slipped into unhealthy habits of my own and decided this was a wakeup call for us all to understand the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. We would keep each other motivated by doing this together + learning how to embrace healthy eating, regular exercise, and a dedication to keeping this for life!
Once again, that little girl within came back to guide me. I started running and signed up for my first 5K, then decided I was going to pursue my dreams of greater distances. I found my true love for running as a metaphor for life, and connection to a higher purpose. In one year, I trained and completed my first 10 mile run, half marathon, and a full marathon in Chicago!
Following the Chicago Marathon, which was one of the highest feelings of fulfillment I had ever experienced in my life, I fell into a kind of post-marathon depression, if something such existed? Two months following the marathon, I met my now fiancé and love of my life.
While I was discovering a different side of myself in a loving relationship, I felt I was losing my sense of self + independent nature. The nonconformist from birth felt lost and undefined. Who am I really? What defines me, and makes me unique to offer my wisdom to the world? How would I lead and fulfill my purpose? I was introduced to the spiritual concepts of the ego + light force + our “correction” in life. I discovered that based on the day I was born, I was a Leader spirit in a past life, and my purpose in this life was to bring my Leadership to the world by removing the intentions of the ego. Put simply, I was to be a Leader that shined my light for pure love and to inspire others!
I had a hard time relating initially, because I was grinding in corporate finance buried behind Excel spreadsheets + financial statements…who was I to lead? What did I have to offer? I didn’t even finish my CPA, so to those that held designations highly, I wasn’t even a real accountant.
In an effort to discover ourselves more, my fiancé and I decided to fulfill my lifetime dream of moving to Northern California’s East Bay of San Francisco. We moved by traveling cross-country with what we could fit in a small U-Haul truck stopping through Missouri, New Mexico, the Grand Canyon, and through California from Bakersfield up to San Francisco.
The revelations experienced in moving to California was extraordinary. I became introduced to the world of health + wellness coaching while working on my own health journey. Slowly, the keys to my path were unlocking doors of opportunity, and I had never felt MORE ALIVE! From my first experience working with a client, I felt at home. This is where I belonged, this is what I had been craving my entire life but it wasn’t completely clear until I had followed the path which was destined for me.
How could I help others with sustainable health practices until I had undergone the many layers of my journey? The yoyo dieting, the subtle connections with spirit, the passions I had embraced in many forms were all coming together to the most illuminating picture I had ever seen!
However, I was still chained by the corporate life in my position as a Senior Finance Manager for a prominent venture capital fund in San Francisco. How could I leave a six-figure job to fulfill this passion and purpose to help others with sustainable health practices with no security blanket to keep me safe? I didn’t know how I would do this, but I was slowly dying inside at my corporate job. Every day, a piece of me disintegrated into the pressures + demands of the venture capital world. I knew that money was important, but I also knew I couldn’t fulfill my purpose coaching others while living a life that was misaligned with my calling!
A dear friend introduced me to a book called “Get Gutsy” by Jenny Fenig. The pinnacle of her business is spirituality + business by taking a risk to find your calling and share it with the world! How ideal…and her story in many ways mirrors mine. I fell in love with her mission by listening to her podcast, and decided this was IT! This calling was burning inside me for so long- I decided that it was time to GET GUTSY and escape the corporate perils. It was time for me to achieve my mission + follow this path!
As I feel my greatest struggles in life have been sustainable health practices, I have birthed my dream + vision of Mo’Zen Wellness. I feel that throughout my life I have been learned the elements of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and I am blessed to give back and share this with you.
Would LOVE to get to know you better!