Hoda Kotb Says It’s ‘Scary’ and ‘Terrifying’ to Leave ‘Today’ and Start New Career Venture

Hoda Kotb is looking ahead to her next career venture after announcing she is leaving Today.

During a Friday, October 25 episode of the talk show, the broadcaster explained why she was inspired to enter the wellness space.

“I don’t know if you’ve ever had a yearning, a calling, a desire, and you can’t quit it, even if you try, because working at NBC is safer. … But sometimes, you know there’s something else that you want to try in your life,” Hoda, 60, told cohost Jenna Bush Hager.

“And I have been so turned on by the wellness space because I realized what was happening to me. I tried different things and I noticed my body was calmer,” the NBC star continued. “I was getting sick less. I was feeling better. I was a better parent, a better friend, a better sister, a better daughter. And I thought, all these tiny things I was doing day after day were helping to change me inside.”

“What I want to do is I want to live in wellness. I want to work in that space. I want to start things,” she added. “I’ve got things that are percolating inside that I’m gonna, hopefully, have fully formed soon.”

During the segment, Hoda said that Maria Shriver is her “guru” in this new phase of her life. While the TV personality admitted that it is a big risk to pursue wellness, she is ultimately very excited.

“There’s a part of me that has not yet caught up to where I’m going. … 75 percent of me has emotionally moved here, but when those twinges come up, like, ‘Should you do it? Is it a mistake? Uh oh,’ I remind myself that there’s still part of me that’s living right here, and that’s normal. Like, let it be. So, yeah, it’s scary,” she explained. “Yeah, it’s terrifying. It’s all those things, but it’s also exactly right.”

It’s been a big year for Hoda, who recently moved into a new home with her two daughters, Haley and Hope.

“Whenever I made a leap, a move, a jump, was, like, ‘I’m falling in love,’” the Hope Is a Rainbow author said of all of her big life changes. “That’s what I said to myself. ‘When I moved to this town, I’m falling in love. I’m gonna fall in love with a place, a restaurant, a friend, I’m gonna meet a boyfriend.’”

When Hoda announced her Today exit on September 26, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

“It’s all the feelings, it’s all the emotions, because it’s primarily pride and gratitude that we had the time that we had together and I’m just so proud of how courageous she is being,” Savannah Guthrie told Closer at Project Healthy Mind‘s World Mental Health Day Gala on October 10.

“It’s easy to leave something that’s hard,” Savannah added. “It’s not that easy to leave something that’s wonderful, and she loves it, and she knows how blessed she is but she’s boldly stepping out into this future, a future that she hasn’t written yet, a future that she’s not totally certain what it will look like, but she believes in herself enough to know I can take this step.”