“Help Others Grow” has been my mantra since I realized what having a personal mantra was even about. Having grown up in a small, southern town where modalities like yoga didn’t seem to exist to recently leading a holistic center with over 400 programs per year, I’ve been fortunate to benefit from some of the best teachers and healers in the world. Now I want to gather as many people as possible and evangelize for these ancient and modern practices of self-care and actualization, translating the esoteric into the understandable, and making it accessible to all of New York City.

I’ve spent the past four years as CEO of The Open Center, the country’s longest-running urban center for personal growth and spiritual practice. It’s been a hell of a journey leading the evolution of a four decade-old New York City institution into a global changemaker with an engaged audience from more than 180 countries. A journey with as many difficult lessons as joyous occasions.

Originally, I found my calling in exploring how the built environment makes us healthier, happier and kinder. I directed the growth of several business lines at Delos, a health, technology and real estate firm that focuses on optimizing the built environment for occupant health. This was my introduction into mindfulness and the corporate sector, which eventually led me to become COO for Global Treehouse, a Tokyo-based startup combining meditation, creativity, collaboration and problem solving for Fortune 500s.

Lastly, I’ve served as an advisor to startups in the wellness and proptech spaces as well as held leadership roles on numerous industry and non-profit boards.

You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and / or email me at ross@spiritualityweek.org