We were lucky to catch up with Ashley Akyol recently and have shared our conversation below.
Ashley, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
I use radical acceptance. Radical acceptance has taught me to accept reality for what it is, without harsh judgement, or wishing it was different. Most of my entrepreneur career has been accepting that I may not be as well equipped, educated, or trained as the next person – but instead of feeling insecure or sad about it, just being ok with that and pushing forwards anyways.
Understanding who I am as a person is fundamental. To this day I still practice getting to know myself as I evolve. This has led to me to discover I am ambitious, resilient, and not afraid of failure. Pouring my energy into my positive aspects helps negate the insecure ones. So, if my business is maybe not having a great month or quarter, or I am feeling down on myself, I just remember who I am and that there is nothing that can destroy me as a person. Life is full of failures and when you radically accept all outcomes and embrace your strong qualities… the imposter syndrome tends to go away.
Imposter syndrome usually stems from in my opinion, insecurity. Whether that insecurity is interpersonal or situational, it will have an affect on the psyche before possibilities even have the chance to express themselves. I committed to not allowing my insecurities to block me from my potential.
My favorite quote and piece of advice to remind myself when the imposter syndrome does come up is from Steve Jobs,
“The people who are crazy enough to change the world are the ones who do”.
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?
Simply put, I am an entrepreneur. I decided from a very early age that I wanted to be in the 10% of people who work for themselves without the daily stressors and beat down of corporate America. As I have grown and entered the entrepreneur path, however, I learned ironically that you do still feel the pressure to satisfy and provide for others. Instead of being worried about a boss – I worry about being a bad boss. The deadlines, stress, and reprimanding still exist and are very intense because if you don’t satisfy, you don’t get sales, and you don’t pay yourself. The cons of working for a corporate company still very much exist in the world of a small business owner.
The pros though… they make everything worthwhile. I have the ability to pursue whatever avenue I desire. I have flexibility to try new things and to fail within reason. I attempt then succeed or fail at a rapid speed that I don’t believe school ever gave me. I have been able to experiment with branding, marketing, and sales in a way that feel extremely worthwhile when they do well. I have done events and focused on my local community in my brick and mortar, and doing so has been more rewarding than any other achievement or accomplishment I have on paper.
Third Eye Thrift is a direct reflection of me as a person and my journey. I love art, self expression, fighting the status quo, and all things rebellious. I also have been able to add elements of my private life – like metaphysical items since I am a practicing Wiccan. I am able to directly translate my personality into a space and when that space does well it feels extremely satisfying to know the things I love and want to share are loved and appreciated back.
The beauty of small business that corporate America lacks is the branding reflecting the identity of the owner. Some major corporations have slightly been successful in this, aiming at the average American and attempting to be sentimental, but usually it falls short and the consumer is obvious to the attempt. When locals shop small business they see every touch and detail that was put in, the messy papers, the empty coffee cups, the hand picked merchandise and display that looks a little less than perfect. These little details create a warm attachment, and in our modern world where technology, minimalism and over independence is rampant – I have aimed and keeping a space that is opposite of that. So far it has been a great experience.
Obviously I would love to expand and grow, so there will be challenges when that comes… translating that specific warm feeling… but for now I am extremely happy with the locality and community I have within my shop. I love seeing local high schoolers bring art to us, local elders donate their prized possessions and tell their stories, and local regulars who have are devoted shoppers. It has given me a happiness I have never experienced working anywhere else.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1) Ambition: Needing to believe I could do it without focusing on potential failures.
2) Kindness: to myself and to my business when I did fail.
3) Resilience: picking myself back up with optimism for fixing whatever did fail and doing better than before.
Trial and error is the most important part of any business’s journey.
Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?
Right now I am facing growing pains. This a very blessed problem to have, but a very real one. Im entering my third year with my Brick and Mortar and I have hit a stagnation period. It is never fun to feel stuck and lost in direction, but these periods are necessary. Rest is productive.
I’m writing this article right before New Years so this is very heavy topic thats been on my brain… as I have reflected I realized my biggest challenges this year were fighting and not allowing the change the universe was implementing for me. My business partner and I split, and I had been putting that off for awhile, but once it did happen (as tough as it was) it was entirely for the best and better did come.
It’s easy to resist change and fear the unknown, but going back to the practice of radical acceptance, it’s very important that you do not resist and accept everything that comes your way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thirdeyethrift.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thirdeyethrift
- Facebook: Third Eye Thrift
- Twitter: www.instagram.com/thirdeyethrift
Image Credits
Ashley Akyol
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
