The Lounge Q+A: Jenny "Yuki" Adams, Esthetician

Were you always in this line of work?

It’s funny you asked because I still have my broker’s license for real estate. So just a little bit of background. I was born and raised in Oahu, living on Maui and got my real estate license in 2000 when the market started crashing. And then I got sick. I have type one diabetes and lupus. Back then, they didn’t have Obamacare. When you had a preexisting condition, they either didn’t insure you or the insurance was outrageous. So that kind of catapulted me into finding a career that I’m passionate about, which was skin. So I decided to go into this field.

Tell us about your Reiki practice.

Reiki is just one of many different techniques or things that you do, to heal your body. It’s mostly self-healing, but it’s more about your self-conscious awareness. You don’t have to be a believer for it to work. At some point, it just happens and you build your belief system. Reiki was more of an introduction to broaden my spectrum of learning about self-healing. To put it in simple terms: you settle down, you become still, and you focus on just your body. What I was doing was like a body scan. Reiki puts you in stillness and a sense of finding out what in your body hurts and you focus on that, and you’re concentrating on yourself. It taught me to relax and just be still and be calm.

How did you expand your spirituality?

It’s just a progression, that’s why they say life is a journey. You know, everybody has intentions. I learned that intentions are not necessarily goals. It’s more of an intention, something set every minute of the day, whereas a goal, you reach it. And then you’re like, okay, what do I do now? With intentions it’s I’m going to eat better today. Instead of saying, I’m going to lose 10 pounds this month. So it’s taught me how to look at things differently, with a more achievable lens and a more peaceful way of trying to get to that point where I want to be.

Should people consider this line of work if they are interested in their own self-care?

It doesn’t necessarily have to be your career. It could just be a path that you’re taking as far as lifestyle goes. That could lead you to maybe a different career or a different choice. It was a matter of figuring out for me what best serves me, what makes me feel, not complacent, but feel very at peace. That’s why I don’t do real estate anymore.

What are some positive things you have seen during this pandemic?

The community is getting together, food banks, and just people helping out one another. I took those things for granted because I was just so busy, hustling, hustling, hustling. Don’t take things for granted, just simple things, like food and shelter. We are lucky, and we live in a very beautiful, inspiring place with a lot of rich history.

How did you expand your spirituality?

It’s just a progression, that’s why they say life is a journey. You know, everybody has intentions. And I learned that intentions are not necessarily goals. It’s more of an intention, something set every minute of the day, whereas a goal, you reach it. And then you’re like, okay, what do I do now? With intention it’s like, I’m going to eat better today. Instead of saying, I’m going to lose 10 pounds this month. So it’s taught me how to look at things differently, with a more achievable way and a more peaceful way of trying to get to that point where I want to be.

Should people consider this line of work if they are interested in their own self-care?

It doesn’t necessarily have to be your career. It could just be a path that you’re taking as far as lifestyle goes. That could lead you to maybe a different career or a different choice. It was a matter of figuring out for me what best serves me, what makes me feel, not complacent, but feel very at peace. That’s why I don’t do real estate anymore.

What are some positive things you have seen during this pandemic?

The community is getting together, food banks, and just people helping out one another. I took those things for granted because I was just so busy, hustling, hustling, hustling. Don’t take things for granted, just simple things, like food and shelter. We are lucky, and we live in a very beautiful, inspiring place with a lot of rich history.

What are some things we could learn from the Hawaiian way of life?

We gather around one another. When the purpose is for a community or a group, that is one of our legacies. Our Ohana is we protect our land. When it comes to the very cultural family-oriented things, going back to simplicity. Many local people are enjoying the beaches now because they’re not as crowded with tourists. It is good for the community.

What are some things you have done to make your business safer and healthier?

Just being very sterile. I purchased a humidifier that helps trap the virus. I also bought an air purifier with a UV PM, 2.5 filter inside. I also purchased a UV room sterilizer. I removed all the furniture that has fabric.  I feel that it’s not going to go back to normal, but the Pocketsuite app, I want to tell you, has been so helpful during this time. With one tap, I was able to send messages to all of my 280 something clients. And to say, “Hey, you know, there’s, COVID, I’m going to be closed, but I’m still here for you. Let me know if you need anything.” I was able to send it to all of my clients and it addressed them personally by name with each text message. I was getting text message after text message, like, “Oh my gosh, that’s so sweet. Thank you!” You know, with all these heart emojis and everything ❤️. It was so easy.

What are your feelings about the future?

I’m just excited about the transition and the energy of everybody’s different ways of thinking about how they’re going to come out of this. I already see better versions of people’s selves. I love that, you know? I was telling a client the other day, who’s struggling, I said, “You’re on this journey, and you decide who gets to go along for the ride with you. Surround yourself with those who you want to be in the car with because they’ll be stuck with you for a while.”