Natalie Herdoiza
PhD Env Ethics, MSc Biology, Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher.
My deepest passion is teaching people to cultivate the inner skills, strengths and qualities that help them to positively influence their lives, their teams, and their communities — for or their own benefit and the benefit of the wider world.
“In my work I explore how awakening to different ways of being — in ourselves, in our relationships, and in the world, can help us to gain resilience, purpose and agency to change our circumstances for the better.”
Why I founded BeingIn
After more than a decade of research, training, and personal practice, I decided to develop an approach to translate scientific research and ethical insights into practical methods that can help us reduce suffering and truly flourish, in our own lives and in our shared planet.
My work draws on my background as a scientist, environmental ethicist, and mindfulness teacher, as well as my personal experience in overcoming hardship and designing a more meaningful life for myself. I have used the practices and tools I teach to recover from severe anxiety, burnout, chronic pain, and illness, and to rekindle my own sense of purpose—and I have seen them do the same for many others.
Before dedicating myself fully to this work, I spent nearly a decade in academia researching and teaching biology, environmental ethics, and sustainable development. I have also trained for over ten years in mindfulness meditation, self-compassion, mind-body recovery, positive neuroplasticity, and mindful leadership.
Through BeingIn, I help people develop the skills to gradually awaken to different ways of being and the inner strengths to act on them, building a solid foundation for positive individual and collective change.
My Story
My interest in the science of well-being and inner development began more than a decade ago. It started during a time when I was trying to advance my career a settle into a new country while navigating the effects of a lifelong battle with trauma and anxiety.
Eventually, the strategy of just "pushing through" caught up with me. I hit a wall of debilitating burnout, chronic pain, and an illness that significantly limited my life. I tried to force my way through it, as I had done my whole life, but things only got worse. I was left with no choice but to find a completely different way to rebuild my strength, recover my health, and rekindle my sense of purpose.
That crisis is what led me to research and learn about the science of well-being. It began with meditation, which opened the door to studying neuroplasticity, self-compassion, mindful leadership, and mind-body healing techniques. Along the way, I worked with wonderful mentors who guided me and helped me develop the agency to truly own my choices and change my circumstances for the better.
As my health returned, I realized that these skills weren't just helping me feel better, they were also changing how I related to myself and the world around me. Within a few years of recovering and gradually rebuilding my sense of purpose, I successfully defended my PhD thesis and went on to obtain certifications as mindfulness meditation teacher and mindful leadership mentor.
Going through that journey showed me the immense power of developing our inner strengths and capacities. It taught me how exploring and understanding our minds, emotions, and values forms the foundation upon which wise, effective action is built. I chose to share this approach not just for people navigating their own challenging times, but for anyone looking to take meaningful action for their own flourishing and the flourishing of others.
The skills I used to change my circumstances for the better are skills you can learn too.
I work with individuals, teams and organizations to develop the specific inner skills, strengths and capacities most relevant to their own context. Through a unique process of assessment, reflection, and simple practices I help people build inner foundations they can rely on, to see new possibilities, develop different ways of being and make a tangible difference for themselves and their communities.
I know from experience that our inner skills are not just “nice to have.” traits. In our complex world, they are among the most essential resources we have for navigating challenges, restoring our health and vitality, and acting from our deepest values with with purpose, determination and impact..
What I Believe
The resilience, purpose, and agency to navigate hard times and change our circumstances for the better are skills that can be trained. Building our inner foundation is one of the most impactful things any of us can do. For ourselves, for each other, and for our shared future.
Interested in working together?
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