Meet Chelsea Sedlak, our Northern California Pack Leader.
Chelsea on Instagram | Join the NorCal Pack
Chelsea has a thirst for adventure, a deep passion to get out in the wild, dedicates her free time to take women in the outdoors and during the week is a behavioral interventionist for children with Autism.
When you talk to Chelsea, you quickly realize she has a warm, inviting energy that fills you up and gives a boost of joy. She touches each person with this gift; with her inner beauty and confidence that shines strong.
Here’s her Howl Often story.
C - What does it mean to Howl?
Chelsea -
“For me, to Howl Often is to be unequivocally myself in every aspect of my life. I am always seeking ways to expand myself.”
I believe we are always evolving as individuals and I try to embrace those changes in myself. I find it necessary and important to embrace the ways I change because it teaches me humility. I’ve found it’s important to be humble in my life.
C - How did you come to that belief … That being humble and authentic in your life is an important and valued aspect.
Chelsea - The experiences from traveling internationally so much over the years allowed me to see the world in a different perspective.
“I’ve realized that life is bigger than me, I am a small speck of the world I live in and I try to treat life and the Earth with respect. This perspective helps me stay humble and take every opportunity as a learning experience to work on growing myself as a human.”
C - Yes, going abroad opens our eyes to different ways of life and different views of the world.
Chelsea - I agree. I’ve been to Europe and third-world countries - areas that are on vastly different sides of the spectrum. I’ve seen a lot. This helps me when I’m having a bad day. My bad day is a lot better than many of those who are in third-world countries. From immersing myself in different cultures, it reminds me how I need to be appreciative of my life now.
C - How do you Howl in your daily life to feel fullness?
Chelsea - In every situation I come across, I try to be myself while at the same time understanding people from their perspective. This helps me be objective in situations and stay true to who I am. This mindset and behavior shows through in my career. I am a behavioral interventionist for children with Autism. When I am truly myself I connect better with the children I work with and their families.
C - When I learned of your day job, I thought about the intensity of the job and how much you have to give yourself to your patients daily. This must be tiring over time. How do to you fill yourself up?
Chelsea - I make it a point to hike every Sunday and find peace during the week by going an a little walk on a bike path 10 minutes down the street. This helps me relieve stress and find balance between my work and personal life.
C - You bring up a good point, we can live for those epic outdoor adventures, but the importance of the quick daily walk or bike ride for a recharge are often overlooked.
What outdoor accomplishment was a stretch for you and what did you learn from it?
Chelsea - Hiking on inclines is really hard for me! I can run marathons but get me on an incline and I’m sweating lots! Now I try to find a trail that has a big incline and elevation gain just to push my limits. I know it’s going to be hard but I also know that I’ll improve with practice.
C - Can you share Wild Wisdom that you live by?
Chelsea - One of my mantras that I tell myself is to show up 100% of the time, keep going and remember whatever the obstacle, there is always a learning opportunity - so keep going!
I think we should allow ourselves a grace period to absorb what we are going through with these obstacles. Remember that it’s a learning opportunity to grow.
“As women, we are emotional beings and we need to be ok with what we are experiencing. If we don’t allow ourselves the emotional space to process, we will exhaust ourselves. ”
C - What book do you recommend?
Chelsea - Women Who Run With the Wolves!!!!
I haven’t quite finished it yet. It’s a very dense book and lots to learn! The book gave me a boost to further evolve myself.