Candace Blair

July 2019 Issue

by Michele Roldán-Shaw
Photography by Christian Lee

The first career of Candace Blair was interesting enough. Twenty years as a high-powered finance executive on the trading floors of Zurich and London kept her moving through an elite world that few will ever see. But her second career, and the journey that led to it, is even more fascinating.

“I left in Jimmy Choos and came back in a turban,” jokes Candace, who recently returned to the States to start her business Soul Fire Social, a platform on which she shares the healing and self-development techniques that have transformed her own life.

Although she thrived in finance, the habit of constantly going 150 miles-an-hour inevitably took its toll. Work hard, play hard, exercise hard—Candace knew she wasn’t grounded. She started having chronic back pain, and after going to many doctors without result, a friend recommended she consult a healer from Sri Lanka. He told her, “There’s nothing wrong with your back. You’re just running on empty and you haven’t taken a breath deeper than the top quarter of your chest in way too long.” So she took his Kundalini class, which was the start of the rest of her life.

“I left that first class in tears,” Candace says. “I felt grounded, I felt connected, I wanted to help my fellow man—I was just overwhelmed with emotion. I was so fascinated by what was happening to me that I wanted to learn more.”

Continuing with the practice, Candace found she was better at her job—calmer, clearer, more focused and better able to handle the stress. But she realized that financial research didn’t interest her as much anymore; she wanted to research meditation and yoga instead.

“I started to change my focus,” she says. “I had been living in such a masculine world, always kind of on that aggressive edge. All of a sudden, I tuned into this incredible feminine, creative energy that I’d sort of denied myself, which started opening doors to all these beautiful experiences.”

In addition to Kundalini, she began to explore other practices, such as sound healing and sacred cacao ceremonies. There came a time when she had to take a big determined step, and although people said she was crazy for quitting at the peak of her career, that’s exactly what she did.

“I had to completely transform my lifestyle,” says Candace, who completed her Kundalini teacher training and even traveled to Sri Lanka. “A yoga teacher check is a lot different than a financial executive check! But I was willing to change my standard of living in order to follow my heart.”

The recent move to Hilton Head, where she had been coming on vacation with her family since age 8, gave Candace the opportunity to launch her new business in a community that has been tremendously welcoming and receptive. She hosts workshops, retreats and private sessions that feature ever-evolving blends of tools and practices she has found most helpful, including yoga, meditation, gong healing, crystals, sacred cacao ceremonies and more. She flourishes in collaborations, and loves going into other people’s home studios so they can try new practices in a familiar safe space. It is her joy to give back through volunteering, teaching and sharing goodness.

“I think there’s a need on the planet right now for people to come together, drop the ego and open up to new experiences,” says Candace. “People are raising their vibration, and I want to be a part of that. I want to be a catalyst for them to start living the lives they want and finding their truth within.”

Up Close:

Originally from: Virginia, but moved around a lot as a kid

Graduated from: Georgetown University with a degree in international politics

Best wild hair: Quitting her first job as a broker to travel the world for 1.5 years

Why she wears a turban: because it repels negative energy, grounds her own rising energy and pays homage to the spiritual tradition of Kundalini founders

More information: www.soulfiresocial.com