Meet Kenna –
In her own words…
©Amy Boyle Photography 2019
“When I was 6 months old my 100 year old great-grandmother held me on her birthday, rubbed the bottom of my tiny feet and said, “Oh the miles and miles these feet will travel.” Turns out she was right.
A common thread among all of the different types of work that I do being a guide. It brings me great joy to hold space for other people to have transformative life experiences. I’ve had the honor of hosting live classes for the online education network CreativeLive for the past nine years. I explain to new CreativeLive instructors that I’m there for three reasons – to energetically guide and support them while they teach on a new platform to tens of thousands of people live (not scary at all!), to guide our studio audience through the in-person experience, and to guide and be the voice of our global community participating through questions and chat online as they learn together. I love guiding conversations for our podcast We Are Photographers where I get the real human stories for you about my guests’ wins, struggles and why they do what they do.
Every single day I witness creatives having a-ha moments realizing that they can do the work to be their authentic self. Those lightbulb moments come down to the same themes of getting out of your own way and showing up for yourself to do the work even when you feel like an imposter. When people tell me, “CreativeLive has changed my life!,” I hold up a metaphorical mirror and say “Yes, we’ve provided you access to world-class creative education by leaders in their fields. However if your life has changed, it’s because you have done the work. There is always something to be learned from taking classes, however the true transformation comes in the actual doing of what you’ve learned and only you can do that.” It’s such a gift for me to see this self-recognition sink into people’s hearts and minds as they smile and realize what they have already created for themselves and that they have the power to do that over and over again. Our CreativeLive community is full of people holding up mirrors for each other.
©Amy Boyle Photography 2019
Over five years ago I began leading photography tours as my side gig, combining my passions of travel, photography and creating bucket list experiences for people. I fell in love with the country, culture and people of Cuba which I now call my internal zip code. December 2019 will be my 12th trip to the island which is so close to us in the U.S. and yet so far away. What I’ve learned most from the people of Cuba is that many of the most innovative ideas are born without resources. I believe creativity is making something out of nothing and find the resilience of the human spirit in others to be empowering for myself as well. My daily practice is letting go and finding presence in the moment. Beyond Cuba I lead tours and meditation retreats to countries including Bhutan, Nepal, Kenya, Tanzania, Costa Rica, Morocco, Italy and more to come.
I invite you to ask yourself, what brings you joy? What do you talk about with your friends day in and day out? Whatever it is, therein lies your passion. That’s the twinkle in your eye. For me it’s personal transformation. I believe we have something to learn from everyone’s story, and yes, that means your own. I’d love nothing more than to help guide you to find your heart’s power as you experience the world, and yourself, in a new light. ”
©Amy Boyle Photography 2019
KK Bio
Kenna Klosterman is a photographer, travel guide, retreat leader, international MC, speaker, educator and creative community connector. She is the Lead Host of the online education network CreativeLive and hosts the We Are Photographers podcast. Kenna is passionate about building, motivating, and supporting a community of creative individuals who are transforming their own lives. Kenna is a published travel, documentary, and portrait photographer whose personal mission is to empower change in the world through visual storytelling. She is available to host or MC events, panels and conferences in Seattle and worldwide. Join Kenna on one of her upcoming tours to Cuba or Kenya and see the world in a new light.
*** Please follow along on instagram as well and learn more about Kenna. This year for my birthday, I am embarking on a weekly photo essay project highlighting 52 Phenomenal Women. This is week 38 of 52. Participants in this project will be supporting the efforts of Dress for Success Worldwide – Central. We are all stronger together and it is my sincere hope that we will be inspired by each other’s stories. Now is the time to celebrate as well as encourage one another. Tell your story!**