Hair's My Experience

I am sharing my story with the hope to encourage someone who may feel discouraged about what’s next for them.

I am one of many who have been affected by the current COVID-19 pandemic. I worked for a corporate salon when they decided to eliminate two management positions – one being the position I held as the Salon Managers and creating a new position. The new position basically was the two positions combined into one. Although I love doing hair, I’ve been standing behind the chair for a long time. So, I decided to take the severance they offered, shift my sails, and begin a new journey down a road less traveled by most women.

I’ve been working on a product for the past year- asking my customers questions while doing consultations with different beauty industry ones. As “Hair’s My Experience” began to evolve, I had everything in place, a coach, ingredients, the basic equipment needed to formulate, but I was stuck! I felt stagnant in my role as a Salon Manager for some time and was looking to move back into entrepreneurship. You see, conflicts of interest trapped me. Worried about losing the one thing I had that felt normal – my secular job. I was unaware of the fact that I was participating in the act of degradation. I was degrading myself from what I truly was supposed to be doing, black entrepreneurship. I sat on my first premium product for months. The plan was to purchase my first home in Florida, and when I moved in, I would be able to go all-in with formulation, but things weren’t lining up.

Instead of wallowing in the disappointment of losing my position as a Salon Manager and feeling sorry for myself, I decided to think of what I could do to sustain myself financially and continue to fund my business. I am always making moves contemplating my next. And I have always lived by this one philosophy, “go get it because ain’t nobody gonna give it to you!” With that said, I am grateful to the corporate salon for pushing me into my next. If this hadn’t happened to me, my first hair care product would still be boxed up, collecting dust. I am ecstatic about what’s to come. So, to all of my patrons, please be patient with me.

Speaking of my next move, I’ve decided to become an essential worker, get my class A CDL driver’s license, and hit the road. I will be an OTR truck driver. And for those who are not familiar with the acronym, it means “Over The Road.” Yes! I will be a long-haul driver for Prime Inc. When I told the ones who mattered to me most, they were like- WHAT!! You’re going to do what?!! A couple of others said I could see you doing that kind of work because you are an ambitious person. You see – nothing changes unless something changes. Change is always an adjustment, and for me, I embrace change because change is good.

So I want to encourage you to keep pushing forward and never accept less than your worth. Map it out and carve your own journey. Make your dreams come to fruition while keeping hope alive. Work at being resilient, and you, too, will be able to do anything you set your mind to.