Indie Lee | Living with Passion, Purpose, and Presence
In this inspiring episode, we sit down with Indie Lee, founder of the leading clean beauty skincare company that’s her namesake. Indie shares her incredible journey, from going through the motions of life to being told she may have as little as six months to live, a diagnosis that led her to zero in on her life’s purpose in 15 minutes. Indie shares how this experience spurred her to build a successful brand while leading from her heart.
Show Notes:
Learn about Indie’s clean beauty skincare company Indie Lee
Follow Indie Lee Skincare on Instagram
Learn more about rheumatoid arthritis
Learn about spiritual awakenings
Learn about Nichiren Buddhism
Read the article "How the practice of Nichiren Buddhism sustained Tina Turner for 50 years"
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Nicole: [00:00:03] Welcome to Here For Me, a podcast about the power of choosing yourself. I'm Nicole Christie and I'm honored to be here with you to share life-altering stories, lessons learned, and advice from leading experts that will help you show up for yourself with the love, honor, compassion and encouragement you give to others. Because, just as we say “I'm here for you” to show we care for someone, saying “I'm here for me” to ourselves is the best form of self-care.
Today I'm talking with Indie Lee. Indie is the founder of her namesake skincare line initially peddled at farmers markets and now sold in more than 2000 stores worldwide. You've likely seen it at major retailers like Bluemercury, Nordstrom and Ulta. Indie Lee is a clean, eco-friendly, cruelty free line that was born out of Indy's own personal awakening.
In 2008, at the age of 37, with two children under ten, Indie was diagnosed with a brain tumor and told she had six months to live. Rather than sink into despair, Indie used it as an opportunity to rise.
She realized she'd been checking boxes—house, husband, kids career—but was a passenger in her own life. She wanted to leave a legacy of change of impact.
When her doctor told her the tumor was likely environmentally derived, possibly from something as simple as what she was putting on her skin, she understood this had happened not to her, but for her, and that her purpose for however long she would inhabit this earth, was to educate and empower others to live their healthiest lives.
We'll talk with Indie about how she prevailed over what many would say is the worst news anyone can receive and embarked on a journey of passion, perseverance and purpose. Indie, welcome to Here For Me.
Indie: [00:01:54] Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited for this conversation.
Nicole: [00:01:58] I am so honored. I just want to give a little context for listeners. We were connected by our dear mutual friend Jill Beck. So hello to Jill Beck.
She is an absolute force and it is no surprise to me that you were college roommates and that you've kept in touch for all these years, which is so incredible. But she was the first one to tell me about your journey and how it led you to a purpose that you never expected. And it's such an inspiring story.
And for a little more context, you were crushing it in the finance world in New York, first at Ernst and Young, then at HBO, traveling the world, racking up accolades and promotions and all the markers of material success. You married your college sweetheart. You had two beautiful children. You had a yellow lab. It was everything you had dreamed of and desired.
And then this news comes along and literally changes everything. So walk us through that moment. You were told you had a brain tumor. What had you been experiencing that led to this diagnosis? And how did you respond when you first heard the news?
Indie: [00:03:10] You know, it's so interesting because I'm coming up on almost 15-year anniversary of my diagnosis. So that would be November 8th, 2008.
And in June of 2008, I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. So that was my first intro to autoimmune diseases. I never really connected any dots with any other previous ailments or anything like that, but it was like that, Oh wow, oh, I have something going on.
But then continued, didn't even pause about it. And then in October of 2008, I was losing my peripheral vision. Immediately went to my internist and he's like, we need to send you for a scan. You're not somebody who complains. Last time you came in for what you thought was a tick bite. It was rheumatoid arthritis. Previous to that, it was a stomach ache and you had pancreatitis. And I wasn't a big drinker. So he's like, you're going for a scan right away.
And off I went for an MRI and an hour later he calls and says, can you come in? And I'm like, sure. Can you tell me what it is? And he said, No, I'd rather you just come in, which is not what you ever want to hear. And I said, Listen, I've got the keys in my hand, don't worry, but I'm going to go to WebMD or Google. And he said, Never a good thing. And he said, okay, you have a brain tumor.
Indie: [00:04:28] And I said, okay, I'll see you in 15 minutes. Now, this was November 4th, 2008. It was one of those perfect fall days on the East Coast. You had these gorgeous colors, gorgeous, the reds, the yellows, the greens, the oranges. I mean, it was just beautiful. The air was like perfectly crisp.
