Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Bahadur.
Erin, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I started my blog Erin’s Inside Job in 2013. Prior to that, I was an honor roll student who found herself wrapped up in a serious drug and alcohol addiction. I managed to graduate college in three years and started attending pharmacy school as my addiction progressed. I was stealing pills from the pharmacy I had worked in since high school and was eventually arrested for those thefts. I was expelled from pharmacy school and lost my job. With no income, I turned to heroin for several months until finally checking myself into rehab. After being clean for 3 months, I was sentenced for the theft and received 12 months in jail, restitution, community service and 5 years of supervised probation.
I served 9 out of 12 months and was released. I struggled to find a job, which eventually took about 3 months. After finding work in the healthcare field and being promoted, I moved to Chicago with my husband as his work took him here. I decided to switch careers to one I found more fulfilling which was that of a personal trainer. I wanted to take my experience with exercise and disordered eating and help others find a more balanced way to live. I also taught fitness classes on both a studio and corporate level.
Last year, I was able to make the shift to self-employment by incorporating both my personal training business and my blog business. I balance my time between the two and work to spread awareness about addiction and mental illness, hoping to lessen the stigma surrounding both!
You can read my story in more detail here: http://erinsinsidejob.com/2014/06/tuesday-truth/.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Definitely not. I lost everything that I had been working towards and basically had to start my life over again. I was prohibited by court order from working in a job that dispensed medication and that was all the work experience I had. I lost a lot of friends and broke the trust of people I cared about.
It was a struggle finding a job after jail but eventually, I was able to because an office didn’t run a background check. I ended up being promoted at that job which was great. All I needed was a second chance.
My probation was a big part of my life because for 5 years, I wasn’t allowed to leave the country and would have to get written permission every time I left the state. I had monthly probation fees to pay and demeaning drug tests. We moved twice during those times and I needed to have my probation changed to a different state which meant repeating a lot of the same things and needing to earn another person’s trust who had been jaded by the criminal justice system. It was a lot.
Once I got past many of those hurdles it became easier, but it was definitely hard for those first 5 years or so.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Erin’s Inside Job story. Tell us more about the business.
I have two actually — Erin Bahadur, Inc. which is my personal training company and Erin’s Inside Job, Inc. which is my blog.
My personal training is done independently either in my building or my client’s. I try to approach fitness as part of a healthy lifestyle and not something that should be done to punish yourself or reach unrealistic goals.
My blog, Erin’s Inside Job, is a health and lifestyle blog that addresses more than just physical health. I believe to be a healthy person, true wellness comes from within, which means taking care of the mental and emotional health too. I’ve been diagnosed with depression, so I talk about issues with that. I talk about my experiences with all of this in order to help others realize that they’re not alone and there’s hope that things can get better. I encourage people to find a balance that works for them and not what’s thrown at them all the time from social media.
I’m proud that I can do both of these things and the reception I have gotten proves that they’re both important. I want to help break the stigma around depression and mental illness and show that we are more alike than different.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I think the closest thing to luck that has helped me out has been being in the right place at the right time. Starting a blog now, for example, is much harder than starting it four, seven, or even ten years ago. The stakes are higher. You have to put in a lot more work to reach a bar that didn’t exist previously. I’m even a couple years late on it but thankfully I’m doing alright! 🙂
I don’t know about bad luck. I think luck is what you make of it, unless something is really a fluke or way outside of your control. Everything bad that’s happened to me I feel is for a reason and I’ve found a way to learn from it. Otherwise you get stuck and fail to move forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.erinsinsidejob.com
- Email: erinsinsidejob@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/erinsinsidejob/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/erinsinsidejob
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/erinsinsidejob
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
