When it comes to finding the perfect career, it can be difficult to pin down your passion, and for Akila Cristiano she was left feeling uninspired after battling countless jobs in a bid to find the right fit. "I worked as a receptionist to sales and social media, literally everything you can imagine I've done it, but nothing stuck. I was going from job to job, either quitting after a couple of months or getting fired because I just couldn't put my heart and soul into anything," Akila exclusively told OK! But everything changed when Akila, who hails from London, was introduced to pole dancing.
"I started around five and a half years ago and then opened my studio around three years ago. For me, pole was new, and it felt like a novelty when I first started, and my ADHD brain thought it was really exciting. I went to a class, and I just became addicted straight away - I thought, 'I need to do this forever'.
Pole changed everything for me," she said. The new passion prompted the 32-year-old to pursue pole dancing as a career, and she launched the Akila Pole Studio in London. "I was so excited about pole.
It gave me multiple ways of feeling fulfilled that weren't just from exercise alone, and I wanted to share it with everyone else to help with their mental and physical health," she explained. However, when it comes to the stigma attached to pole dancing, Akila has faced negative backlash, particularly when meeting new people. "I've had lots of looks and every single time I meet someone new and I tell them 'I own a pole studio and teach pole', they always ask, 'What do you mean?' and they think it's a strip club.
"I don't think a lot of people understand what pole dancing is and what it can do to your mental and physical health." Akila candidly added, "But you know, haters are going to hate. I shrug it off because I think people are ignorant, and I don't need to explain myself. "If anything, it fuels me to create an even bigger, more successful business - I want to expand
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