I grew up playing with my Barbie’s hair, dressing them up, imagining them at the store. My aunt had a huge influence on my love for fashion and beauty; a part of me knew I’d always wind up in this industry.
Yet, I found myself away from Barbie hair, in corporate America, in a job that took way more from me than it gave. At a point of reckoning, my husband asked “What’s your dream?” I responded, “I want to do hair.” So, that’s exactly what I did.
The journey of becoming a hairstylist proved difficult. It was a new world, and I was trying to figure out my place in this stage of life, personally and professionally. There were a variety of personalities surrounding me, and I had to stay true to “who I was in The Lord, to be in it, not of it.”
I had been a Christian since I was 7 or 8, having asked Jesus into my heart for the first time. But, when I was a junior in high school, it hit me like a ton of bricks. A true moment of surrender. I knew God was calling me, changing me! It was one of those “you just know that you’ve got it” moments.
Even still, this profession continued to push me spiritually. I’ve learned to not be concerned about what people think, learned to break the mold of trying to “fit in,” and learned to truly step into being the person God’s called me to be.
Now, I use my chair as my ministry. I’m so thankful that God’s put me in this position, almost an open stage, to tell people about Jesus, to listen and encourage them.
Thankfully, I’m in a space where it’s just me and my clients, so people feel like they can be vulnerable. The last 20 years have been “a lot of really loving on people, building them up, trying to help them look at things in a different way.”
I can tell someone the life stories of my clients or answer trivia questions about them because of their willingness to share with me. I believe they come in initially for their hair, but continue to book because it’s almost like therapy.
This industry is all about how you make people feel; I get to make women feel loved and beautiful. It’s almost like giving somebody a gift!
It’s exciting, because I get to suggest new fashion ideas, hairstyles and beauty tips. I’ll encourage them to think outside of the box, and push them beyond their comfort zone. This trust is built over time and bleeds into their trust with more personal matters, where I have the opportunity to pray with them, invite them to church, and tell them that they need Jesus! Even when I’m not sure if they’ll receive or accept it. If God tells me to do it. I know I’ve got to do it.
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