Meet Whitley Ward

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Whitley Ward. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Whitley below.

Whitley, so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Imposter syndrome is so real, and honestly I’m not sure if one completely overcomes it as a whole, I’ve had to overcome it in multiple different waves. I’ve felt who am I to open a small business up against all of the big successful salons surrounding me, who do I think I am when I post to social media while the stylist next to be has triple the following. What I’ve learned is that it really comes down to reminding myself that I am my own individual person, my own individual experience, and my clients love me for me and that’s what sets me apart. As far as social media I remind myself that ultimately I post because I love what I do and I love sharing my work with whoever wants to enjoy it too! Imposter syndrome is just that small piece of self doubt that lives in our head you just have to learn how to talk back to it proving it invalid

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Hi! I’m Whitley and I run a salon suite in Longmont Colorado. I’ve been a stylist for going on 12 years and I specialize in Vivid color and Extensions. I also am an Indie educator where I also help teach some of my favorite color techniques.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Ok well I’d say number 1 most important is staying consistent with it. Being a hairstylist is not an easy job, it takes hours of endless work on perfecting your skills. Some people pick it up naturally, but for the rest(including me) it is something that you have to develop over time with practice. You have to WANT it.
2. With that being said though, take breaks! Burnout is a real thing and you have to take care of yourself or you’ll just go backwards. Eat your lunch, don’t work 7 days a week, be productive but nice to yourself
3. Have fun with it! Most people that go into the beauty industry have that need to create in some sense or love the technical side of things. Make sure you give yourself what keeps you interested so you keep the passion alive.

For any new stylist I’d just say be nice to yourself even on hard days, but keep going. Your goals may be far out there, years away, but it’s sooo worth it and rewarding to get there

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

I’d say that the best thing to do when filling overwhelmed is to talk to the people around you whether that’s your partner, parents, or coworkers, you can usually find some great advice and encouragement from the people around you

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Www.theneonblondesalon.com
• Instagram: https://Www.instagram.com/hairbywhitley_

Image Credits

@treykarson