We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dana Buchanan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Dana, we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?
Developing my confidence and self-esteem did not happen over night, it definitely took some time. I believe for the most part, I had the confidence to stand out and be different, but dealing with the criticism was a challenge for me at one point. Learning to deal with constructive criticism and negative feedback is very important if you want to be successful. Once I learned to ignore certain comments and to keep being my authentic self, that’s when I conquered this obstacle. I noticed how unstoppable I became once I truly lived for myself and no one else. Now, I’m able to challenge my confidence and self esteem by doing different photoshoots, expressing my style, sharing my personal life and more. Having confidence is definitely the key, no matter what your goals are. I did not start seeing the success I wanted until I slowly but surely came out of my shell.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’m currently an entrepreneur, model, and fashion blogger in Atlanta, GA. I have two businesses, “Dopeminkssss” (lash business, 2019) and “Dopeunisexclothing” (clothing business, 2023). These two businesses are very special to me. They are representations of my hard work, determination, authenticity, and passion. I have stayed true to my goals and I have yet to give up which makes me overly excited for what’s to come. “Dopeunisexclothing” is specifically based on urban street wear clothing for men and women. I’m in the process of launching my clothing line next month, December 2023. As well as, focusing on starting a podcast that’ll be targeting self development and an outlet for myself and others to clear the air when it comes to personal emotions and mental challenges that we all tend to deal with throughout the years. I would like to bring awareness to mental health and depression for both men and women with this podcast. Last but not least, I’m also going to relaunch my lash business, “Dopeminkssss” next year as well with a new custom mink lash collection. There are so many things in store and I’m ready to release what I’ve been working on and putting my hard work into.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Based on my journey, the most impactful qualities and skills of knowledge that I’ve practiced included being authentic, putting forth hard work and determination towards every goal, and being humble and resilient. These three qualities/skills have set me apart and ahead throughout many obstacles, challenges, and situations in life overall. Maintaining and having these three specific skills not only were impactful to my business, but mentally and emotionally. Having a good headspace and being very aware of your mental while developing yourself is very important. Not all goals in life are going to be easy to accomplish, it’s going to take you to find yourself to be able to dig deep and discover your purpose and passion. These different levels are going to challenge you to be the best person you can be mentally. Once you’re able to develop these skills and use them on a daily basis, you’ll see an amazing outcome.
What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?
My biggest area of growth/improvement in the past 12 months is learning how to be patient. Patience is so important when you are trying to reach certain goals. I’ve learned not to be in a rush especially when it comes to being an entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur and starting over, you have to be patient enough to make and create the right decisions so you can receive successful results. I’ve come to an understanding that everyone’s journey is completely different and some might take longer than others but never give up. Over the past few years, I’ve been wanting to accomplish so many goals, but I was not ready mentally and emotionally. I had to take time out to work on myself before putting my all into something that I love. Patience will help open your eyes to a lot of different perspectives, whether it’s good or bad. I’m so happy and content with my growth, learning how to be patient has made me appreciate and cherish what I’ve accomplished so far.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/dopeunisexclothing?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/cashhhcali
- Other: https://linktr.ee/cashhhcali?fbclid=PAAaa3C5D_u1JDSx_O3vhCgys4pn0QpGE6ANh5ll2_BgYBBBY4H4lNX_frByQ_aem_ATvN-pLQzIMmwLh8C0kDTxR7me7xdf-KlJH1iIqweBdOqRGeYGZtZuL6AH0sw4R3m0o
Image Credits
Visuals.af Devel.op
