Open Letter | To Any Girl Who Has Ever Wanted To Become A "Girl Boss"

Being a girl is a job in itself. We have to worry about make up, hair, nails, clothes, shaving, waxing, aunt flo, being the perfect daughter, becoming an amazing wife, and possibly the best mom one day.

Taking on the career world should really be the last thing on our mind, but for many its the first.
Not to go all feminist on you, but I personally am a huge supporter and believer in other woman lifting each other up. Unfortunately in today's society there are more opportunities for us to tear each other down.

Thanks to facebook, instagram, (or okay, dating myself here but my OG social media source, MySpace). Among others like twitter, youtube, tumblr, and about a million others I've probably never heard of.

It's all about how many likes you get, what angle to take your selfie, and how good of lighting you have. As a blogger, beauty enthusiast, and now a business owner of 2 companies, I feel the urge, no the NEED to lay it all on the line, and encourage young girls to FIGHT for what they want in life. I may be the only one to tell you, that YOU matter, YOU deserve to be a girl boss + YOU have what it takes to make a difference in this world.

So here goes nothing...

I've been there

I've been in your shoes.
I've sat in class during high school thinking about when I'm going to see "that" boy again.
I've dealt with mean girls... and when I say mean girls, that's an understatement.
(I'm talking spaghetti throwing, rumor starting, life altering mean girls)
I've had teachers and peers tell me that college is the only answer (for me it wasn't)
I've had set backs. (When I tried college it didn't work out + that's okay)
I've made mistakes, that may or may not have required a lawyers presence.
I've had to go on coffee runs, take someones clothes to the cleaners, have their car washed..
I've had to stand there for 12 hours just watching someone else do hair
I've also had the pleasure of turning to craigslist in search for hair models
I've worked for others who didn't believe in the same things I did, who judge me, or forced me to be someone I was not.
I've lost myself, and found myself about a dozen times.

We've ALL been there
Someones had it worse than me, and I'm sure I have had it worse than some
But don't let whats happened to you change what CAN happen to you

I never took no for an answer

I was that girl that never got broken up with, I was the one doing the breaking
I was that girl that would beg my mom to take me to extra practises at the gym to get a new skill
I was that girl that did the complete opposite of what you told me to do
I was that girl that never gave up

I've had people tell me to my face that I WILL FAIL, that I'm not going to amount to anything
Once I even had a well known Columbus salon NOT hire me because, and I quote, they said I was 'too ambitious' for their program when asked what my goals were in the industry and I replied by saying "Owning my own salon"

I've had friends ask if I even made enough money to live on by "just doing hair" (some friends huh?)
I've been so fueled by every ones doubts that as many obstacles that got in my way, I overcame, and came out ten times higher

So be that girl, say YES to everything, don't let other opinions over shadow your own, don't let your morals get lost and become something you're not.

I believe in myself, more than anyone else

I think the FIRST step to achieving any goal (big or small) is believing in it
I was raised on 'The Law of Attraction' and what you put out is what you get back
My self doubt and negative self talk has been a life long struggle, but at the end of the day I am my biggest cheerleader
If I don't believe in myself, why should anyone else?
So yes, I'm that girl that voted for myself for prom queen

You have to be able to close your eyes and visualize what you want,
before you can physically grasp it in your hands

I've made tons of vision boards, of magazine cut outs or online print outs
I had (no joke) a dozen journals that I have written out my 5, 10, 15 year plans in ...
They all say the same thing;
Married
Children
Salon Owner
Range Rover (still working on that one)

One of my favorite sayings is "you have to believe before you can achieve it"
No one every just wins the lottery without playing, or thinking "hey i might win!"


If there is a will there is a way 

I never knew "how" I would own a salon one day
I never knew where the money would come from
I never knew when it would happen

But every day, every decision, every time I moved salons
I was moving one step closer to that end goal

There have been a handful of times,
where I've turned to my husband and told him
"I can't work here anymore, but we do we do about bills"
& every single time he shows me God's grace by replying
"It's just money bee, we will figure it out."