And as I'm driving, I like to say everything came into Technicolor, almost like when you go to an optometrist and it goes number one or number two, is it three or is it four? And it just became like completely, perfectly clear that up until that point, like you said, I was checking the boxes. I had to have two kids. Boy, girl, nailed it. Need to have the yellow lab. Got that too.
Had the career, the whole thing. But I was a passenger in my life, not an active participant. I wasn't actually living. I was just going through the motions. And I swore in that moment that this was happening for a reason. I didn't know what was to come, but something powerful would happen if I would just get out of my own way and allow it.
And I also made a promise to myself that whatever this was and forever along I had left, I was going to live every day with what I affectionately call the three Ps now, which is with passion, with purpose, and to be fully present in every moment. And here we are almost 15 years later, and I can tell you every day I make sure that I'm living with the three Ps.
And so by the time I got to the doctor’s, I was in a completely transformed place. I wasn't even concerned. I just was focused on living.
And he said, again, I don't know what this is. It doesn't look like cancer. And it wasn't, as it turned out, autoimmune disease. But he said, You need to go see some heavy hitters.
So I went up and down the East Coast to Johns Hopkins, Duke, NIH, Sloan-Kettering. And doctors would say, I'm so sorry. We don't know what this is, but you could have as little as six months left. You need to get your affairs in order and spend as much time with your kids as possible. They were five and eight.
And as Jill knows, I would say, oh, hell no, that's not how it's going down. And I swore that it was going to happen differently for me, that I was going to find a doctor that would give me a different diagnosis and prognosis. It was interesting. Between the first two specialists, I went to my neuroendocrinologist who at this point I now know is very progressive because he said to me, Well, we're seeing more and more of these things tied to the environment, because nobody in my family had anything like this.
Indie: [00:07:05] I'm like, environment, dude. I eat out of a greenhouse in my backyard that I'm growing my own vegetables in. Please environment. And he said, well, of course what you're putting in your body is part of the environment, the people you surround yourself, which was so interesting for him to say. Also the air you breathe.
He goes, Let me ask you a question. What do you put on your skin? What did your mother put on her skin when she was pregnant with you? And all of a sudden I was like, Whoa! And I'll never forget what we call my awakening. I knew in that moment what the whole thing was about. And now backtrack probably six months prior when I had found out that I had rheumatoid arthritis and I had already built a large greenhouse 750ft² in my backyard.
I was growing edible flowers, microgreens, selling them to Whole Foods. I was very involved with the farm to table movement, then got the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis, or as many call RA, and couldn't work in the greenhouse or the back farm. So I started to make products out of ingredients for my nephew, who was about to be born because I didn't want anything potentially harmful on his tush.
Indie: [00:08:12] Now, how I did not think about above that thinking, okay, well, it's not just about infants didn't put it together, but it was literally in that moment, as I'm looking at a fake Monet and a fake brass frame on that crunchy, crappy paper that is in every doctor's chair that I'm like, This is what I need to do.
That's what this is about. This is not about creating clean products for children because nobody knew about clean products at that point. This is much larger. I need to create a line that is safe, that is effective, that looks really beautiful on a shelf. And more importantly, I want to spend the rest of my life educating and empowering people to live the healthiest version of their life, whatever it looks like.
Because sometimes we know you can be fed lemons and you can turn them into lemonade or, as I like to say, limoncello. I left the doctor's office and I turned to my best friend who, by the way, now works in a warehouse operations right now and still is with me to this day. And I said, I know what this is about. I'm going to create a line of clean skincare. And she's like, okay, you don't know anything about beauty. I'm like, So she's like, How hard could it be? Let's do it. And here we are.
Indie: [00:09:18] You know, you're given six months. You get to decide how you're going to live it. And I every moment my children were home, I was spending it with them.
But when they were in school, I was speaking to every doctor, naturopathic, aromatherapist, dermatologist, you name it, chemist on creating products. And I started formulating in my kitchen and I was on a mission. And then I found a doctor who said, I'm willing to do surgery. I said, Fantastic, let's go. He said, Well, hold up. You have less than a 50% chance of waking up. And I'm like, That's better than none. I am dying. And he said, okay, we're going to do the surgery on April 22nd, which is Earth Day, my forever marketing gift.
