Living Life in Positivity and Possibility. The Life Story of Erika Fehrenbach Prell

By Jackie White

Life stories. Everyone has one. Today, we are lucky enough to get a peek at the amazing life of my friend and business partner, Erika.

As I began the interview with Erika, I didn’t really think we would have such a conversation about Erika’s name and that she is Erika Fehrenbach (SPACE) Prell not Erika Fehrenbach (HYPHEN) Prell. Quirky - yup, that’s Erika.

Let me explain, Erika states that she strongly identifies with her given name and when she married she didn’t necessarily want to give that name up, but she also didn’t want to not take on her husband’s name, so to give each name the place it deserves, each stand separately (no hyphen) yet together and that is a great definition of my friend, Erika. She is independent, yet thrives off of the connections with her family and friends.

If you know Erika, you will know that life is all about family and friends. Erika has been married to Adam for 14 years and they have 3 beautiful children: Ethan 12, Liam 7 and bonus baby, Lucy 20 months. They are a busy family attending lots of sporting events, family gatherings and chasing around a very energetic toddler! 
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Following Your Heart
Erika made up her mind as a child that she wanted to help people when she grew up. Initially, she thought she would become a doctor but, as she saw the benefit to total mind, body and soul care, she felt that being a nurse practitioner might be a better choice for her. Because of a series of cardiac related events in the lives of a close family friend and her own father, Erika felt a calling to work in cardiac surgery. The opportunity to make a difference for others was on her heart (pun intended!) She listened to that calling and in that opportunity she found that she really enjoyed educating the patient and the patient’s families about how to take care of themselves. 

Erika worked as a nurse practitioner for 5 years before life began nudging her in another direction. Erika found that her beloved career became difficult to manage because working full time and caring for her family wasn’t balancing out as she had hoped. That is when Erika took a leap of faith and stepped into a direct sales career where she still works as an independent consultant for Arbonne, a company that offers a holistic approach to beauty, health and well-being. The great benefit Erika never considered was that through this direct sales opportunity she was exposed to the skills involved in being an entrepreneur and to the study of personal development. These were things that she never really had considered and realized this was a door she wanted to walk through.

Fast forward a few years and Erika had by then immersed herself fully into personal development. She was encouraging others by posting inspirational quotes daily on social media. This attracted the attention of another personal development junkie and that would be me, Jackie White. At that point in time, I was searching for a way to harness my love of personal development and share it with others, so I approached Erika and asked her if she wanted to work together...on something, we just didn’t know what.
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What we found was a great partnership of two unlikely characters. Although Erika and I had met years ago, little did we know that we must have been separated at birth because we have the same thoughts and can finish each other’s sentences. It’s hilarious, yet actually kinda creepy! 
Through the launch of SoulShine Life Connections we were both excited and scared to forge ahead in unknown territory, but both knew that growth and comfort rarely go together.

Erika and I have enjoyed our time learning, sharing and inspiring others together. SoulShine is the purpose for both of us, and we do not consider it work. When asked, Erika states that her purpose is “to help open people’s eyes and bring awareness to where they are in life and help them understand if they are on the right path”. She further explains that she wants people to examine if they are living an inspired life or just going through the motions.

Erika would tell you that SoulShine is her purpose, but being the mindset manager that she is, Erika says that there are things you don’t love even in the thing you love the most, but finding the positives in it and growing from the experience is the best way to manage that. 

If you are searching for your purpose or maybe you know what that is, Erika has some advice for you that may help you along your way. You must follow your heart, face your fears and to do that you must take action. Getting your purpose in motion is important. One other very important thing to remember in life is that you need to stay inspired and motivated to continue the momentum of your purpose. Your purpose when followed will fill your life with meaning and joy.  This other piece of advice is critical to following the path of your dreams, and that is comparison is the thief of joy. Your dream is about you and your joy, and it has nothing to do with anyone else’s path. Focus on your dreams with positivity and possibility.
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Erika Fehrenbach (SPACE) Prell is a great example to others on how to follow your dreams, take action and keep joy in all that you do!
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Shine On!