We’re looking forward to introducing you to Tara Dervin. Check out our conversation below.
Tara, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: When have you felt most loved—and did you believe you deserved it?
To be loved is to be known.
When we bear witness to another, when we show up with eyes and ears and soul present and actively listening, getting to know another-this is love.
I have felt loved most by my family and a true friends this year AND MY DOG MY SON MY LIFE. Who really saw me. Who really heard me. Even when I did not speak. And these are my people. I shall love them eternally.
Do I believe I deserved it? Wow what a question. You know what-yes. In my heart of hearts absolutely.
Oh honey, every one of us deserves love.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello. My name is Tara. My whole life I dreamed of Hollywood. I used to look up to people in Hollywood.
Now I don’t. Now I look up to people in HEALINGWOOD. I currently have a life mission that began as the phrase “Healing Hollywood” and now…I’m just about healing the world, man…. PEACE AND LOVE.
I am an entrepreneur, producer, writer, creative, and work in the mental health field with youth and adults.
I have learned through trial and error, through life experiences both negative and positive, that the ultimate way to know if you are on the “right path” is to attach yourself to a MISSION. Within this mission, you will find “success” in all paths so long as you are true to your core values.
I see before me a world in GREAT NEED OF COLLECTIVE HEALING. I believe that healing begins within the self, and then we can transition this into communities and on a global scale. It is not just a passion of mine, it is my life’s work.
And if this sounds all hippie-dippie to you….GOOD. There’s no rules to mastering this thing called life….none of us get out alive…so we might as well use our time here to do good with one another. My brand is literally just love.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
BEAUTIFUL QUESTION.
So I’m a firm believer that adulthood is all about unlearning all of the ideas that the world put on us to change us from our core essence as children. So often, who we are as children is our most authentic, true selves. As a child, I was as confident as could be. The world was my oyster, my stage, my arena. Every dream I had I believed I could achieve.
And this is the part that maybe I’m not supposed to say…so shhhh….before I’m cancelled…oh wait…I don’t care……
Hollywood-this entity of “the entertainment industry” has the capacity to make or break people’s self confidence. More often than not, the breaking, the rupturing of self is imminent. Why? Because if your entire self worth is based on the validation of someone else-you have no legs to stand on in finding your own inner innate worth.
We have a culture before us which is notorious for eroding self esteem to sell a product. Morality becomes out the window, and popularity takes over. It’s just like high school. I’m not into it anymore. I used to play the game and now I’d rather pave my own path. So to answer your question…..I was pre-Hollywood Tara…and I’m getting back to her now again each day…better yet…I’m not even looking back anymore…I’m paving my path toward a future I’ve never seen before.
And this includes MY OWN VERSION OF MEDIA AND ART AND HEALING FUSED TOGETHER IN A NEVER BEFORE SEEN WAY. I’m a free thinker baby. It’s who I’ve always been and I always will be. And there’s not a single producer or agent or external validator that could ever tell me otherwise. KNOW THYSELF. This is my message to all. YOU. ARE. WORTHY. JUST. AS. YOU. ARE.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
In short. Yes. The darkest nights breed the brightest sunrises.
And FOR THE RECORD- I’m not giving up now. Not even on my creative dreams. I’m just in a different era of Tara….
Reframing what success looks like to me. Inner peace. Love. Calm mornings and sips of coffee with loved ones. A lifetime commitment of helping others, whatever this looks like on paper…and somehow…I feel this acknowledgement, this awareness of the perfectly imperfect life….is the key towards all of my deepest dreams coming to fruition……and yours, my friend. I’m rooting for you too.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
THAT WORLD PEACE IS POSSIBLE
Although I would say, that more people than a few agree.
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
This is spiritual. This is beyond the realms of logistical comprehension everyone is fighting about every day.
DIG DEEPER. SAY IT WITH ME. PEACE IS POSSIBLE. I believe with every fiber of my being that a time of great peace and universal eternal bliss is possible and we are on the brink if we just believe, together.
Even in the oh so darkest of times….
I believe. I have faith. I’ve seen the sun rise a million times when I thought it wouldn’t. So therefore, I believe in the most grand of dreams. And my greatest dream is a world filled with love and peace and togetherness.
<3
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: When do you feel most at peace?
Walking my dog (my son) in his pink polka dot stroller
