We recently connected with Ashley Shick and have shared our conversation below.
Ashley , we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
If you want the short answer, resilience comes from ambition and hunger to always be better and want better for yourself. I didn’t always know what I wanted my life to look like, but I always knew I wanted to be successful and build something for myself.
I had a good childhood, but it was filled with its challenges. These challenges included an unstable economy, my father’s unfortunate streak of layoffs and my parents working through those finical stresses together. This phase my parents went through instilled the value of money, hard work, and not letting yourself drown even when it feels like drowning might be easier.
I took these lessons when I set out on my own to Atlanta with the dream of eventually making it to NYC. This is where I faced many controversies. The main struggle was figuring out, who am I? What do I stand for? What is my brand?
I decided the way to figure that out was to start my own business. So, I opened a small salon loft “Ashley Ann Salon” and in 3 years grew into a 6-figure salon.
In those 3 years I spent many nights crying, calling my mom to see if I could move back home, and overall reconsidering my career in the beauty industry. I kept coming back to “Who are you, and what do you stand for?” I came to learn that I stand for welcoming beauty for all and creating a beautiful life for my partner and I.
So, I pushed, I learned how to network, how to build marketing material, befriended fellow entrepreneurs, and any time I wasn’t with a client I was focused on getting more clients. It becomes a hustle mentality that sticks with you for the rest of your life. Now I work in NYC at a gorgeous salon Little Lion Salon in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Now, let’s see what NYC has to teach me!
It all ties back into if you are hungry for success. If so, what does that look like to you and how are you going to get it? Never take no for an answer.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I would say I am an artist with hair being my canvas. Trust me I know that sounds corny, but it is my passion. My second passion is followed closely by creating a relaxing, body positive, all-inclusive environment for my clients. I made it a personal goal very early in my career that it didn’t matter who sat in my chair, I would know how to do their hair. I want every client to feel their most attractive when they sit in my chair and feel their absolute best once I finish the service. The pursuit of this took me on an education journey that I couldn’t be more grateful for. I’ve worked with so many different brands and learned so many techniques that I have been able to create my own personal brand and style that is knowledgeable and diverse.
In the past ten years, I have done it all and am known for blondes, redheads, extensions, and curls! I feel like I got skilled with curls and redheads because I saw a need for specialists in that area. I wanted to be knowledgeable and give clients a safe place that they would be confident they would get what they asked for especially my curly girls. Blondes became a specialty because I’m from the south and you better know how to make a blonde beauty! Extensions are the new accessory! I knew like it was very important for me to learn a fantastic method and high-quality hair to give the best most natural result for every hair type!
I take pride in my work and take it very seriously. I also have so much fun every day because I am painting hair, talking to amazing people, and never work the same day twice!
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?
For me I think when working in an artistic career that is also customer service based it is so important to have people skills and communication skills. The first skill is reading between the lines. You need to be able to read facial expressions, a person’s body language and their tone. Also, how are they dressed, what is that person’s style. That information will tell you a lot more about them than just their words. I think this skill comes with experience but if you start to pay attention to every customer/client in that way you’ll pick it up bit by bit. The second skill is listening to understand and speaking in a clear and digestible terms. When a customer/client is talking about who they are and what they want you must listen to understand not only what they want but what is best for them. Ask questions that are open ended so they can express themselves and expectations. An example for my industry is as follows; How do you style your hair, walk me through the steps from the time you walk in the shower to when your hair is styled? This will give you so much more information than “do you blow dry your hair?” When it is your time to talk them through what service is best and how to maintain it and what products are needed you must speak in terms they will understand. We as creative professionals take a lot of time to master our skills and surround ourselves with likeminded individuals. Your client base doesn’t have the same knowledge. So, it is your job to communicate it in a way that is understood. I always tell my assistance to talk to your client the way you would have needed to be talked to before walking through the doors of cosmetology school. If you use an industry term, explain what that industry term is. That is a good way to show them you know what you are talking about while educating them. Thirdly, never lose the hunger to learn and stay relevant in your craft. Always stay teachable and open minded. Have the mindset that you will never be the best, but never stop trying to be the best.
What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?
We all know that quote, “A jack of all trades is a master of none but oftentimes better than a master of one”. I agree with that quote to a degree. I think in my industry, you need to understand hair on a scientific and structural level and when you understand that you can have a leg up with any technique. It is also true to specialize in areas that you are naturally drawn to and naturally excel at. I want to be knowledgeable and educated on everything dealing with hair. This benefits my clients and doesn’t trap me in a box. I also think it’s good to choose a few things that you want to master and market that more heavily, so you attract your ideal customer/client. I think there is a healthy balance of both.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://littlelionsalon.com/williamsburg/talent/
- Instagram: instagram.com/ashleyanndoeshair
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/little-lion-salon-brooklyn
Image Credits
Heatherlynn Gonzlalez
