Born on a gold mine

Cheyanne Donald was born on a gold mine in Alaska. Her parents were hippies. Their nearest neighbors lived eight miles away. She grew up skiing under full moons, building a house, and believing there was no wrong decision. Just a decision. At a young age she moved to California with fifty dollars in a duffel bag and a phone number for a Taekwondo instructor. From there, she built a life that didn't follow anyone's plan. She taught herself bodywork by reading every book her dad threw on a shelf for her. She studied every modality she could find. She raised her daughter alone, worked four jobs at a time when she needed to, and built a 30-year practice entirely by word of mouth. She also became an artist who runs festivals in Santa Cruz under a business she calls White Rabbit. In this episode, Cheyanne and Vlada Bortnik talk about what it takes to build a life on your own terms. The ego trap of trying to be the magic. The discipline of staying out of your own way. And what changes when you stop treating society's path as the only one. ▶️ Watch the full episode now. 👤 About Cheyanne Donald: Cheyanne Donald is a Bay Area artist and creative force whose work blends art-making, community building, and thoughtful curation. She is the creative mind behind White Rabbit Social Club, a community-oriented art and vendor collective she built from the ground up to give makers and artists the space, support, and audience she wished she had when she started vending her own work. 💻 Cheyanne can be found: Instagram:   / white_rabbit_ink_   Website: https://wearethewhiterabbit.com/ ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: LinkedIn:   / vlada   Substack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/ Instagram:   / vladabortnik   Marco Polo: https://www.marcopolo.me/ 📎 Resources mentioned: White Rabbit Social Club: https://wearethewhiterabbit.com/ 🎧 This episode is also available on Spotify and Apple: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3TyE... Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... #HeartfulWonders #FollowingYourHeart #Bodywork #SomaticHealing #Artist #LivingOnYourOwnTerms #PersonalGrowth