Today we’d like to introduce you to Ksenia Godovalova.
Hi Ksenia, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have this funny thing I’ve done my entire life.
Even in the middle of the most ridiculous, heartbreaking, uncertain situations, some part of me would look around and think:
“Oh my God. This is going to be an awesome story one day”
And here I am, finally telling it.
My story begins in a small town in post-Soviet Ukraine, near the Russian border. My mom was a teenager who had escaped a dangerous marriage to a mafia guy, my dad was a big engineer nerd, and somehow, these two very different people brought me into the world.
I grew up in a town that felt cozy and safe, yet somehow too small for me.
So, at seventeen, right after high school, my parents helped me pack my bags, and off I went to Germany to begin my life in the big, big world.
Six months later, the war began in Ukraine, my parents separated, and the money ran out.
And there I was, standing on a German street with a broken suitcase, no money, nowhere to go, and no safety net.
And I remember thinking, *This is going to be an awesome story one day.*
That was thirteen years ago.
Since then, life has taken me across the ocean into Mexico, where I discovered my inner Latina and learned Spanish in six months, and eventually to Austin, where I just celebrated ten years.
It’s been a roller coaster of relationships, careers, adventures, leaps of faith, and starting over many times. And through it all, whenever I had nowhere to turn, someone showed up. Someone offered a home, a meal, clothes, money, advice, or simply a hand.
I began to notice something strange: even when I had nothing, I was never entirely without support. Life kept showing up for me.
But my relationship with money remained a constant struggle.
After years of trying to figure things out, I reached a breaking point. I sold everything and moved back to Mexico, where I spent five months reconnecting with myself and remembering how beautiful life could be.
Eventually, I ran out of money again.
What followed was one of the darkest chapters of my life: homelessness, addiction, an overdose, and a mental health crisis that led me to spend four nights in a psychiatric hospital.
And somewhere in that darkness, that same voice appeared again.
*This is going to be a story one day.*
I didn’t know how. I didn’t know why. I just knew, somewhere inside me, that this wasn’t the end.
And it wasn’t. It was just a beginning.
On my knees, I surrendered. I prayed, *God, take the wheel. Guide me. I don’t know what to do anymore.*
Within three months, I found myself working in a preschool, surrounded by ten three-year-olds.
And those children changed my life.
They didn’t care about my past. They didn’t judge my mistakes or wonder whether I had my life together. They wanted to play, to connect, to feel loved, and to be met exactly where they were.
In their presence, I began to remember something I’d been searching for all along: the freedom of simply being yourself, without having to prove that you’re worthy of love.
I learned from those children. I grew with them. And I began to understand how much of our lives is shaped by whether we feel safe to be who we are.
Today, that understanding is at the heart of everything I’m creating.
Through Project Shift & Lift, I’m beginning to host gatherings where people can bring their stories, their struggles, their secrets, their shame, and their whole, messy, beautiful selves.
Spaces where we can be witnessed without judgment. Where we can laugh, cry, pray, share, and remember that we belong to one another.
Because I envision a world where children don’t grow up believing they need to hide parts of themselves to be loved. A world where our homes, schools, and communities are built on connection rather than shame, and unity rather than separation.
I’m still figuring out my life. I’m still learning about money, trust, and what it means to build something meaningful.
But I no longer believe I need to have everything figured out before I can share what I’ve learned.
For thirteen years, I kept telling myself this was going to be an awesome story.
And now I understand that perhaps the story was never just about what happened to me.
It’s about what those experiences can make possible for others.
It’s about turning our darkest moments into connection, our shame into honesty, and our individual journeys into something we can share.
And maybe that’s what I’m here to do.
To create spaces where we can stop pretending, start telling the truth, and remember that none of us has to navigate this beautiful, unpredictable life alone.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey has been a roller coaster of uncertainty, starting over, and learning to find my way when I had no idea what came next.
I’ve experienced financial instability, homelessness, addiction, abortion, an overdose, a near-death experience, and a mental health crisis that led me to a psychiatric hospital. I’ve moved between countries, navigated relationships and careers, and often found myself rebuilding my life from scratch.
One of my biggest struggles has been my relationship with money. I’ve gone through periods without any income, sometimes with literally zero in my bank account, while trying to figure out how to create a life that feels both free and secure.
But what has stayed with me through the hardest moments is the experience of being helped in ways I couldn’t have planned. Someone offered me a place to stay, a meal, resources, or simply a hand when I needed it most.
Those experiences didn’t make the struggles easy, but they taught me a lot about vulnerability, receiving support, and the power of human connection.
Looking back, even my darkest chapters eventually became turning points. My mental health crisis brought me to a place of surrender, which led me to working with children and becoming a prayer chaplain and also discovering how deeply I care about creating spaces where people feel safe, accepted, and free to be themselves.
I’m still learning. But I’ve come to see that we don’t need to have everything figured out for our lives to hold meaning. Sometimes, the moments when we feel most lost become the beginning of discovering who we really are.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I envision a world rooted in unity and connection, where we see ourselves as parts of a bigger whole and create spaces where every human being feels safe to be fully themselves.
This vision is taking shape through Project Shift & Lift, a movement dedicated to shame awareness and prevention and to creating nonjudgmental, shame-aware environments in our homes, schools, and communities.
What makes this work personal to me is that I know shame from the inside. I’ve experienced how deeply it can disconnect us, isolate us, and make us feel that we have to hide parts of ourselves to belong. I’ve also experienced the transformative power of connection, compassion, and being seen without judgment. Today, I feel called to create spaces where others can experience that same freedom and belonging.
Through educational experiences, relationship-building tools, and community gatherings, we explore how to replace judgment with understanding and disconnection with connection.
You can experience this movement in person at our Friday gatherings at Casa de Luz at 6:30 PM, where we come together to share, connect, dance and show up as our fullest selves.
Project Shift & Lift is a growing movement, and bringing this vision to life takes a community. We welcome financial sponsors, donors, and volunteers who feel called to contribute to creating more shame-aware, connected, and compassionate homes, schools, and communities.
Together, we can create a world where we no longer have to hide who we are to belong.
Any big plans?
The future feels bright and full of possibility! I’m looking forward to creating more spaces for people to shift and lift, connect, and experience what it feels like to belong without judgment.
My long-term vision is to create schools built around heart-centered education, where belonging, emotional development, and relationships are at the core of learning. I also envision providing consulting and transformational services to existing school systems, helping bring relationship-centered approaches into education.
Ultimately, I want to help reshape how we learn to be human in this world. None of us came with a manual, yet our relationships shape so much of who we become. I envision an education that helps children and adults understand themselves, connect with others, and navigate life with compassion, authenticity, and a sense of belonging.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kseniagod/
