Your Way Back to Happy: Healing Trauma and Choosing Happiness as an Entrepreneur
Your Way Back to Happy: Healing Trauma and Choosing Happiness as an Entrepreneur
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Running a business often looks glamorous on the outside—freedom, flexibility, financial growth. But for many entrepreneurs, what’s unseen is the weight of past pain, unhealed trauma, and the emotional toll of constantly “pushing through.”
In a recent episode of the Lazy Entrepreneur Podcast, I sat down with Janelle Bruland—entrepreneur, executive coach, and author of Your Way Back to Happy: How to Turn the Pain of Your Past into a Future of Freedom, Purpose, and Peace.
Our conversation uncovered powerful truths about what it really means to lead while carrying trauma, how healing can transform not only our personal lives but our businesses, and why choosing happiness daily is an essential skill for entrepreneurs.
This article will dive deeper into the key lessons from our conversation:
What trauma really is (and why most of us underestimate it).
The difference between resilience and numbing.
How entrepreneurs’ greatest strengths can also block healing.
Tools like meditation, breathwork, and mindset shifts that bring true freedom.
Why happiness is not a destination, but a daily choice.
What Is Trauma in Entrepreneurship?
When we hear the word “trauma,” many people think of extreme cases—war veterans, abuse survivors, or catastrophic accidents. But as Janelle explained, trauma can be much broader than that.
At its most basic level, trauma is any situation where you feel helpless or out of control.
That means:
A business failure.
A humiliating experience with a client.
A betrayal in a partnership.
Even subtle moments of rejection.
All of these experiences can leave a mark on how we show up as entrepreneurs and leaders. Trauma doesn’t have to be life-threatening to be life-altering.
Janelle shared her own wake-up call—a complete meltdown at the airport after a turbulent flight. What looked like simple fear of flying turned out to be unresolved pain from her past bubbling to the surface.
For me personally, it was an experience with a podcast host who dismissed me and made me feel small. That moment triggered deep feelings of not being enough, proving that trauma comes in many forms—and it shapes the way we respond to life.
Entrepreneur Resilience vs. Numbing
Entrepreneurs are wired to achieve. We set goals, push through obstacles, and “make it happen.” But here’s the problem: the same traits that make us successful can prevent us from truly healing.
As Janelle said, you can’t achieve healing—you have to allow it.
There’s a fine line between resilience and numbing:
Resilience is facing challenges, processing emotions, and moving forward stronger.
Numbing is burying feelings, ignoring pain, and masking it with more work.
Many entrepreneurs confuse the two. We think, “I’m strong, I moved on.” But in reality, unprocessed pain lingers beneath the surface, waiting to resurface in stressful situations.
Learning the difference—and creating space to actually feel emotions—is essential for sustainable success.
How Trauma Shapes Leadership
Unhealed trauma doesn’t just affect your inner world; it affects your leadership style, decision-making, and relationships.
For example:
If you experienced rejection, you may hesitate to pitch bold ideas.
If you faced betrayal, you may micromanage your team.
If you were criticized, you may constantly doubt your abilities.
As Janelle explained, our minds don’t distinguish between past and present. A new situation that resembles an old wound can trigger the same emotional response, even years later.
This is why self-awareness is critical for entrepreneurs. Until you address the root cause, your trauma can quietly sabotage your growth.
Tools for Healing Trauma as an Entrepreneur
One of the most empowering parts of our conversation was Janelle’s practical tools for healing. These aren’t quick fixes—but they’re sustainable practices that build resilience and peace.
Meditation for Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs often live in constant “go-mode.” Meditation (or as some prefer, “quiet time”) allows the nervous system to slow down, thoughts to settle, and clarity to emerge.
Even 10 minutes of stillness can:
Reduce stress.
Improve focus.
Build emotional regulation.
Create space for better decision-making.
The key is consistency. It’s not about “doing it right”—it’s about creating a habit of stillness.
Breathwork for Healing
Most of us don’t breathe properly—especially if we’ve been through trauma. Shallow breathing keeps the body in fight-or-flight mode, increasing stress and health risks.
Breathwork exercises, such as box breathing (inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4), help bring the body back into balance.
For entrepreneurs, this is especially powerful during high-pressure moments—before a big sales call, presentation, or difficult conversation.
Mindset Resilience and Rewiring the Brain
Janelle emphasizes being the boss of your mind. That means catching negative loops, challenging limiting beliefs, and rewiring the brain through neuroplasticity.
Instead of assuming, “This client will probably reject me, just like before,” you learn to shift your perspective:
“That was one experience. This is a new one. I can show up with confidence.”
Mindset work, paired with practices like journaling and therapy, can help create new neural pathways and healthier patterns.
Why Entrepreneurs Need True Rest
Healing isn’t just about emotional practices—it’s also about rest.
Entrepreneurs often take “working vacations,” where they’re physically away but mentally still in the business. Janelle stressed the importance of truly unplugging—no emails, no business calls, no half-checking notifications.
She even took a year-long sabbatical, proving that with planning and trust in your team, it’s possible to step away without everything falling apart.
Regular breaks—whether a day, a week, or longer—are not luxuries. They’re necessary for long-term resilience and avoiding burnout.
Choosing Happiness Every Day
One of the most profound takeaways from our conversation was that happiness is not a destination—it’s a daily choice.
You can’t control everything that happens in business or life. But you can control:
How you respond.
What perspective you take.
Whether you choose bitterness or gratitude.
As Janelle writes in her book, perhaps the traits that made you a successful entrepreneur—efficiency, pushing through—are the very things holding you back from healing.
Choosing happiness means slowing down, feeling what needs to be felt, and intentionally designing your future instead of letting the past dictate it.
Key Takeaways for Entrepreneurs
Here are the big lessons from this episode:
Trauma isn’t always obvious. If you’ve ever felt helpless, dismissed, or out of control, you’ve experienced it.
Resilience ≠ numbing. True resilience allows space for emotions. Numbing ignores them.
Your past shapes your leadership. Until you heal, old patterns will resurface in new challenges.
Meditation and breathwork are powerful tools. They help regulate your nervous system and build clarity.
Rest is not optional. Learn to unplug, even if just for short breaks.
Happiness is a choice. Every day, you can choose freedom and peace, no matter your circumstances.
As entrepreneurs, we often focus on building businesses, scaling income, and achieving goals. But without healing, those accomplishments can feel empty or fragile.
The real work—the work that transforms both life and business—is facing trauma, building resilience, and choosing happiness daily.
Janelle Bruland’s Your Way Back to Happy is more than a book. It’s a roadmap for anyone who wants to turn past pain into a future filled with freedom, purpose, and peace.
If this message resonates with you, I highly recommend grabbing her book on Amazon and visiting her website.
Because at the end of the day—your business can only grow as much as you do. And choosing happiness may just be the smartest business decision you’ll ever make.
Where to Find More About Janelle Bruland
To learn more about Janelle and her work, you can visit her website at legacy-leader.com. There, you’ll find resources for entrepreneurs, her coaching programs, and more details about her book Your Way Back to Happy: How to Turn the Pain of Your Past into a Future of Freedom, Purpose, and Peace.
You can also purchase her book directly on Amazon to dive deeper into her personal story, practical tools, and healing roadmap.
