045 Creativity, Writing and Yoga with Janna Hockenjos

Janna Hockenjos is a published author and a full time yoga teacher living in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and their Golden Retriever. The summer Janna Leyde turned 14, her father was in a near fatal car accident that changed everything she knew. Upon earning her BA at Wittenberg University, Janna moved to New York City where she received her masters degree in magazine journalism at NYU and spent the her twenties in New York City, learning the in and outs of magazine writing and publishing. In 2011, she left the industry to become a yoga teacher and write her first book, He Never Liked Cake, a coming of age memoir that tells the story of growing up with her father’s traumatic brain injury. Three years later she moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to continue her writing and yoga career and publish her second book, Move Feel Think: Yoga for Brain Injury, PTSD, and Other Forms of Trauma. Janna is the owner of Inhale Pittsburgh, a yoga studio located in downtown Pittsburgh. She also represents her community as a lululemon ambassador with a passion to bring the physical and mental benefits of yoga to the brain injury, PTSD, veteran, and trauma population on both local and national levels. When she is not on her mat, she works as a freelance writer, her works appearing in magazines such as Time Out New York and SELF and websites such as mindbodygreen.com, brainline.org, and NEXT Pittsburgh. She is an influential advocate for traumatic brain injury awareness and is frequently is a guest speaker at TBI conferences sharing her experiences. Much like our mutual friend Gabby Bernstein, another amazing guest on Earn Your Happy, Janna started her career in NYC attending grad school at NYU for Magazine Journalism. Continuing your education and attempting to find a good job during the economic fall was difficult, which lead her to begin in advertising and party planning in the city that never sleeps. Looking ahead to the future, Janna realized that although the top of the ladder in the magazine industry looked fun and glamorous, it just wasn't for her. A new life path was in need, which meant personal brainstorming and soul searching. “I’m a word person, I like words. Words, repetition and lists help me plow through life. It was the words 'love over fear' that really had me choosing things based what I loved and the people that I loved, instead of things I was afraid of or doubtful that would come true.” Janna was looking to serve the world. She wanted to take what set her soul on fire and share it with others, which brought her to writing her first book and practicing yoga. “It’s about getting comfortable with what’s uncomfortable and thats what I like to work with.” As Janna tells us, you just need to show up in life, for yourself. It doesn’t matter what it looks like, just get there. "Everything is hard and unfamiliar the first time we do it." In This Episode You Will Learn: About choosing your life’s work About following your happiness The power of Love over Fear How to serve the world with your talents About forgiving your past How to clear space in your life More about Yoga Resources: He Never Liked Cake by Janna Hockenjos Move Feel Think: Yoga For Brain Injury, PTSD, and Other Forms of Trauma by Janna Hockenjos Add More -ing by Gabrielle Bernstein Learn more about Janna and all the wonderful things she does for her community at jannahockenjos.com and follow her on Instagram/Twitter @jannacabana. Follow me on social media @LoriHarder on Instagram and Lori Harder on Facebook. You can also see more at my website: LoriHarder.com