Embracing the Light & Building Community in NH

When Tanya Sakolsky returned to New Hampshire after nearly thirty years away, she brought her wellness business, Embrace the Light, with her. What she did not bring was the community she had spent years building in Los Angeles.

She needed to find clients, make local connections, and learn how to grow in a very different market. That search led her to the NH SBDC. Over the past year, Business Advisor Ashley Warwick has helped Tanya build connections across the state, access legal support, and explore new opportunities.

Tanya has always been sensitive to what other people can't quite seem to name.

As a young child, that sensitivity showed up as unexplained fears, anxiety, and nervousness. When therapy failed to help her understand what was going on, her father suggested she visit an intuitive who specialized in past life regressions.

During a hypnosis-like session, Tanya had what she describes as a conversation with the fear itself. The experience helped her understand some of the why behind what she was feeling and reduced some of those fears.

Years later, after a series of profound losses in her twenties, she began exploring alternative methods of healing more deeply. What had once frightened her eventually became the foundation of her career.

Today, Tanya runs Embrace the Light, an energy healing and Reiki practice based in Canaan, NH. She works virtually with sensitive souls and people navigating life transitions, offering past life regressions, sound baths, one-on-one healing sessions, property clearings, and workshops.

Her move into entrepreneurship happened gradually. Selling crystals on Instagram was one of the first ways she stepped into the identity of an energy healer, and for a long time, the business model worked well.

Then, in late 2024 and early 2025, Instagram sales began to decline. Rather than seeing it only as a setback, Tanya took it as a cue to shift her focus toward workshops and expanded healing offerings.

By then, she had spent years building her practice and network in Los Angeles. Moving back to New Hampshire meant starting over in many ways.

“Los Angeles and rural New Hampshire, I quickly learned, don't quite operate the same way,” Tanya shares.

An online search for business resources eventually led her to NH SBDC. When she found the organization, her reaction was simple: “What do I have to lose?”

She booked an appointment.

The challenge was not necessarily her business model. Tanya needed to understand how to find clients and build community in a place that worked very differently from the market she had left.

Someone to Bounce Ideas Off of and Root for You

Working with Ashley gave Tanya a resource that felt specific to her business. Rather than sorting through general information online, she had someone who could listen to what she was trying to accomplish and point her toward the right people, organizations, and opportunities.

One of those connections was WREN (Women's Rural Entrepreneurial Network) in Bethlehem, NH. Ashley also holds in-person NH SBDC office hours at WREN on Wednesdays, giving local business owners an opportunity to meet with her directly. Appointments can be booked by emailing ashley.warwick@unh.edu.

For Tanya, the connection to WREN opened the door to new opportunities. She hosted a workshop there in June focused on the energy of business and being in communication with your business for its maximum growth.

This fall, she is launching a monthly mixer for empathic and sensitive entrepreneurs, beginning Thursday, September 24. She also has a second workshop on boundaries in business planned for October.

Advice that Spans a Broad Range of Knowledge

Ashley also connected Tanya with the LeAF program, which provides no-cost legal and financial assistance for businesses. Through this, Tanya received legal help reviewing and tailoring contracts for different parts of her practice.

For Tanya, having help with those foundational pieces has been an important part of building the business in a sustainable way.

Instead of offering a single recommendation or connection, Ashley has continued to adjust alongside the business and bring in additional support when it makes sense.

“Understanding where extra support is needed and allowing me to say the direction I want it to go, and then being like, okay, let's do it,” is how Tanya describes what has made the relationship so valuable.

Tanya works in a space where there are still educational gaps, and much of her growth depends on helping people understand what she offers. That makes word of mouth and community especially important. 

There is more she wants to do.

Tanya plans to expand her workshops and sound baths while bringing smaller services and energy checks into workplaces, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and more. She is continuing to grow the bodywork side of her practice and is in the process of getting her massage license.

A physical space may come next. When she begins looking for a location to rent, she expects NH SBDC will again be part of the process!

For Those Building Outside the Mold

Tanya's advice to other entrepreneurs, especially those building something outside the usual mold, is to make use of the resources available to them.

“There are organizations in your state that are built to help you,” she said. “And especially while they still have funding, use them.”

For a solo entrepreneur, she believes having someone to talk through ideas with can make a meaningful difference.

“One of the best gifts you can give yourself as a solo entrepreneur is a meeting with NH SBDC. Having a small business can be a very lonely journey, especially during the early stages. NH SBDC makes me feel like I have a bonus employee who understands how community works. I am incredibly grateful to have them in my corner.”

For Tanya, NH SBDC has become more than a source of business advice. It has helped her find the people, resources, and connections she needed to begin putting down new roots for Embrace the Light in New Hampshire.