Two Peas in a Podcast

One of the things I have enjoyed most about making the jump from working in a corporate environment to working for myself is the opportunity I’ve found to be part of a whole new community of entrepreneurial women. In fact, I have been blown away at the amount of encouragement, support, creative brainstorming help and even business referrals I have received from my new friends.

I am excited to be part of two virtual business strategy groups where I’ve learned a great deal of information I hope will serve my clients beautifully. I have also made some amazing connections with spectacular women all over the country who are doing inspiring things with their dreams. In one of those groups, I have met Nicole Bernard. Nicole lives in Oregon and runs a business that helps other women-owned businesses with marketing and support for their social media presence. In addition to these services, Nicole hosts a podcast called Bubbles & Biz, where she pops a bottle of champagne and speaks with business owners about their journey. Earlier this week I had the opportunity to be a guest on the podcast to talk about the journey of LetterJess so far.

So now it’s time for complete honesty: I was so excited to be on the podcast, but the morning of the interview I woke up with a panic stirring in the back of my mind. The devil on my shoulder whispered softly to me, “What do you have to offer other business owners? You barely know what you’re doing yourself. They’ll probably laugh at you. You should just cancel.”

But thank heavens there’s also an angel on the other shoulder. I like to think the angel on my shoulder sounds a little like Chaka Kahn, and immediately countered with, “You’re every woman. It’s all in youuuuuuuu……”

Moral of the story is this: I didn’t cancel. I popped open the bubbles and talked some biz with my new friend Nicole. It was scary, but I did it anyway, and I’m proud of myself. It’s taking small steps to do things scared that has always led to some of the most rewarding experiences of my life, and I have no plans to stop taking those steps now.

New things are scary, but the rewards are great; even if the only reward is the feeling of pride that comes from putting yourself out there. Being fearless isn’t a thing. We are all scared of something. Big things, small things and all the things in between. But do the things anyway. DO THEM. Don’t wait to be ‘ready.’ You’ll always find another reason to put it off. Open yourself up to all the great things that can come from overcoming the fear. You may even make a new friend along the way!

Cheers to my new friend Nicole. Thank you for allowing me to be part of your podcast. If you’d like to listen to our conversation, you can find the Bubbles & Biz podcast wherever you source your podcasts or by following the link provided for you here. You can also ‘meet’ Nicole online on her website here.

White Pant Redemption

Hello September. Hello Labor Day. Hello to my annual “Y’all put your white pants away” status update on Facebook and other Social Media.

[insert record scratch sound effect here.] I didn’t post that status update this year, and here’s why:

It dawned on me that aside from the fun I have thinking of what witty remark I can put into the reminder, what I was actually doing was unwittingly creating a judgement zone. And y’all, I honest-to-goodness try to live my live in a judgement-free zone.

My new and improved ‘rule’ for white after Labor Day? It’s simple: You be you, baby. You wanna wear white linen pants with open toed sandals and a seersucker jacket on a cold, snowy January day simply because it’s your fave? Get it, girl. Maybe you’re that hot-natured! Do you have a favorite sweater you want to wear in the heat of August because it’s always 25 degrees below zero in your office? Honey, I feel you. Bundle up and enjoy every second of it. I will not judge you, and I will no longer refer to some silly rule about what to wear and when. For many of us it’s been handed down through the generations without ill intent, but rather in an embrace of tradition. I’m certain my Maw Maw didn’t ask her mother why; she just abided by the rule and didn’t wear white after Labor Day. She may have had no idea it was a rule put into place to silently judge folks who didn’t ‘know better’ or ‘have better.’ If you’re like I was before this ‘road to Damascus’ white pant conversion experience and are wondering what the big deal is, it’s simply this: Nobody should be judged for what they wear or when they wear it whether they make the conscious decision to break a rule or whether they wear it because it’s all they have.

My name is Jessica Hughes, and I’m gonna wear white jeans again this year. It’s after Labor Day. And it’s still 1,743 degrees here in Myrtle Beach, so I may REALLY get wild and wear my favorite white skirt again the next day.

It’s been a year of overcoming old fears and ideas that have traditionally held me back. Things like literally digging into dirt to plant flowers in spite of a long held DEBILITATING fear of earthworms. (which could be a totally separate blog post) How about leaving the comfort of a corporate job to start something all my own, or once again trying cheese on my burger. (Still don’t like that, by the way- but the point is that I tried.) If we don’t challenge old rules we’ve had for ourselves from time to time regardless of how big or small they are then we don’t give ourselves the opportunity to grow. When we stop growing as individuals, then what’s the point?

So here we are ending the first full week of September. I’m planning to wear white jeans sometime this week, and when I do I know it will feel awkward. All the new stuff does.) I’m pretty sure I’ll survive it. I’m also pretty sure someone somewhere will see me and think to themselves, “white after Labor Day…tsk, tsk, tsk.” I feel sorry for that person. I was her last year, but I won’t be here again.

So pull your white clothes out of storage (if you’ve just put them away) and embrace the joy and beauty that is doing what you want when you want. If I can overcome the silliness that I clung to so fervently all these years, then anyone can. And when someone tells you not to wear them, just thank them for their concern and say a quick prayer they’ll also see the light. Or see the white… after Labor Day.