And I took that as a big sign from the universe. If ever you're going to wake up to the rest of your life with a brand that is dedicated to stewardship of the Earth and clean and all that, that's a pretty good day. So Earth Day, I walked into the surgical suite and I said, Today is a great day to live. Put on some kickass music.
Now I will tell you, the doctors also then turned around and asked me if I was taking recreational drugs or drinking because they've never seen anybody walk into surgery quite so peppy before like that. I mean.
Nicole: [00:10:36] What are you on?
Indie: [00:10:36] Exactly. And can I have some? I mean, this was one of those things because you had the entire surgical theater, you know, where they're looking down. I mean, it was all that people were filing in to watch. I'm waving to them and they're like, what is this woman on? And so their anesthesiologist said, I think we should get a social worker in here. And I'm like, Oh, you think I'm nuts? And they're like a little bit. And I'm like, No, no, no, no, no, no.
Nicole: [00:10:58] I'm high on purpose. [00:11:00]
Indie: [00:11:00] That is exactly it. I said, No, no, no. Today is a great day. If I don't make it. I have closure in every aspect of my life. And when I do wake up, I've got some really important things to do. I'm going to go create change in the world. And I went to sleep.
When I went to sleep, I couldn't see from basically my entire peripheral vision. And when I woke up, I was able to see everything. You know, I opened my eyes and I'm like, Oh my God, I can see. And the nurse says, Yes, you're awake. I said, That's a great sign. But I wasn't able to see. And in walks the entire surgical team.
And I was like, Oh boy, this did not go the way I thought it did. And that's when the doctor said, You're done. He said, We got everything. Welcome to the rest of your life. I said, Great. Can I have a Scotch? He's like, No. I said, Cigar? And he's like, You're on oxygen. Frappuccino. He's like, You're not eating anything for a while. He goes, Who are you?
Nicole: [00:12:02] I'm ready to go.
Indie: [00:12:05] I'm ready to start living. I want to celebrate. And I've been off to the races ever since. I turned on the website probably eight weeks later.
Nicole: [00:12:16] Can I add, you talked about passion and purpose and being present.
I'm going to add another one, which is perseverance. You did not give up. You were like, I will do whatever it takes if I only have six months, this is what I'm going to do. I'm going to get it as far long as I can. And I love that. You were like, Well, right now you've told me I have six months to live. I'm five months in. You're told in November. It's now April.
So if this is a 50/50 shot, that's better than exactly what you said, the zero that I had. So kudos to you. And I love the analogy of the colors and fall, the Technicolor of you driving to the doctor's office and then waking up. And again, this clear vision, which I think has so informed what your purpose is.
And also we talk about prevailing, which is the season theme. You really grabbed life by the balls and were like, I'm going to make something happen. And you figured out your purpose in a span of hours. It's unbelievable.
Indie: [00:13:10] It was so clear to me what I needed to do and listen. As I said, I started creating some products for my nephew. So I was very attuned to the fact that there were a lot of things in the industry that were not being done right. And I knew that laws had substantially been unchanged since 1938. And the beauty industry, I knew you had to really be your own watchdog. I understood that the difference between formulations in Europe versus here in the US. So I had that knowledge, but I didn't put it together until that moment where I'm like,
Oh. What's fascinating, and our dear friend Jill will tell you, I was not a risk taker. If you looked up nerdy accountant, I was there, as people used to say. If you can describe yourself in a color, what would people describe you? I'm like, beige. clear. I'm like, now, I’m like fuchsia.
Nicole: [00:13:59] Yeah. You are like this bright Technicolor star. I would love to hear about that because you go from having this traditional career path and then you pivot in 15 minutes.
And yes, you'd been working in your greenhouse making products for your nephew, but how did that go? Walk us through that path of like, I'm going to be an entrepreneur. In 2008, there was not a lot happening in the clean beauty space. So how did you make that pivot?
Indie: [00:14:24] I think it's important to point out I left HBO probably at the end of 2003. I was doing some career consulting and things like that, recruiting. And then I went into the farm to table because I was looking at the rise of autism, ADHD. I had a son who was diagnosed with dyslexia and executive functioning like I was looking at what we're putting in our body.
