Meet Alexandra Klein | Certified Life Balance Strategist and Mindfulness Teacher

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

Hi Alexandra, we’d love to hear what makes you happy.
I actually love this question, especially in these overwhelming times, when the world can feel heartbreaking. Wars, violence, division, endless news cycles – it can feel almost inappropriate to talk about happiness. Sometimes we even feel guilty noticing joy, as if it somehow diminishes someone else’s suffering.

I don’t see it that way. Happiness isn’t denial – it’s nourishment. It’s what allows us to meet life with an open heart.

For a long time, I thought happiness depended on external conditions… life falling into place, everything going according to plan. I believed that once it finally did, I could exhale.

Life, of course, had other plans. Losing my father when I was young, navigating anxiety, and self-doubt – all of it left me carrying a quiet sense that life was fragile and that something about me needed fixing before I could feel at ease.

Mindfulness and self-compassion changed that. They didn’t remove difficulty, but they changed how I met it. I began to notice how often my mind postponed happiness, placing it just out of reach. The finish line kept moving.

Now, happiness is quieter, simpler, and present in moments like these:
• A conscious, deep breath.
• Sunlight hitting the ocean.
• A piece of music that makes my chest ache a little.
• Putting my phone down and realizing I’m already where I need to be.
• Sharing a meal with friends, fully present and relaxed.

These moments weren’t missing. I was just moving too fast to notice them. Mindfulness didn’t give me a new life – it gave me access to the one I was already living.

Happiness now isn’t the absence of difficulty. Life is always uncertain, always changing. What brings me joy is staying connected – to myself, to others, to the quiet beauty that exists even when the world feels heavy.

The world can break your heart, and yet the sky still turns pink at sunset. Both are true. Allowing myself joy doesn’t diminish suffering- it keeps the heart open enough to care.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Life doesn’t come with an instruction manual. It gives us moments – sometimes quiet, sometimes shattering- that shape us, test us, and invite growth. How we meet them, and how we show up, that’s everything.

I work with individuals and groups navigating life’s changes – career shifts, health challenges, retirement, grief, or the search for deeper purpose. Mindfulness, self-compassion, and Life Balance Strategy provide practical tools and practices that help people create a life aligned with their values, even amid uncertainty.

What sets my work apart is that it’s lived. These aren’t ideas from a book or theory; they are practices and tools that rebuilt my life and helped me create a life worth living.

When I was nineteen, my father died by suicide. Grief hit like a storm, leaving anxiety, self-doubt, and a quiet sense that I was always behind – and never enough. I had long struggled with a learning disability, which had already shaped how I saw myself: I questioned my voice, my intelligence, and my place in the world.

The turning point often isn’t a single moment of inspiration- it’s the quiet recognition that, while we can’t control what has happened or even what we feel, we can choose how we meet our lives, and the values we allow to guide us. That choice – how we respond, what we prioritize, and what we nurture in ourselves- is the beginning of real change.

I first discovered mindfulness in a therapeutic setting as a way to navigate trauma and emotion dysregulation. Experiencing glimpses of freedom and groundedness, I immersed myself as a student and practitioner, completing two years of the Intensive Practice Program at UCLA’s Mindful Awareness Research Center. Mindfulness became a way of being before I trained to help others.

I then became a certified mindfulness teacher, studying under Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, where I met and began working with my mentor, Celeste Young. Our work together- both for my own growth and supporting others- led me to become a client in Life Balance Strategy with her. Experiencing the clarity, empowerment, and alignment Life Balance offers, I later trained directly with Phillip Moffitt to become a certified Life Balance Strategist.

Living these practices as a student, client, and practitioner gave me a deep understanding of what works, what’s challenging, and how transformation unfolds. This shapes how I guide clients, both individuals and groups, with compassion, insight, and practical tools to live in alignment with their values.

Too often, we define ourselves by moments, accomplishments, or roles – badges of pride or labels of limitation. Life Balance work invites a different shift: instead of being defined by circumstances, we can choose to be characterized by the values we live from- courage, clarity, honesty, and compassion.

Today, I integrate mindfulness, self-compassion, and Life Balance Strategy to help people navigate transitions, hold complexity, and change their relationship with their inner critic- not by silencing it, but by befriending it. Transformation doesn’t come from pushing harder or becoming someone else. It comes from meeting life with honesty, compassion, and the willingness to begin again.

