We recently connected with Ashlee Garrett and have shared our conversation below.

Ashlee , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job?

I was a teacher for 4 years before I transitioned into entrepreneurship. Conventional education taught me more about myself, than anything else. Who was I, truly? Why was I actually here? How would…could… I make a difference here? Why would students want to listen/learn from me? And what would this path reveal to me about my strengths, weaknesses, and greatest fears? As much as I trusted what I had to offer, the journey humbled me. It enlightened me. It ripped me apart and pieced me back together. I quickly realized that this would be a step towards a “higher calling.” So in this knowing, I could pace myself a bit more on the harder days; Trusting a process that I knew was leading me where it needed to. The teacher lived in me, but it was up to me to now decide how that would translate to reality. Teaching could look so many ways, but how would it look and feel most authentic to me? To my students? Within the career world, we can often get tangled in over-identifying with labels and political/social expectations that cloud our visions of who we truly are outside (and even within) the work we do. I discovered that the gift inside of me didn’t wholeheartedly align with the conventions of my profession. So I made the most of the remainder of the journey I would walk with my students. I curated an environment that would thrive in a creative communion of my spiritual insights and the educational curriculum expectations. I learned flexibility. I strengthened my organizational and compartmentalization skills. I mastered differentiation: the art of meeting the needs of the individual within the collective. I learned how to learn from my students, and be patient with the process of a student-teacher dynamic. I learned how to plan for success, whilst trusting the setbacks along the way that would make me, us, stronger. These discoveries and tools carved a better me: ready to step into a grander purpose, even amidst the fear. I needed to experience the intensity of discomfort, the feelings of not belonging, and even the flashes of the future that would confirm my calling as an educator in another form. It was because of my students, my highs, my lows and my physical/spiritual support systems that I was able to clearly define and proceed with my purpose of taking “teaching” to the “unconventional world” of spirituality and self-development. I would fly higher, in this space of boundless creativity; and my “students,” my clients, would too fly higher because of it. So for all of this, I am grateful. Despite the difficulty that entrepreneurship can bring, I will forever know it was the right decision.

Ashlee , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

To be honest, what I love about who I am and what I do is the impression it leaves on my community. It says: “I’ve done it, I’m doing it. You can too. And I clearly see that in you.” I used to deeply fear my light; and now I channel that fear into adoration: adoring how brightly I shine in the process of inspiring a brighter collective. Soulfulbeauty111 highlights the voice in you; the best in you. I am a holistic healer, a hypnotherapist, a reiki practitioner, a spiritual coach and educator, a creative writer, an intuitive card reader, and an embodiment of love. I am a mirror of my clients; which is why I hold them so dearly. Together, we work through your shadows to embrace your light. We see and appreciate the whole of who you are, allowing that to be the basis of creating and sustaining your dream life. The breakdown of time with a client will depend on what they are looking for; we customize the sessions continually. We may discuss future trajectories, realistic impacts of a specific decision they are considering, or what their past/present is seeking to teach them. A session with me may also involve a deeply transformative energy reading, an eye-opening coaching session, revitalizing reiki healings, dream interpretations, or otherwise. Some of my proudest moments include predictions of marriages/pregnancies my clients never thought would happen — and joining them in their blissful celebrations. Or facilitating my clients from complete rock bottom moments towards financially freeing and unstoppable milestones in their life. (I also never tire of predicting specific names of past/future people they’ll encounter along their journey, which my clients will tell you: blows us both away every single time!) Overarchingly, hearing “you’ve saved my life,” are moments I will hold closest to my heart.
Ultimately, our voyage typically translates to: who is the best version of you? And how can we work together to embrace that, without condemning the low points that the journey will involve? Our instagram sanctuary honors a peak into a freeing and refreshing world that may inspire you, or reflect back to you the beauty that already exists around and within you. It also opens the door to our beloved Patron space, (patreon.com/soulfulbeauty111) which is a platform I nervously leaned into two years ago, with the intention of taking our community to the next level. It may very well be the best decision I’ve made to date, solidifying a safe space for powerful soulmates around the world to come together and learn, teach, heal, empower, question, reflect and grow sans judgment. It’s completely upgraded my world, my brand, and the beautiful lives who have found me. From the perspective of my clients: our work together feels healing, transformative, practical, thought-provoking, life-altering and refreshing. I consider myself the soulful facilitator, here to mirror the parts of you that you are ready to see, improve, embrace, love and elevate. It’s a place that undoubtedly fosters safety and encouragement. My self-created decks, spiritual readings, daily patreon shares and individual offerings compose a diverse set of ways to get started and “stuck” in an incline of success. I honor my clients as they are, and I also see the best in them. So I will move accordingly, pushing them where needed. If you would love to work with me, with our community, I joyfully welcome you to explore my instagram, patreon or my website, where we can take the next step together. In any case, I wish you all of the best in your personal endeavors.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

