Meet Charleson Agustin | Physical Therapist, Massage Therapist, & small business owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Charleson Agustin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Charleson, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
I have always been the type of person to not stop moving. It started with coaching my own pole vault team during my junior year of high school while I was an athlete. During freshman year of college, I continued to coach but also took on the role of maintenance man at a skilled nursing facility (SNF) in Beverly Hills and boba maker at a shop on campus. But as my last year of undergrad approached, I finally realized how crazy I was to work 3 jobs with a full-time class schedule. I quit serving boba drinks and performing repairs/maintenance at the SNF. But I continued to coach and added tutoring on campus. I was putting myself under all of this undue stress to prove to myself I could handle the stress of what physical therapy school would put me through. I was able to prove that to myself by graduating Magna Cum Laude and was accepted to CSULB’s DPT (doctorate in physical therapy) program! My progressively loaded stress could finally be offloaded with my goal achieved but after 6 years of juggling work, hobbies, and my social life I ran into a problem. Being stressed to that extent became my norm. In DPT school, everyone advised me not to work because of how stressful taking 7-10 classes a semester can be. Well, I decided to work as a massage therapist and create a sticker business throughout PT school to test how much I could handle. Now that I’m done with physical therapy school, emphasizing rest over productivity has been my priority. But it has not been the easiest task for me. With consistent mindfulness and keeping on a daily schedule, I’ve been able to find better ways to find balance. The takeaway I’ve learned through my journey of work-life balance is that my productivity should not correlate to my happiness. What I have found that fills my soul is being able to work on hobbies on my own time.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a small-business owner that sells stickers related to the medicine I have been studying for the past 7 years: physical therapy. It started with a want to study medicine in a fun way to keep myself from burning out. I did this by studying each bump and landmark of bones and incorporated it into my art. At first, creating stickers was a hassle since I had to cut all my stickers by hand. This process took hours which I didn’t have since I was studying in grad school at the same time. At the end of my first clinical rotation, something wholesome happened. My stickers became mass producible after my mentor and the other PTs pitched in to buy a Cricut cutting printer for me. This allowed me to continue my passion without cutting into hours of studying! Some lessons I’ve learned along the way have been to stick with your style even if it means you have no set style! And it means to keep practicing until you get to a point, you’re happy with. I’ve realized I love line work and how different line weight can create so much depth even with how simple it is. One thing I am very excited to announce is that I have recently partnered with a non-profit, Adaptive Freedom Foundation (AFF), to collaborate on a sticker which all proceeds will go to their cause! Once a month, AFF sets up wheelchair accessible stand-up paddle boards (WASUP) at a variety of Southern California beaches to allow children and adults alike to be on the water, which couldn’t usually happen without these boards– rewarding is definitely an understatement. Art is a passion of mine and I’m excited to see where my business goes. All I know is that this passion project could have never grown to what it is now without everyone’s support! So, thank you all!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

In a nutshell, if my best friend came to visit, I would have them try all my favorite hole-in-the-wall food spots, hikes, and museums.

DAY 1:

• Morning: Classic Mint Mojito from Philz coffee while walking on the 2nd street

  • Walk on the beach/pier enjoying the morning sun

• Late afternoon: Eat at my all-time favorite Hawaiian-style fried chicken at “Da Hawaiian Kitchen”

  • Walk it off at the Getty Villa to embrace the great landscape and appreciate priceless historical pieces all for an affordable price

DAY 2:

• Breakfast of champions: Hearty breakfast burrito at Fantastic Cafe

• Walk it off at a hike in Laguna Beach: Lizard Cove

  • Photo-op in a sand cave

• Re-energize with Nature’s Juice with good acai bowls and smoothies

• Chill, catch up, talk about life on Thousand Steps Beach

• Nightlife: Local brewery, Four Sons, where we could enjoy good food, good company and make a name for ourselves during Trivia Night Wednesdays.

  • Bar crawl in DTLB and/or Second Street – Shoot the Dog and Shoot the Root

  • Shoot the Root: Great combination of liquor and root beer

  • Shoot the Dog: Not so great once-in-a-life-time shot of Everclear, ketchup/mustard, and a vodka-soaked weenie

For the rest of the week would fit the Getty Museum in LA, a small secret speakeasy by Pitfire Pizza in Costa Mesa, the Sunset Cliffs in San Diego, more good food, good hikes, and good vibes!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my family and girlfriend, Natalie. With each and every cycle of burnout through PT school, my family was there to support and encourage me to keep pushing. Growing up, I have always been the type of person to put others before me– thoughtlessly. Throughout PT school, Natalie has helped me find my voice and realize that my personal well-being matters just as much as the people I prioritize ahead of myself. Knowing that I cannot pour from an empty cup has given me a better perspective of how to balance helping others as well as myself.

Website: https://ko-fi.com/agustinmotion

Instagram: agustinmotion

Image Credits
Liezel Gutierrez – Instagram @liezel.p.g Jon Lopez – Instagram @jonlopez24