Meet Kimberlee Morrison | Writer & Yoga Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kimberlee Morrison and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kimberlee, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
When I started my freelance writing business there were several motivating factors: I was a young, single, working mother and corporate life was not friendly. I’d like to say balancing a full-time job with motherhood was difficult; the truth is that it was pretty much impossible. I could kind of pretend during the school year, but when summer came, I couldn’t afford child care, nor did I want to leave my kids home alone for days at a time. I was fortunate that my boss and the Editor-in-chief for the magazine was also a single, working mother who understood my challenge and agreed to let me work from home during the Summer. This was the exception though, and I hated returning to the office during the school year, when my kids went back to being latchkey. Meanwhile, I was working with a couple of freelance clients, dreaming of the possibility of going freelance full-time. My biggest fear was losing the security of a regular paycheck. So when the magazine decided to move the editorial department to New York and presented me with the options to either move with no assistance, or take a lovely severance package, I was excited to take the severance. It was the perfect opportunity to take my leap of faith with a bit of a safetynet

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The pandemic lockdown was a shock to the system. I went from teaching regular weekly studio yoga classes, to being cut off from my yoga community. I taught a couple free classes, and immediately realized that was not going to be sustainable. How would I continue to teach and reach my community? Creating an online studio seemed the best option. Love Revolution Yoga (http://loverevolution.yoga) was like a revelation. It’s a theme that had come up in previous classes, and I decided to base my entire yoga studio offering around this idea of radical self-love. The way I see it, love is the ultimate revolution against the oppressive systems of patriarchy, capitalism and white supremacy — but we have to start with learning to love ourselves before we can learn to love anyone else. For me, the Love Revolution is the answer to so much of the injustices in the world, and the process of creating this online studio, during a pandemic and racial unrest gave me more clarity on how yoga can be a practice for social justice as well. This might sound crazy to people who know me and have taken my classes, It’s a really exciting feeling to finally find my own voice as a teacher. I’m sure I’ve had my own voice for a while, but I feel like I’ve really grown into it. I’m also proud of my ability to be agile and resilient in the face of such extremely challenging and uncertain times. I credit this resilience as an entrepreneur to my years of experience as a freelancer and solopreneur. Right now Love Revolution Yoga is in the very early stages of development, but I’m excited to see where it goes!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Why is my friend coming to visit during a pandemic?! LOL. I’ll assume no pandemic. 😉 I’d want to spend the first couple days in Sedona. We’d stay at one of my favorite AirBnBs (with a hot tub) and hike some my favorite trails. Day one we go to West Fork, followed by lunch at Oak Creek Brewery and a little shopping in TTlaquepaque Village. Day two we might go on a little peace tour to Bell Rock, the Chapel of the Holy Cross, the Airport Vortex, and the Amitabha Stupa Peace Park. We’d have to also squeeze in at least one meal at Open Range Grill (the view from the patio is amazing!). On the way out of town, I might make a detour to the Red Rooster Cafe in Cottonwood. Back in the Valley, we’d have to do yoga (CorePower or Twisited Yoga) and brunch (Snooze or Postino). I’d take them for a leisurely hike in South Mountain followed by lunch or dinner at Postino, Cafe Boa, or Kabuki. For drinks I love Bitter and Twisted or Cornish Pasty in Phoenix. I love both the Phoenix Art Museum and the Heard Museum, so maybe we’d spend a day checking out the latest exhibits and then check out Breadfruit & Rum Bar.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The Freedom Writers Foundation (http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/) played a huge part in my success! My involvement with the Freedom Writers enabled me to see the world, publish my first book, and become the first college graduate in my family. Being a Freedom Writer absolutely laid the foundation for my professional writing career.

Website: http://loverevolution.yoga
Instagram: https://instagram.com/loverevolutionyoga
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kymlee/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loverevolutionyoga/