In February 2015 I was made redundant from a job that had got me through most of my uni years. I had a month to find a job that would work with my busy uni schedule and cover my living expenses. Week three into the search and a week before my 23rd birthday I was beginning to feel increasingly anxious and desperate. I felt like I had nothing to show for myself. No degree, no job, no relationship to speak of.

Then I saw an ad for a Centre Operator at Float Culture. I sort of knew the guys that started it, and I sort of knew what it was all about, so I applied, went for the interview and got the job the day before my birthday. I still secretly felt like the universe had cheated me, because I went from being an office admin to speed-cleaning showers.

Soon though, the cleaning aspect of the job didn’t seem that major. For me, the job became about the people that came through the doors of our float centre. I mean, you could categories them into athletes, young parents, high-power career people, yo-pros & hippies, if you really wanted to, but they have all come from different walks of life.

For instance, all our athletes are different. Some are MMA fighters, some are triathletes & some are IFBB Pros. Some float to have their mind totally cleared, and some do it to visualise fights- going through the motions or envisioning victory. No one experience is better than the other, it’s what each of them needs.

And not all yo-pros are the same either. A PR girl who feels a little anxious going in, because she doesn’t know how she’ll feel alone with her thoughts and comes out feeling more relaxed than ever; or a builder, who floats twice a month because he wants to get his meditation practice to the next level. They’re both different, but equally interesting.

I’ve had some of the most enticing conversations of my life with our clients at Float Culture, I’ve stayed there way past closing time, so engrossed in conversation I wasn’t even thinking about the time. The more I talked to our amazing clients and floated (read more about my float experience), the more I became certain that being made redundant was the best thing that could have happened to me this year.

In my eight months of work at Float Culture and I had completed a degree, got a job offer in digital marketing and done some spiritual growing. More importantly, I am now a part of the float culture made up of people who don’t necessarily share the same nationality, language & values, but support each other and are all connected in being open-minded.

By Lana