Sometimes you have to just take a leap of faith
There have been about a hundred times during this whole 'salon opening' process where
I've questioned if it was going to happen, or wondering where we were going to come up with the money for paving a parking lot 😜 .. but every single time it has worked it self out

One of my partners sent me a quote last week that said;

God never gives you a dream that matches your budget
He's not checking your bank account
He's checking your faith

Can I get an AMEN

Find Your Tribe

This is the final and most crucial part to becoming a girl boss
You have to surround yourself with like minded people
You have to hunt for a mentor, and become best friends with them
You need to make nice with the people you want to be like

A dear friend of mine and I were recently catching up and gushing over a hair show she just attended, when she was telling me about this motivational speaker she heard, whom spoke on the beliefs of author Jim Rohn and his book "Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle"

This book goes in depth about how the 5 people you spend the majority of your time with, you begin to embody and become like each of them forming the person you are today. This fascinated me, and really makes you stop and think about who you are giving your time to

I have had frienimies, and even just friends that were life suckers and caused more harm than good in my life forcing me to divorce them. It's hard. Hell, it's heartbreaking. But it CAN be done and SHOULD be done.

You do not want to look back and realize you could have gone so much further had you just chosen different friends.

So here's to you girl boss'
The girl who budgets and plans every little detail to save for her future
The girl that reads self help books like it's her job
The girl that is hustlin on social media getting her name + brand out there
The girl who stays up once her kids go to bed to work on her business
The girl who works full time, and on her days off spends another 6-8 hours creating her business plan
The girl who never stops, never gives up, encourages, supports, and loves other girl boss'

HERE'S TO YOU!

Love,
Just some dumb blonde 😉

How to pack for a weekend trip

As a woman I have a tendency to overpack. When it comes to everything. Down to my everyday essentials. 

My daughters diaper bag is stuffed to the max and my purse is always over flowing.  

So when it comes to vacations and getaways I never fail to disappoint or overpay for additional luggage. 

However the last trip I went on I didn't use/wear half the stuff I packed. 

As I leave for Nashville in just 24 hours, and will only be in town for 30 hours I knew overpacking wasn't an option. 

Here are my essentials that I'm taking on a 2 day trip to for a hair show I'm attending with my girlfriends. 

One word. ROMPERS.  

Less items to pack. Less matching games to play. Easy. Just throw it on & go!! I plan on taking three separate rompers that can be paired with ONE pair of boots. 

This first outfit will be spent doing some sight seeing for breakfast and then in and out of classes all day at the hairshow. 

{Romper: Target, Jacket: Target, Necklace: Altared State, Boots: DSW}

 

I plan on just taking my jacket off from the first outfit and wear that little black romper out to dinner, taking my daytime to evening wear easily. 

But we're more than likely going to hit up all the Honky Tonks, into the wee morning hours and I'm always one for an outfit change! 

So here's to my Girls Night Out attire. 

{Romper: Target, Necklace: Walmart, Boots: DSW}

Last day you will find me in you guessed it, A ROMPER! 

We will be in an out of classes again at the hair show & then driving 6 hours home! To me there is no better go to than a romper. 

{Romper: Target, Shaw: Target, Necklace: Premier Designs Jewelry via Barb Cline, Boots:DSW}

If I don't use it daily, I'm not taking it. 

Since I'm only going for 2 days there is no need for shampoo and hair tools. Dry shampoo is my best friend & gets me by when I don't have time to wash and style. 

Of course I'm taking make-up, but not my whole collection. I'm literally just taking the necessities that I use every morning. 

Along with my make up remover, toothbrush & paste, D.O., self tanner (because you never know) & my Rodan Fields Eye Cream I can't live without. 

I also packed an oversized tee and pair of my new LuLaRoe leggings as pj's. 

Last minute things I will toss into my awesome Nfinity cheer book bag that my amazing cheerleaders got me at the end of our season this year, is my cell & iWatch Chargers and some snacks for the road trip. 

If you follow me, be prepared for it to look like Nashville threw up in your newsfeed. It's MY city. I seriously think I belong there. It makes my heart sing. From the music, to the lifestyle, to the food, shopping, the river & southern hospitality. Maybe one day. Girl can dream right?!

Nashville, I'm coming for you.