Spotlight Stress In A Demanding Entertainment Industry – Exclusive Interview With Cathy Spaas

Cathy Spaas is a world-class expert and speaker, who advocates the superpowers that come along with being a highly sensitive person. She is a highly gifted, lively, and passionate mother, wife, and horse girl. As a former elite international showjumper, Cathy is no stranger to the spotlight herself and the unique pressures faced by those ascending to the upper echelons of their profession.

Cathy developed the ‘Claim-your-Shine’ modality to shift from suffering and surviving to thriving and has been guiding hundreds of artists and performers to their inner sparkle.

She is focused on hosting the show 'Spotlight Stress', writing a self-help book, and supporting professional misfits to find their way home.

Cathy Spaas, HSP-advocate, Author, Speaker & Host

Introduce yourself! Please tell us about you and your life, so we can get to know you better.

As an empathic high-achiever, there has always been a lot of passion flowing through my life. Now, this may sound rough, but since the birth of my second child it felt like I had been dying a little bit inside; having physical limitations for several years (creating 2 babies), lacking the energy to thrive in my business, and feeling completely lost set me back for quite some time.

When you are looking at yourself in the mirror, and don’t recognize the person staring back at you, you find yourself at an interesting turning point. It meant once again reinventing myself, and that’s where I’m at right now: Discovering whom I want to be as a mother, wife, woman, horse girl, and business mogul, failing epically at it 😊 and readjusting my sails to get back on track.

I think it’s been an intense few years for a lot of people, and I surely am one of them. Hopefully, others can also feel the tide turning the way I do. There is space opening up for us to breathe again, connect with our true purpose, and tune in with love and joy.

What kind of audience do you target your business towards?

Most artists are highly sensitive people, performing in an industry that puts your every move under a magnifying glass, which can cause a lot of stress for the brain: Spotlight Stress. You can relate when you are often feeling lost, misunderstood, and powerless, while worrying, feeling overwhelmed (or afraid), and exhausted.

Do you feel ready to commit to yourself and your best life? For the past 5 years, I’ve been guiding professional artists and performers who relate to being highly sensitive and highly driven. Mostly women between the age of 25 and 45 connect with me, often with a go-getter mentality yet feeling insecure and not aware of their full potential.

You adore being in nature and spending time with animals and are unquestionably loyal to your loved ones. While you are very professional and good at what you do, you can also be a perfectionist – believing most of the time that your work isn’t good enough. Sometimes you can struggle with brain noise, and other times taking over the energy/emotions of others can be draining; leaving you tired and restless at the end of the day. I see you, mama.

What are your current goals for your business?

After coaching full-time for 5 years, I’m focusing on speaking, writing a self-help book, and hosting the show ‘Spotlight Stress’ to create more awareness in the demanding entertainment industry.

I feel deeply passionate about educating the industry on mental health and mindset, and providing them with practical tools and strategies so these artists and performers can finally come home to their own lives.

Who inspires you to be the best that you can be?

My late grandfather was the mayor of my hometown for 18 years, and long after his mandate had ended people still talked about him with such a warm heart. He could take your hand, and you would feel the love pouring through. When looking into his eyes, you felt he was fully present with you. I am deeply blessed to have had that amount of love during my childhood, and both my grandparents led the way for me and my brother on kindness, honesty, and serving others. My grandfather was modest, never asked for anything, and loved to laugh. The way he served his community, is the way I want to serve mine; with a warm and caring heart.

What is your work inspired by?

During a burnout years ago, I had to reinvent myself completely. I felt useless, insecure, and worthless, but that was also the moment I was able to turn my world around and create myself as a happy person who loves life to the fullest. I was able to claim my shine and own it, and that is how I started educating myself on the highly sensitive brain, coaching techniques, and success strategies for performing under pressure. So you can say I love to mix science with personal experience, and a pinch of spirituality.

If you could change one thing about your industry, what would it be and why?

Integrating mindset strategies as a daily routine would be part of the entertainment industry.

We would be creating more openness, making the people involved feel included, understood, and part of a community that takes care of them, instead of advantage as can often be the case.

There would be a (teaching)platform and community for performers to fall back on when they feel the need for guidance to build confidence, find their superpower, and claim their shine. Without all the fuss and drama but because it’s completely natural.

If you feel this resonates with you, or if you’re looking for a speaker, connect with me here to schedule a discovery call and discover the opportunities to serve you or your community. 🙏 💞✨

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Read more from Cathy!