So I had already left corporate, but I was still corporate minded because I was working for this company that was building school gardens. And before I knew it, I was basically doing finance again for them. You know, I was basically the equivalent of their CFO.
And I realized, like I said, I wasn't living. I didn't enjoy it, but that's what I knew. So this was not on the radar at all. But when you’re given this life moment and you're going, I played it safe. I did all the things and look, I'm dying. Why? What is that about? For what? For other people.
I'll never forget one of my managers or directors at HBO once said to me, Do you want on your headstone to say I was a good worker? Because I was the one who was in by 7:30, out last.
And I thought of that in those moments like. What am I doing? Everything about me changed from diagnosis to surgery. I think I look different. I can't even explain it. It's just a very different way of being. I think that it was hardest probably on my family and certainly on my husband who goes, okay, I married this one person and now here's a different one. And she's not the same person.
I didn't go through anything other than in that 15 minutes where I'm like, My life has to change. It's go time.
Nicole: [00:16:07] You and I talked about the spiritual awakening in your personal awakening and people who are on this path or curious about it, they do actually talk about that you physically change. You do actually look in the mirror and you see a different person. Other people be like, you're glowing or, you know, like, well, comment on what's changed about you. Have you fallen in love? You know, that sort of question I'm curious about how did you navigate that with your family in particular, your husband?
Indie: [00:16:33] Not easy. Probably the fallout for everything for this change where everything else was incredible was this relationship because he had to get to know somebody different. And I had to understand how he handled things, too, like when I got sick, how he handled it wasn't necessarily how I wanted. And I'll be honest, it took probably closer to 15 years for us to reconcile that.
It was not easy and my communication style changed because I was so in the moment. Like, no, I need to know now. No getting that. I don't want to hear a long story. I don't need time to process like, let's go. And that was very difficult. I give him so much credit because I don't think I recognize how difficult this was for him.
And now I can look back on it with such different set of clarity to say, Wow, I didn't realize that this really happened to him too. And I never gave him that grace until I would say now very recently. And I have to own that part and for my children…to this day, I feel for them because they went through something that they couldn't take any action towards. Like I started a company, I went and saw doctors. I did not stop.
They were five and eight. Try to explain to a five year old this and my eight year old, who is now 23, want to talk about an old soul like the day they put him in my arms, I'm like, oh boy, this is a responsibility. Like, you knew this was an ancient soul and it was really hard for him.
Now I'm not afraid of therapy and getting my children in, and certainly did. But it still plays out in their life to this day. And I was diagnosed with a second brain tumor a year after the first one that I still live with, that I call Hermione. I plan to have a very incredible life with her, although she is shrinking. But they had to relive it when we thought, Oh my gosh, here we go again. So it's hard for them t-o.
Nicole: [00:18:31] Yeah, it's hard from a trauma perspective of what's going to happen to you. But I need to credit all of you for incredible resilience. And I kind of like that you have made friends with the tumor and that first one. Yeah. Herman Yeah, yeah.
Indie: [00:18:47] He's that name. He's out. He's out of the building.
Nicole: [00:18:50] I like Hermione. I like the little Harry Potter nod that we have going here. And that's. And she's exactly. And she's shrinking. Say, say more about shrinking.
Indie: [00:18:58] Yeah. And that was one of those things where I said, okay, the first one happened to take risks. The second one was that I never get complacent.
Because I think it's so easy for us as humans to kind of then get into that rhythm and either you fall back or you just stay status quo and then go back to playing the new safe for you. And I realized I had become complacent. You know, I got into a new rhythm and then I decided, got it. And I stopped and it stopped growing for probably five years.
And four years ago, I went to the doctor's office and I said, you know, I've not been complacent. I'm in a good place. So it's time for her to go. And she's like, That's that's lovely. But that's not really how it works. And we're not going to go into surgery if we don't have to. So let's just hope it doesn't grow. And I was like, Oh, you don't know who I am, silly you. And I had the MRI and he calls me. He goes, okay, so who did you go see? And I said, What are you talking about? And he goes, Your tumor shrunk. And I said, Oh, you mean my conversations with it and the universe? That would be all me.
And there's no explanation. So I truly believe in the power of your own mind.
Nicole: [00:20:21] Yes, 100%. I've just been thinking about this recently, and I'm sure you'll agree with this, but it's sort of like you, you go through three things in life.