You don’t have to rewrite your story to move forward. The real work is coming back to yourself- and in that return, discovering the life you were always meant to live, in your own way, on your own terms.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my best friend came to visit Los Angeles, I’d want them to feel the city’s rhythm. Not just see LA, but really experience it. It’s not just the weather or natural beauty- the city has a unique energy, a mix of creativity, possibility, and the lingering magic of Hollywood.

We’d start with a slow morning at the Santa Monica Farmers Market, coffee in hand, letting the colors, scents, and chatter settle us into the day. A stroll down Abbot Kinney Boulevard or Main Street Santa Monica would follow, ducking into boutiques and galleries. Lunch might be at Gjelina or Cobi’s.

One morning, we’d head to Homegirl Café, part of Homeboy Industries, founded by Father Greg Boyle. It’s more than just a café: the food is nourishing, but so is the mission. Homeboy Industries provides training, employment, and support to formerly gang-involved and previously incarcerated people, giving them a real path to transformation. Eating there, you not only savor the flavors but also experience a space full of heart, resilience, and hope- one of my favorite stops in LA.

We’d wander over to the Arts District, where murals, galleries, and cafés burst with creativity. For cocktails, we might find a quiet patio at Cosette, with sweeping city views. Or, for a truly immersive experience, we could head to COSM Los Angeles to catch a film in augmented reality or a big game on one of the world’s most technologically advanced screens.

Art and culture would weave through the week: the stillness and light of The Getty Center, the energy and play of The Broad, and the cinematic pulse of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. For quiet beauty, we’d stop at the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden at UCLA.

One day would be a coastal escape: visiting the Getty Villa, then driving along the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu Seafood. Matcha lovers would delight in Midori Matcha Café at Japanese Village Plaza or the strawberry matcha latte at Amai Coffee. For coffee with heart, La La Land Kind Café supports young people transitioning out of foster care.

LA is also incredible for sushi. Ventura Boulevard in the Valley, nicknamed “Sushi Row,” offers gems like Asanebo, The Brothers Sushi, Katsu-ya, and, of course, my personal favorite, Sugarfish.

In the summer, we might enjoy a picnic at the Hollywood Bowl with live music, ending with fireworks – a truly magical LA moment. For sports fans, we could catch a Lakers, Kings, Dodgers, or Galaxy game.

Mindfulness and pause are part of my ideal LA experience too: a Sunday sit at InsightLA Meditation or a quiet walk through the Peace Awareness Labyrinth and Gardens. Sunset at Griffith Observatory, long drives along the coast, and sunlight on the ocean – these ordinary LA moments somehow feel extraordinary.

Another day would be a quick trip to Santa Barbara, where the waves slow us down, the pier invites wandering, and small cafés remind us that beauty is often just a short drive away.

That’s the Los Angeles I love: creative, soulful, full of possibility, and alive in a way you can feel in every corner of the city.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’ve been incredibly fortunate to learn from teachers, both in person and online, who have shown me how to navigate life with clarity, compassion, and courage. Right now, the person and organization I most want to give a shoutout to is Phillip Moffitt and the Life Balance Institute.

Phillip created Life Balance Strategy, a framework that helps people live in alignment with their values, navigate life’s inevitable changes, and act from a place of purpose and courage. His approach draws from decades of work with clients, his own corporate experience, Buddhist psychology, Jungian insights, and what he calls the “street of life” – practical wisdom for showing up fully in the real world. His work has profoundly shaped how I approach life, make choices, and guide both individuals and groups.

I’ve experienced this teaching through his books, Dancing with Life and Emotional Chaos to Clarity, and in person at retreats – silent insight meditation retreats, forgiveness retreats, and his annual poetry daylong at Spirit Rock. Each encounter revealed new ways Life Balance Strategy transforms not just what we do, but how we relate to ourselves and the world.

I first encountered this work as a client with my mentor Celeste Young, and later trained directly with Phillip to become a certified Life Balance Strategist. Living it before teaching it gave me a deep understanding of what works, what’s challenging, and how real transformation unfolds.

Phillip’s guidance, clarity, and humor have left a lasting imprint on my life. His work reminds me, and the people I work with, that we always have choices, that our lives can be shaped by our values rather than defined by circumstances, and that true transformation comes from intention, courage, and self-compassion. I’m deeply grateful for the inspiration it provides as I guide others in living with intention and courage.

Website: https://www.alexandramindfulness.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexandramindfulness/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandramindfulness/