Inspiring Conversations with Dr. Leia’ Love of Leia’ Love Hair & Nail Salon

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Leia’ Love. 

Hi Dr. Love, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started my business 10 years ago. But I’ve been working on it since I was a little girl. I was always the one polishing my nails to match my outfit every day. I only wanted to name nail polishes and polish people’s nails – that was my main goal as a child. It’s funny to think about how things evolve as you grow older. I’ve been licensed for 18 years now and I love all of the services I am able to provide (hair, nails, lashes, waxing, makeup, bridal, microblading, hair restoration, haircare, and skincare products, and hair extensions.) I always knew I wanted to have my own business and help others I just didn’t know how that would look when I was younger. As I’ve evolved over the years, I realized one main theme that has been with me since I learned how to read – I love to learn! Education is at the core of who I am and I have spent the last 18 years learning and traveling all over the world to understand new techniques, different ways of doing business and how other cultures live and thrive. All of this has brought me to business coaching. I am a Confidence Cultivator Business Coach. There’s 2 things you need to know about me: 1. I help make the complicated simple while growing your business & 2. I can help you gain the confidence to paint a bigger picture. I want people to know that money can’t be the biggest reason for going into business because when you hit your rough patches -which will come to any business owner -your love and passion for what you’re doing have to kick in and take over to keep you motivated to keep pushing forward. If it’s not something you would do for free keep searching until you find it. My brand is about love – Speak with Love, Act with Love, and most of all Love yourself. I’m honored that my business has the opportunity to daily reinforce a woman’s most basic desire – to look in the mirror and love who she sees in her reflection. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. I think any owner that tells you that is selling you lies! I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with people who look and see Instagram businesses and Facebook business owners and say they get to take off whenever they want, they get to live this elaborate lifestyle, and they say they only work 6 hours a week. The problem is most of those that are doing that are creating an image they need you to believe, they aren’t telling you all that they have gone through to get to 6 hours a week, or they have a really great team which takes time and resources to acquire. In reality, you are going to have to struggle in the beginning unless you are given a grant or ton of money to start, but even with that, you still have to learn the business which takes time. When you stop working 40 hours for someone else, you begin working 80 hours for yourself. You are never really off. It’s like parenting you may have grown the business to a point where it is self-sufficient, but it will still need you to guide it. My main struggles came with leadership and management. Those were very weak areas for me. Once I realized that, I started reading more books about leadership, psychology, and management because I needed to learn how people operate and how I can lead them more effectively. The key is putting the right personality in the right position, and that takes time to learn the position you have open in your business and what personality will thrive in it; then you have to go out and find that person, assess them in 1-2 interviews and hope it goes well otherwise you have to start all over again which I have done time and time again until I learned who I was looking for. Also, as a leader, you have to know when someone’s season is up at your company. It’s never an easy thing to do, but I promise if you let someone stay longer than they should meaning past their expiration date like anything else it will go bad. 

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I own a salon and wellness center. I found that I can make someone look beautiful on the outside, but it didn’t really mean anything if they still felt ugly and struggled with their inside. On the salon side, we are known as the “Head~2~Toe Beauty Pro’s”. We offer hair, nail, lash, waxing, microblading, hair extensions, massage, & facials. On the wellness center side, we offer physical fitness classes, financial literacy and beauty classes, self-care retreats, and other self-confidence-boosting sessions that continue to educate and help women become more well-rounded. We are also a Master’s Program training house for recent beauty school graduates. I found that there was not a lot of salons that can help teach the business and technical skills needed to be successful in the industry. It will take at least 5 years plus investing another $10-15k in continuing education for recent graduates to learn what they need to be successful which most do not have. I have condensed this down to 2 years of being at my salon. I will take them through the mindset changes they need, business knowledge, customer acquisition, technical skill, and financial management to be able to leave my salon with the confidence to continue building a career on their own. I’m proud that in all I do, I am able to make a lasting impact on women, especially women of color, to help change their narrative. 

Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
Being an entrepreneur is a big risk, and everyday you’re taking a risk hoping that how you decide to operate will work. Risk is putting yourself in position to be vulnerable to things going wrong or right. You have to assess every situation and decide if you can live with either outcome. There are times where I have to tell myself “If this goes wrong, I won’t be able to live with myself.” If this rings true to you then trust your gut and don’t do it. I’ve had some risks I didn’t take out of fear of rejection, and I said I would NEVER count myself out of anything else because I was afraid to hear a “No or you’re not qualified.” People have to literally tell me NO now and I can live with that. Just remember, you’re the only one that will be going to sleep and waking up still thinking about your decision, so choose wisely what you can live with. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/drleialove
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drleialove/
• Other: https://linktr.ee/drleialove