When Linda Ruhe, a 45-year-old mother of five, talks about her self-employment, one thing is clear: she knows exactly what it is about. Energy, body awareness, authenticity and clarity. Her life journey is the best proof that her philosophy works and that a strong connection to the body makes anything possible. She has run her ‘Aktiv Yoga’ studio in Goslar since January 2024, has since opened a naturopathy practice and now operates under the name ‘aktiv.energy’.
The founder first encountered yoga 22 years ago. But her passion for this special training for body, mind and soul developed later. Linda Ruhe studied business administration, worked in the public sector and trained alongside her job as a yoga teacher, Ayurveda therapist and naturopath. In busy family life with five children, that meant many nights spent studying.
The step into self-employment as the successor to a yoga studio that had operated in Goslar for over 20 years came as something of a surprise. ‘The studio landed in my lap,’ laughs Linda Ruhe, who by then had been a customer and part-time instructor at Aktiv Yoga for several years. ‘It was like jumping onto a Porsche already in motion.’ That image describes the challenges of taking over an existing business.
With a completely new business, you gradually grow into your tasks and build your own structure. In a succession, you go from zero to one hundred. ‘It takes a while to find your feet and work out your own path,’ the founder emphasises. Yet she showed courage from the start and seized the opportunity to expand her premises just three months after the takeover.
With two yoga rooms and the naturopathy practice, her business is complete for now. Fascinated by the holistic view of body, mind and soul, Linda Ruhe is currently training as an osteopath and envisions a centre for natural medicine.
She is grateful for the support she received. With WiReGo’s help, she obtained a low-interest loan from NBank. The networking meeting for self-employed women organised by VHS Goslar is also an important source of exchange, motivation and community for her. In everyday work, she is supported by a small team that has her back.
When Linda Ruhe submitted her diploma thesis, her professor said he could not imagine her as an employee. Leaving her secure job was only a logical consequence of her desire for freedom and satisfaction. ‘I think it’s quite brave to stay in a situation that makes you unhappy,’ Linda Ruhe observes, and clearly encourages prospective founders: ‘What can happen? It’s an employee’s market. Good people are needed everywhere. You can always go back.’ She wants people to use their potential, dare to take a chance and stop holding themselves back.
What drives her is still the same: getting people moving – not only outwardly, but inwardly too.
Information: https://aktiv.energy/
