Issue link: https://www.ahpindiestylist.com/i/1380995
COVID gave that to me, and I still feel I have so much to learn. Maybe that's the core of my motivation. "Before, there was so much going on, and I always felt like whatever anybody would ask me to do, I'd just do it. Now, I can really just sit with things for a minute. I have a better appreciation of my time." PUTTING DOWN ROOTS "My biggest advice is: Jump in and check it out for yourself. Also have the confidence to just do it. What's the worst thing that could happen? That's what I always think. Just jump in, and check it out for yourself! "I remember attending classes and hearing stylists introduce themselves, saying they had been in the industry for 20 years. All I could think was that wouldn't be me. "Today I've been in the industry over 20 years, and when I hear someone say they've been in the industry for 30+ years, I think to myself, 'How cool would that be?' I'm still not sure where my career will end up, but I don't feel I've even touched the middle of the mountain—and maybe that's what motivates me." "And somehow, after everything, she still bloomed in the way she was meant to."—Morgan Harper Nichols PERENNIAL GROWTH On April 1, 2021, Leal's co-op became a reality. "I'm a proud co-owner of Amavi Artistry (@amaviartistry) in West Hollywood," she says, "along with Anthony Holguin, Grace Crivello, and Melissa Trujillo. "I also created Sunday School Hair Education in 2020, and it was reintroduced in June. Educators include Anthony Holguin, Tauni Dawson, and Morgan Parks. The ultimate goal is to do two give- back classes a year for cosmetology students. "Also, I had an opportunity come my way from my dear friend Jessica Hall to do a beauty box collab with LA Weekly that is launched four times a year." COVID. I think, if anything, COVID gave me more confidence. Now, when I'm off, I know my clients will wait. "Fears I had before COVID—especially with work— are gone. I learned how to be more efficient, and if I'm going to have to struggle to make something fit [into my schedule], I'm not doing it. So I can't go back—and I don't want to go back—to how I was operating before COVID." Leal's social media aspirations also changed after COVID. "I'm not on Twitter," she says, "and I don't even use my Facebook anymore. YouTube was a discussion for a second, but I decided I just need to stick to Instagram. There's plenty for me to work with on Instagram." WEATHERING THE STORMS Leal was ready to call it quits twice in her career. "Those were the moments when I started to feel, 'OK, what is going on, because right now I'm not even being fulfilled with hair?' Ironically, COVID made me have more of an appreciation for my work; it gave me more motivation to fight too, because I absolutely love it. "If you're thinking about calling it quits, remember you are in control of your choices. Sometimes you just need a change of perspective rather than a job change. N ot a m e m b e r ? J o i n at a s so c iate d h a i rp rofe s sio n a ls .c o m 29