Meet Marisa Paradis

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

Marisa, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

I developed my confidence and self-esteem by following through on my word to myself. Do it scared. Do it even if you don’t feel ready. Just do it. So much of my self-esteem has grown by slowing down to check in with my own wants and desires and really taping into that. Finding clarity in my vision of how I want my life to look and feel and then listening to my true self, not the voices of those around me. Once I started to build my confidence, every decision I made became stronger… I knew if it wasn’t an immediate “hell yes” it should probably be a no. Trusting myself, my choices and all my moves have left me knowing that I am truly able to handle anything that comes my way and I will tackle it the best way I know how.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

Hi! I’m Marisa Paradis, the owner of Shakeup Makeup, LLC in Tolland, CT. My business consists of 3 different entities that all lead with the art of transformation. I have always loved to watch humans evolve, grow and expand their confidence and self-worth and every day I get to help them do that through my work. As a fitness instructor, we focus on having fun! Movement can be enjoyable if you’re focusing on the good stuff. If you’re celebrating every time you get off the couch, you’re excited to move up to a bigger weight, or you’re so proud to dance your way to the front row, that is what your journey should be all about and we celebrate that together in each class. Let loose, have fun and celebrate all that you CAN do! As a makeup artist, I love helping women see their natural beauty by making their blue eyes pop out, cheek bones perk up or lips shine so kissable! When you stand up from the makeup chair and look at yourself in the mirror for the first time, I always hope your reaction is “Damn, I look good” because it’s not about the makeup girl, it’s about YOU! and finally, I transform lives through one on one wellness coaching, where we don’t focus on restriction, or weight loss or what you’re doing wrong. Instead, we focus on what you need, what you want, and how you want to live your day to day life. It’s all about what you can gain out of changing your lifestyle, who can you meet and what you can do more of with a bit more joy, freedom and empowerment of your own daily choices. I absolutely love working with women, and I love giving them the space to be exactly who they are; fun, weird, quirky and all. I’m so excited to be celebrating one year in my new studio this December 2025 and can’t wait to see what else is to come!

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

1. Consistency is huge! Keep showing up, keep moving forward, keep sharing your value with the world. The right people will show up at the right time, and everyone will know who to go to when they are ready for what it is that you bring to the table. If you’re in and your out, so will your clients and your following. Keep showing up, the right people will be there soon.

2. Care about your clients, because they are truly more than just a number. If I cancelled my fitness classes because “only” 2 people showed up, then those 2 people would feel like they don’t matter, and others would learn that I only care about numbers. This is especially key for when you’re first starting and working on getting a following. Think about ways you can show your clients you truly care. Notes, thank you cards, appreciation nights, giveaways, checking in on them when you haven’t seen heard from them in a while, it all matters.

3. Finding your own confidence! You are the best at being you, no one else is like you. There will always be 100 different makeup artists in my area, but what makes me stand out versus the rest? It’s not about being the best, but it is about showing my true authentic and confident self, so the right brides can find me, connect with me and hire me. If I do everything cookie cutter like the rest, or I’m unsure of myself, that will fully come across. Stand in your confidence of who you are and what you bring to the table. People will notice!

What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?

Asking for help! Gosh, running a business, by myself, for myself can sure get lonely sometimes… but it turns out there are a ton of people who want to help me. There are friends and family members who are always asking how they can help and for a really long time I declined their offers, because this was “my” business and “my” dream and I didn’t want to burden anyone with the nitty gritty things. However, what I realized is that so many more people get invested in what I’m doing when they are also involved in it. When I first opened my studio last December, I asked for all kinds of help from friends and family and even clients. They let us borrow tools, they came in and did some physical labor, they watched my son so I could work at the studio to get it ready for opening and so much more. I proudly display their names on the wall of my studio now because I know without their help, this would not be possible. Now that I am open and running weekly classes and fun pop-ups, I decided I could use a few volunteers, so I made a volunteer sign up sheet and once a month I choose someone to get a free class in return for some help. It’s a great way to connect with my clients more, get some one on one time with them, and we each benefit from the night they come help, so its truly a win, win. Grateful I let go of the story of what I believed asking for help meant, and proud to get help often!

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Kaitlyn Casso Creations
Luz Photography
Rachel Adele Studios
Ashley Abel Photography
Tasman Photography

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