An Inspired Chat with Sam Molina of Chicago/Chicagoland/Central Illinois

We recently had the chance to connect with Sam Molina and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Sam, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Integrity is so important because I am at a point in my life where if the opportunity or situation I’m in does not align with my views, including my integrity I will not do it. I am learning to protect my peace at all costs, and to speak the truth and to speak my mind, no matter what. Integrity is key!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
2. I have been a Licensed Esthetician since August 2020 and I also create content for brands on the side on Instagram and TikTok @skinchicasam. Shortly after becoming a Licensed Esthetician, I unfortunately developed a lower back injury that put me out of the treatment room, and then I started to create content online for fun until I figured out what was my next move. Eventually, I started working for a well-known spa and salon distributor in my industry, and worked my way through customer service, sales, and eventually marketing. Even though the company was not the right fit for me, I decided to enroll back in college so I could learn more technical skills in video production and communication in an effort to land an opportunity that aligns with my core values, morals, and integrity. I love working on content for brands on the side and have slowly started to monetize opportunities. Which is exciting because I didn’t really look at creating content as a way to monetize my time but now I’m looking at it in a very different way where I want to utilize social media as a platform to build an audience and a business. Right now I’m really focusing on learning as much as I can in the next year before I pivot and go all in. At the moment I am taking on collaborations with brands and will be attending any events related to my industry in Chicago (and the US for that matter) to get to know people and to get my name out there. What initially started out as a hobby back in 2019, I didn’t realize that I could make a career out of it until I quit my job this past December. Plus, having to deal with my lower back injury. For so long, I wanted to become a Licensed Esthetician to provide facials but my body simply could not handle it. I have found that content creation and working in the beauty industry makes me very happy and makes me feel alive. If there’s anything that I want people to know about me is that I am very nimble and flexible and can adapt to so many different situations. Having to exit the treatment room was a really devastating time for me, but because of that, I found a new passion which was content creation in the beauty space. I’m open to meeting new people and collaborating with others in the Midwest or Chicago/Chicagoland area if you want to connect! You can find me on @skinchicasam and @sincerely_sammy_.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
My best friend Eleazar “Elle” is the person who saw me before I could even see who I was. He knew my potential and my passion early on in our friendship before I ever realized what it was, and he always preached the importance of going for it and to never give up. We were friends from a very young age and he passed away unexpectedly last December. His death made me realize so many things in my life such as what I want out of life. The work that I’m doing right now is a way to honor him through my actions because I know he would’ve wanted to see me fulfill my entire potential to the fullest. But it was all because he saw me and who I was, and what I could bring to the world. He was truly my best cheerleader and always made me feel like I could do anything I wanted. Even though he is physically gone from this world, I feel his presence every day pushing me to do the things that I want now because if I don’t do them then when will I ever get to do them? He is my guiding light and I owe it all to him.

When did you stop hiding your pain and start using it as power?
This is a fabulous question because when I initially got injured after becoming a Licensed Esthetician, I was hiding in pain for about two years because I did not know how to properly move my body anymore. I got depressed, and I started to feel terrible about myself because I simply did not know how to move my body with chronic pain. I made the decision to move back home to take a step back and focus on my mental health and my health and to find a way to deal with my pain so I no longer had to hide. For those two years, I was suffering so much because it really took a toll on my emotional health, and I simply did not know how to manage chronic pain. I ended up gaining about forty pounds in a two year period which doesn’t sound like a lot of weight but for me it was. I had a hard time looking in the mirror at who I was and it really affected me. Once I started to realize that I could turn my pain into power, I started to change my mindset. I also had to relearn how to move my body and very gradually I got back into the swing of working out, eating healthy, and very gradually my mental health started to shift and I started to have a positive outlook on life again. I look back at that time in my life and I reflect and I realize that it was supposed to happen. It really changed my life in many ways for the better because I would’ve never been involved in the career or trajectory that I’m on right now because of my injury and I would’ve never moved back home to deal with it and to take time for myself to figure out what I wanted out of life. Turning my pain into power has been the most empowering time in my life and because of that, I have developed such a strong resiliency and grit to anything that comes my way. Anyone that knows what it’s like to live with chronic pain, they know that every day is a struggle, but when you start to change your mindset around living with chronic pain and what you can do to get the most out of your day, you start to rewire your brain for the better. With that comes so many positive possibilities and outcomes from it. At the end of the day, I chose to not become a victim and chose to rise above and to preach to others that they can do the same.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
They would definitely say that the small things make me happy. They are spending time with friends, family and my pet cat Tabby. Yes there are so many more fancy and luxurious things that people can do in their lives, but the small things make me so happy and you realize how important those things are when they’re gone. Making memories with my friends and family and Tabby is all I will have at the end of my life so make it count!

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What light inside you have you been dimming?
For so long and circumstances out of my control, it caused me to dim my own light. The fear of not getting it right and just straight up not believing in myself. I’ve realized, since I moved back home and by working really hard on my mental health, that dimming my own light really didn’t take me anywhere. I am at peace with everything that’s ever happened to me in my past and fully accept the present moment for what it is. Because of that attitude and mindset shift, I am able to express myself fully and I do not feel like my light has to be dimmed. In fact, I’m ready to shine! My story is not special and I’m sure there are people that have experienced a similar feeling, but it’s a reminder that you don’t have to dim your own light to fit in or to mesh with other people – you have to stand out! Be authentically you and show up for you and stand up for what you believe in is the legacy I plan to leave behind. We only have one life, make it count!

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