Damage Control

1. Kevin Murphy Repair Me Wash

2. Kevin Murphy Repair Me Rinse

3. Dove Intensive Repair Shampoo

4. Dove Intense Moisture Conditioner

5. Olaplex No. 3 Hair Perfector

6. It’s a 10 Leave In Conditioning Treatment

My hair is course and has natural curl. I typically wash my hair 3-4 times each week followed by blow drying with a round brush and styling with some combination or a curling iron, curling wand or straightener. I’m a southern girl, so my teasing comb is never terribly far away from me. Add in environmental factors and the breakage that comes from the inevitable pony tail for humidity control and I have a head of broken, stressed and damaged hair if I’m not careful. So I HAVE to be careful. Through the years I’ve experimented with literally dozens of different shampoos, conditioners and treatments all promising to hydrate and repair my hair; most to no avail. If you’re a product junkie like me you know there’s no greater complement to give a brand or product than to buy it more than once or twice. If something truly works for me enough to keep me from buying the latest new savior product, then I know it’s really a good find. The 4 products I’m sharing here are tried, true and repurchased over and over again.

Considering what I put my hair through, I honestly feel this combination of goodies has my hair in the best condition it could be and I’m excited to share them with you in case you are also looking for something to try. I should let you know I’m not a beauty expert. I have no training for anything related to hair or beauty and I can’t answer questions about specific ingredient combinations or anything technical. The greatest testimony I have is that my current routine has my drastically reduce the amount of hair I lose in a typical washing/styling session, which has always been a huge concern for me.

SHAMPOO/CONDITIONER:

I LOVE this “Repair Me” duo from Kevin Murphy. I shared concerns about hair damage and the amount of hair I was losing with my hair stylist in DC, and he assured me this combination would do wonders. He was not wrong. I noticed an immediate improvement in the amount of hair it seemed I was losing in a day, and y’all, it smells AH-MAZING! The one draw back to this combination is that it’s pretty expensive. Honestly it was more than i’d ever considered spending on a shampoo/conditioner. In an effort to stretch my budget in this area as long as possible I began experimenting with the idea to rotate my drug store fave due from Dove. I have experimented with how frequently to rotate in the Dove Intensive Repair duo, and have found that I can continue to realize the benefits of the Kevin Murphy combo long term when I rotate every other wash. Note that I typically wash/dry my hair every other day or 2 days if I can stretch it. If the occasion presents itself where I need to wash/dry my hair day after day, I am sure to use the Kevin Murphy duo for extra protection against the additional risk of damage from blow drying and heat styling more frequently. I’ve also learned from my stylist that I traditionally have used WAY TOO MUCH product. When the bottle says a ‘pea sized” or “dime sized” amount, that truly all you need. I concentrate the shampoos on my scalp and the conditioners more along the mid-shaft to root. I’ve found this also helps my hair not be weighed down by heavier conditioners and find I’m able to get volume from natural styling rather than teasing.

MAINTENANCE TREATMENT:

Woman can’t live by shampoo/conditioner alone. (Pretty sure that’s how that goes, right?) I like to think of my shampoo/conditioner routine as the heavy lifting element of my hair care, and these two maintenance treatments get added in for additional help- especially during the summer when sun, sand and water damage can truly take a toll on the condition of my hair. (I’m lucky enough to live at the beach, so I do spend as much time as possible outside.) At least once a month I do a deep conditioning treatment with my Olaplex No. 3 Hair Perfector. I use a generous amount of this god-send product from root to tip on damp hair and let it sit at least 20 minutes but up to an hour or so if time allows. This can be used as often as a few times weekly, but I have found I see the most benefit from a treatment every couple weeks. This mends my ends and gives my hair an extra boost of hydration to help it stay as fresh as possible between color treatments/trims. I received my first bottle of Olaplex in a Fab Fit Fun box close to two years ago, and I’ve repurchased it several times since then. (I love to share this with friends when I have the chance so my bottles are replaced more frequently than they probably would be if I was using it on my own only.)

The final product I like to use on a regular basis is the “It’s a 10” treatment. I spray this on (mid-shaft to root) when I get out of the shower before I begin drying/styling my hair. It can be found a grocery and drug stores, which is a plus. There are other products that promise (and deliver) similar results for conditioning and protection from styling, but I keep coming back to this one because it’s easier to find and is less expensive than others I’ve tried.

Those are my faves. I’ll reiterate that I’m not a hair stylist or a hair expert in any way other than the fact that I’ve been lucky to come across these great products and have been experimenting with how to get the best results I can from them. If you have any questions about how I use them or other products I’ve tried, feel free to let me know. I’m always happy to answer any questions I can or admit freely when/if I have no idea what the answer may be.

Final note: I typically am not in favor of purchasing hair/beauty products on Amazon. I would always rather support local business owners/stylists who sell these products retail whenever I can. I have linked everything here on Amazon to show you what the products are give you access to reviews, official product information and pictures on the site. I have not yet found anyone locally who carries Kevin Murphy products, so I have ordered my latest bottle of the Repair Me Wash online and am waiting for it to arrive. If you know of a stylist who carries these products and can ship them to me, please let me know.

Be the Sunshine!