You either have a wake up call, as you have had and I have had as well, multiple wake up calls like this. And I like what you said about like sometimes you get complacent. For me, you know, I had eye cancer. I had my eye cut apart and rebuilt. I see this scar tissue every day. And every day I look in the mirror. And that's my way of like, I literally feel it every day. I'm supposed to though, like, always feel it, if there's a nodule in there, come in. So for me, that's my reminder, you know, to not get complacent. Hermione is yours. Maybe I should name my eyes.
Indie: [00:20:56] Absolutely highly recommend. And make it like a fun name.
Nicole: [00:21:00] Yeah, I'm totally going to take your advice. Yeah and be like, I'm talking to you, we’re having a conversation. But you either have that wake up call and it forces you to realign and some people choose not to.
Or you make a proactive choice like, I need to realign because I don't want things to happen or you do nothing and you potentially die unfulfilled. It's almost like there's just no other choice other than those three things.
Indie: [00:21:24] Completely agree. It's such a different way of living too, once you have them. And people always laugh at me, but I feel like it was the greatest gift.
Nicole: [00:21:33] It is the greatest gift. Don't you feel like you also have more balls?
Indie: [00:21:37] Like I literally. Was that for sure?
Nicole: [00:21:39] Well, clearly you do. But I mean, I will say to people, which is a dramatic and not entirely true thing, but I literally, I almost died twice. I don't give a fuck. I don't care. We have to move forward with this. You need to be honest with me. I need to be honest about it. I have no room for bullshit or passive aggressiveness at all out of myself or anyone else. You just.
Indie: [00:21:58] You just go. It's like, let's do it. It is. And you go, How bad can it be? I almost died already. So what are the chances? So it's and you don't mean to be flippant about it, but we do have kind of that permission to say these things because of what we have been through and because you can't help but look at things differently. It's just it changes you. It changes your perspective.
Nicole: [00:22:20] It changes your perspective entirely. And I love how you run your business. And you and I have talked about the idea of a heart centered business. Can you talk more about what that means to you and why it's important to run Indie Lee, your company, that way?
Indie: [00:22:36] I think that so often businesses, because I come from big business, it becomes about the bottom line and we forget about the people who are involved. Now, I'm not saying that we don't have to make very difficult decisions about the business, but I genuinely care deeply for each individual because these are people, these are their lives. You don't know what's going on always in their lives.
So to me, it's that, it's about the people who work for us. And whether you work for me now or you've worked for me in the past, my door is always open and I will go to the mat for you. And then what we're doing is to really help people be more mindful again about what they're putting on and in their body and have those really pointed conversations without fear mongering, because I don't believe in that.
But knowledge is power. And by giving people power, that's coming from a heart and from a good place. I think all things can happen. And wouldn’t you rather lead with your heart than with fear. I've been in those organizations which are so fear based, and that's not who I want to be.
Nicole: [00:23:39] Especially after everything you've been through. And I want to commend you again, too, because you do come from that background and it could be easy, like you said, to fall into something that you already know or a way of being and to like, really ground yourself and go, No. And it also aligns with what you do with your products, with your philosophy as a company and your mission and vision and values.
Indie: [00:23:58] And even when we took on capital and we're invested in, it was more important for me to have the right people to invest who saw what I wanted to accomplish. And they even said, this is about creating a platform for Indie and the products just serve to underscore her mission. That's when I knew I found the right people.
Nicole: [00:24:18] Yeah. Can you talk more about that? I know that taking on private equity has created some challenges during Covid too. As someone who's dependent on retail, can you talk about how that has impacted business and where you've had to make some difficult decisions?
Indie: [00:24:32] What I'm very lucky about is I was invested in and the principles of the company that invested in me. I give Laurie all the credit because she has to make sometimes the hardest calls and then it allows me to be Indy, but I don't feel left out of any decisions.
But when Covid happened, we're like, okay, what are we going to do? How are we going to handle this? And we really tightened the belt. Let's look at our product lineup, you know, and discontinuing products that aren't bestsellers. And believe me, I get questions like, How could you discontinue my favorite X, Y, Z? And I'm like, okay, well, you loved it, but not everybody felt it was the best seller. And when you take a look at where we're going to put capital, we have to make those hard decisions.
