10/04/2026
3 years ago I quit my job as a hairstylist to do O&E full time. I was- let's be honest, delusionally optimistic about it.
A year into it I hadn't found my groove yet. When I thought the future of Oak & Ember I just couldn't see it. I put so much pressure on myself to succeed that it paralyzed me. My savings were dwindling, my credit balance was rising, and at one point it threatened to crush me. I cried a LOT (a lot).
I wanted to quit. I started looking at new jobs. Studies. Anything that would finally make me some real money. I felt disappointed, ashamed, embarrassed. I had put so much (hope, money, time) into this and I felt like I had nothing to show for it. I tried to quit.
Then one day, during a moment of clarity (after a good cry), I crunched some numbers and decided that if I was careful I could do it for another year. One. More. Year. And if by then I hadn't made any headway, well... then I would know I'd tried my best (no regrets) but it wasn't for me.
Pretty much immediately after that I found my groove- like within a month. The clouds parted, or the veil lifted, or whatever metaphor you wanna make, and suddenly I could see it all. My potential, everything I was capable of, everything it could be in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years. Crystal.
Today they poured the floor to my new shop. This week I'll prep it for paint. Next week I'll start installing fixtures and workstations. 2023 Jordan wouldn't have believed this for a second (she was too busy feeling like a failure).
The key to success isn't luck, raw talent, or destiny. It's perseverance. I can look back now and see all the progress I was making while I was crying about not making money. All my learning, honing, try-try-again-ing. I had been expecting a harvest during growing season and then crying when I didn't get it. Crazy.
I can say with total confidence that I found my niche and I'm really good at what I do.I can't imagine where I'd be right now if I had quit, and I often wonder how many people don't make it because they stop too soon? Was their becoming a month away too?
Just keep swimming, folks ✨ me
