Founder of wellness studio Slow House and Remedi Room, Tash Coggan, has successfully turned a lockdown pastime into a successful business catering to the wellbeing needs of Sydney’s urbanites.
Let’s start with your background! Can you share with us your career journey and what you’re currently up to?
I started in fashion, where I worked for about 9 years before I decided in lockdown 2020 that I wanted to focus my career more on my personal passions in health and wellness, which lead me to open up Slow House Bondi, a luxurious recovery spa in the heart of Bondi Beach that offers private infrared sauna suites, fresh water ice baths and light therapy.
More recently, I have expanded into our second baby within the space, The Remedi Room, which now offers facials, massages and an in house registered nurse for all things medispa!
We’d love to know what a typical day is like for you. Could you describe a recent workday?
At the moment I am currently on a bit of a booze break! I am taking a few months off and spending more time focusing on what really lights my soul up! At the moment I have a routine of morning Body by Berner Pilates classes, followed by a sauna and ice bath before I open up the slow house at 10am. I am really enjoying my slow mornings and have found my daily ice bath is really helping keep my mind clear and on my best game!
Can you define work-life balance for yourself and share with us your approach in maintaining it?
I am a strong believer in work life balance, I have always been the type to work hard, but not at the expense of my happiness. These days there seems to be this “hustle mentality” that makes it ok to be completely burnt out.
I have had so many conversations with people recently that are based around how busy, tired or burnt out they are, and I just feel like people feel if you aren’t burnt out, then you’re not working hard enough, and I couldn’t disagree with this more.
I find I am most successful and abundant in my opportunities when I allow myself time to rest and recover, not only physically but mentally too. Slow House lives by the mantras of slow living – a lifestyle choice devoted to living in a more balanced, meaningful, and life-affirming way, making conscious everyday decisions to help decelerate modern life, developed on the foundation that you don’t have anything to give that you don’t already have.
I try living by this in my own life, by putting my mental and physical health f before anything else when it comes to work-life balance.
Change is constant, and it’s essential for growth. Have you made any lifestyle changes in the past year to improve your work-life balance?
Yes! More ice baths and less coffee!
We’re always on the lookout for new resources! Can you recommend any books, podcasts, or newsletters that have helped you in your journey towards balance?
I mean, I love the Jay Shetty podcast – but who doesn’t? I am currently reading How to Be Well by Dr Karen Coates. It’s an easy read, sharing an innovative five-pillared approach to wellness and a personal health audit to empower us along our paths to better energy, vitality, and stress resilience. Highly recommend it! I learnt so much in the first 5 pages!
Before we wrap up, do you have any final words of wisdom or insights on work, life, or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?
A little quote I often read in moments of the brain cloud from my favourite IG page, @writers. “In those nights where you are feeling overwhelmed just remember you are going to figure things out eventually. It doesn’t have to be tonight. Take a deep breath, relax your shoulders, and get some rest, you will manage.”
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