And at the end of the day, it was for the health of the business so that we can go and invest in other things that are going to be real movers. But there are times when I was like,uh oh, how is this going to go? How much are we going to invest in digital marketing? How much are we going to invest in influencer relations? All those things. And sometimes you have to scale back so that you can scale up.
Nicole: [00:25:37] One thing you and I talked about is, I think it was more during Covid, correct me if I'm wrong, but there were some of those hard decisions that you had to make. You were also impacted by those decisions. I think people maybe don't hear that side of the story that you as the founder, also were impacted by this. Can you talk about that?
Indie: [00:25:56] We sold our house. We had to make some decisions. And knowing that, what was more important to me was the company, we sold our house of 21 years and we had to make the difficult decision to downsize.
My husband also was impacted by Covid and not easy conversation with your children to have their house of 21 years. But it's so interesting when you do those things. The universe is always listening called universe source, god, you know, whoever.
But I realized this during Covid, I think so many of us did, there's a difference between want and need, and so many times we put our wants in the need bucket and they're really just a want. What I need is my family to be healthy, have a roof over my head, to have love in my heart and food, and that's it.
That's what I need. Do I need to have a big house? No. That's a status symbol, and I don't need it. I'd rather have a business or be able to not worry about those type of things. I'd rather look at more people in the company.
My husband is the same exact way, and we made this aligned decision to move forward on this pat, to be more responsible fiscally so we can breathe. But believe me, it was not easy.
Nicole: [00:27:20] It's not an easy decision. I like the spiritual perspective that you take of this, too. As you said, you know, is it God, the universe source? Can you talk about what role spirituality plays in your life and in how you run your business?
Indie: [00:27:32] Sure. I am known as very woo woo.
Nicole: [00:27:36] I'm with you, sister. You are on the right podcast.
Indie: [00:27:40] So, I mean, I do. I do Mindful Mondays. I do all those things because I think it's so important. To bring that into your life. At least that is for me. You know I need that.
I really do believe that when you ask, you shall receive. I have had way too many experiences throughout my life that have proven that when you believe you receive God, I sound like every cliche there is out there with this, but I really do.
There are miracles that I could not possibly explain that have happened to me that obviously living, went into labor with both my children at 20 and 28 weeks. They should never be here. And I carried them through to 37 weeks despite every doctor saying they're not going to be viable.
So I have proof that when you believe and you have faith in something larger than you, but really have that in here, not just say it. Magic happens. And I think that's part of it. I think that when you look at health or wealth, not W E A L T H, but like W E L L T H, it is the combination of being centered mind, body and soul.
And I actually think self care is a big part of that and taking care of yourself and the whole concept of this brand is to take care of your skin's health, but also your own well-being. Carving out time to take care of your own self. I always say you can't take care of somebody else if you don't take care of yourself and people like blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I'm like, okay, well, when's the last time you were on an airplane and they didn't tell you to put on the mask for yourself first? It is that important. And I think that spirituality plays a big role in that, or at least a belief in something larger than yourself. And I lean into that heavily.
Nicole: [00:29:24] I'm curious, were you raised in a more traditional religious environment?
Indie: [00:29:28] Oh, boy. Sit back for this one. My mother is Jewish. My father is Catholic. And in 1999, I became a practicing Buddhist.
Nicole: [00:29:45] This. I did not know. Okay, keep going.
Indie: [00:29:48] Because I was looking for something spiritual and I wasn't finding it. So I did research on Buddhism and I started really practicing Nichiren Buddhism, which is like the whole Nam myoho renge kyo. Et cetera.
Nicole: [00:30:01] That's Tina Turner. When I was going through my cancer journey, a friend introduced me. Wow. Did that make a difference.
Indie: [00:30:06] Absolutely.
Nicole: [00:30:08] Chanted all the way through.
Indie: [00:30:09] Yep, exactly. The Gohonzon, the whole thing. And then when we had children, we decided to raise them the common denominator, which was Jewish, which means that you’ll love this. I had to go get a mikvah because otherwise I couldn't be buried with my. I mean, it was like a whole thing. I've got more.
Nicole: [00:30:23] Even even with a Jewish mother?.
Indie: [00:30:25] Yes. Because I was not in the reform. So these days I'm doing more and more research on my Catholic background. And your relationship with God again, It's just the belief that there's something larger than yourself. And that's why I said whether you're praying to God, the universe or whatever, it doesn't matter.
Nicole: [00:30:45] Yeah, it's just the belief in something bigger. A friend of mine used to say many paths, one truth. And you were talking about the importance of the mind being able to. And of course there is a place, as you experienced, there's a place for traditional medicine, there's a place for holistic medicine. But that mindset, it doesn't care anything.
We all know people with a positive mindset that had a different outcome. But as much as you have embraced that, it's clearly coming to life in your life and it's inspiring. You talked a little bit about what being here for you means and exactly what this show is kind of based on the put your mask on first before you help other people. You can't take care of other people until you take care of yourself. But the most important thing is taking care of yourself. You embody that. And I just need to give you so much acknowledgment for that.
Indie: [00:31:34] Oh, my gosh. Thank you. And I also want to acknowledge that it is very difficult to do. My mother currently is battling stage four cancer, and it's hard for her to wrap her mind around staying positive. And I will tell you, the hardest thing is my relationship with her and trying to explain.
But it's so hard because I do want to acknowledge that I understand a lot of people will hear this and go, oh, give me a break. And I understand that. I really do. It's different for everybody. But I also, like I said earlier, if this didn't go the way I planned it, that didn't mean that from diagnosis to surgery, I didn't live with joy.
Nicole: [00:32:18] That's it.
Nicole: [00:32:19] No matter the outcome, the attitude is going to help you no matter what. It doesn't mean it's going to be the outcome you want. But it's so much better to live and you embrace that literally in those first 15 minutes. I don't know about you, but I'm also, I'm going to knock on wood while I say this because I don't want to go yet, but I'm not afraid to die like I'm not. You get to this point, you're like, Yeah, yeah. I don't know. It gives you this other worldly perspective.
Indie: [00:32:42] Yeah, it does provide freedom in that sense.
Nicole: [00:32:45] Yeah. You realize that it's just another part of the journey. But to have that attitude for as long as you're here, whether it affects your outcome or not, that makes life that much more joyful.
Indie: [00:32:57] Yes, we all live in choice. I said every minute, every day you live in choice. So you can either choose to do the Oh, woe is me, or you can choose to live in joy. You have that choice.
Do you want to push further on the disease or do you want to lean into the joy side of it and embrace the moments you have left? That is your choice. You don't have always every choice over the outcome, but you do have choice of your own thoughts and how you live your day.
Nicole: [00:33:23] 100%. Season one, we had Derek Vanderhorst and he went through head and neck cancer and he said his oncologist told him at the beginning of his treatment, you have two choices, exactly what you're saying.
One, you can say, when I get to the other side, this is going to change my life. I'm going to do things I never thought I could do. I'm going to find a purpose or you'll get to the other side of this and you will live the rest of your life bitter and angry that this happened to you. Make that choice right now before you walk into months of radiation and chemo and all the things that he went through. It's exactly what you're saying.
You have that choice. It may not affect your outcome. We're not saying positive mindset iis for sure you're going to get what it is that you hope you're going to get, but your life is going to be that much better no matter what happens.
Indie: [00:34:08] Exactly. And that's what I wanted to model for my children and for the community that we're building. That doesn't mean I don't have bad days. That doesn't mean I don't have bad moments.
Nicole: [00:34:19] Doesn't mean there's not struggle. Right?
Indie: [00:34:22] Oh, hell yeah.
Nicole: [00:34:23] It's just you now have a better perspective and it's not easier to cope with it, but you have a better toolbox.
Indie: [00:34:29] That's exactly I always say, But I have these resources in my toolbox to take out during those, and sometimes I forget about them. But I always say you can't have a good day unless you've had a bad day. From contrast comes clarity. And what did I learn from it?
Nicole: [00:34:51] Speaking of that, I have two questions. With everything that you've shared, everything you've been through, I do want to know what is the most important thing that you've learned on this journey, and what advice do you have for listeners on how to be here for themselves?
Indie: [00:35:05] Take risks. What happened to the man who took no risks? Nothing.
And then what would I want people to take away with them? Self care is not selfish. That's an important thing. I can't say that enough to people. I hate to say it's usually women, but as caregivers, we tend to put a lot of people first and it's okay.
We're taught the hustle culture, but when it came down to like, you have six months, you start to realize and you prioritize and you're like, I never prioritize myself. So I think it's that or don't be a passenger. That's really it. Live with those Ps
Nicole: [00:35:42] Yeah, get in the driver's seat of your life. Live with those P’s.
Indie: [00:35:46] It’s your life. Nobody else should be driving it.
Nicole: [00:35:48] I love that so much.
Nicole: [00:35:49] And one last question and I know it's like picking your favorite child.
Indie: [00:35:54] Oh, jeepers creepers. I know what you're going to ask.
Nicole: [00:35:56] If you had to pick one product from the Indie Lee skincare line that we [00:36:00] should all try, what would it be?
Indie: [00:36:03] Squalane facial oil. It is one ingredient. One ingredient. And I use it so much throughout other products of mine. So if you can understand and you use it and you fall in love, you're like, okay, I now know why she uses it.
But it's one ingredient is derived from olives. I did not invent it, but we happen to have the purest, as says the certification on it. But I would say our squalene facial oil. It is one of those moisturizers that you can use and your body produces an abundance, but it's olive-derived and it produces an abundance in your mid-twenties. And then when you stop producing, you start to see the appearance of fine lines, texture, tone, etcetera. And you can't really be allergic to it because your body produces it. So I would say that.
And if you have to say, okay, well the second one I would say our Daily SPF primer because everybody should be using SPF. This is squalene oil in it, but it is an SPF 50 and it works with all skin texture and tones.
Nicole: [00:36:55] I want to thank you, acknowledge you, commend you for being a force, an inspiration, and a commitment to yourself. And then, you not only learned about being here for you, you bring here for me to the masses through the work that you do.
And I want to thank you for doing that, creating this beautiful line, finding purpose from pain and fear, and to do it in 15 minutes of finding out what your future might be and saying, I'm going to take life by the balls and find passion and purpose.
Indie, thank you so much.
Indie: [00:37:33] Thank you for listening and for taking the time to get to know me and sharing this with your community. It means the world to me.
Nicole: [00:37:45] Indie Lee is without question, one of the boldest, bravest ballsiest women I have ever met. Most people, after learning they have a brain tumor, would have driven to their doctor's office in a terror stricken haze. Instead, in those 15 minutes, Indie’s eyes were opened to the colors of the New York fall and the realization that she was in the driver's seat of her car, but not her life.
She promised herself that no matter what happened, she was going to live by her three P's: passion, purpose, and being fully present. As she and I discussed, I'd also add that she's tackled everything since that day with perseverance. And let's not forget that she has prevailed in ways that leave us feeling that if she tackled this with such valor, any of us can do anything.
Indie spoke to the value of staying positive throughout her journey, not because it would save her life, but because it would make every moment of it, however long it would be that much sweeter.
But it was about more than just her attitude. It was about vibrational energy. Indie vibrates on a very high frequency, and it radiates into the world, creating a ripple effect of well-being and joy for herself and everyone around her, including people who use her products, which were born of this vibration.
When we raise our vibration, we not only feel better, but the world looks better, more alive. And we begin attracting and creating what we desire. What's right for us, as Indie has done. The best part is that it's well within our control to do this, to elevate our vibe, our frequency and prevail over the lemons life hands us like Indie, who spurned lemonade and instead distilled her lemons into limoncello.
It starts with seeing struggles as happening for you instead of to you. It starts with believing you're on this earth for a reason. Being intentional about what that is. That thing that calls you that only you can do in the way you do it, that's of service.
It starts with believing your struggles aren't bad luck, but nudges toward alignment. It starts with waking up every day, the way Indie walked into that surgical suite 14 years ago, saying, today is a great day to live. Put on some kickass music.
For more information about Indie and where to find the Indie Lee Clean Skincare line, check out the show notes at hereformepodcast.com.
Here For Me is produced by Lens Group Media in association with Tulla Productions. As is often said, it takes a village to make this podcast, and my deepest gratitude goes out to every person in that village. Our producers Dave Nelson and Stacy Harris, our audio editor, JD Delgado, designer and illustrator Amy Senftleben, and our production assistant, Sarah Carefoot. If you enjoyed this episode, I'd love it if you'd follow the show, rate, review, and share it with people you love. You can also follow me on Instagram and Facebook at nicolejchristie. Until next time, thank you so much for listening–here's to you being here for you and to the power of choosing yourself.