With 67 thousand followers, this is a question I get frequently; and to begin transparently: 2024 has been my slowest year of growth to date. I do blame it on the algorithmic fluctuations. But I also celebrate this, because it’s allowed for me to redirect my focus back to my craft and away from the rate at which it’s being “followed.” This is important. My audience is a reflection of an authenticity I worked to cultivate. As cliché as it may sound, most of the work was and is getting comfortable with putting your true self and brand on display for the world to consume. I officially activated my page on May 19th, 2019; I shared my first post the very next day. It felt highly “cringe” in the beginning, and still does sometimes. But I had to continue returning to: “who am I? And what is my truth?” How would I want to be spoken to? Celebrated? How do I speak to the best versions of the people I am connecting with, without dismissing their pain points, their shadows?” This is what built my following, truly. It’s an energy dance. I needed to show up with confidence that the right people would continue to find me, and those right people would continue to support me. I needed to speak from the perspective of both the guide and the guided; I needed to speak from a place of both power and vulnerability. Once you are connected to something you are truly meant to be doing, you will start to observe the natural incline of success. Your people will start finding you, seemingly out of nowhere. They will tell their friends who will tell their friends. The world of resources, opportunities, epiphanies and collaborations will begin to flood open for you… and no matter how fearful or doubtful you are: you will somehow, someway answer the call. So this is what I did; I trusted the path, even amid countless days of not feeling “worthy enough,” or “relatable enough.” I continued to share my voice in my authentic way. I also leaned into specific brand colors, symbols and phrases that would become “me,” in a way my audience would learn to recognize and adore. Around 2020, I believe, my self-made spiritual decks were also born, raised and celebrated – as I decided they would be worthy enough of sharing with the world, including parallel and adjacent healers/creators in my field. (For example: I would generate a personalized direct message that would share who I am, my admiration for that creator, and my intention to share my creation with them to enjoy). I would initiate this from a detached perspective, fully aware that this could flow in any direction, without taking from my value. Additionally: I ran occasional paid ads that, again, would mean trusting my truth to be received by the right people in the world. I made a vow to myself to move completely transparently in my craft, cultivating pure and long-term relationships with my clients far beyond a completed service. My brand had to be ME; that’s what separated me from all of the others who paralleled my line of work. It’s what will separate you, too. So my biggest piece of advice, in short, would be: EMBRACE YOURSELF. Love that person. Seek to understand that person. And decide what they’re meant to share with the world, which will shift and evolve as life does. Your tangible growth/success will come from this. Others will fall in love with a “brand” you’ve wholeheartedly fallen in love with. Things will take time, sometimes; but when you trust the timing and the mission of your brand, you KNOW with everything in you that it will explode in the ways it’s supposed to.
With all of the escalating uncertainties of the damned algorithm: more than ever, it’s critical that you do not associate your worth with your number count. You must focus on the purpose, the mission, the integrity, and the real-life connections that will compliment and sometimes surpass what’s happening on social media. Before you know it, success will be a natural succession for you that no longer depends on the escalation of your follower count.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I try to emphasize as often as I can, that those who empower the collective are often those who have felt deeply disempowered along the way. Within my first year of teaching at the elementary level, I struggled with this. I was surrounded by certain colleagues who either saw a light in me that they wanted to keep dimmed, or chose to see what they wanted to see in me. I dealt with pockets of isolation, low self-esteem, narcissistic projections, and low vibrational energy. I cried often. I doubted myself often. I sometimes traded in my unique radiance for dull connections, validations and beliefs about myself. It didn’t feel good because I wasn’t operating from my soul — which was pure, compassionate and loving. Teaching became about staying alive more than It was about connecting with the students that I loved — and that broke me. But it also strengthened me. Because once I met rock bottom, it was clear that there would be nowhere to go but up. I had to rise for the kids; for the me I was piecing back together. I had to take accountability for the role I played in my downfall, while also forgiving myself for all of the times I refused to speak up for myself, my rights, and take up space, deservingly. I saw myself, in real time, moving from the caterpillar to the butterfly. It became clear to me that I didn’t belong in a space that would forever seek to cage me. I was bigger than that. I was brighter than that. And without these experiences, I wouldn’t have truly realized how capable I was, how versatile I was, and how much my students looked to me as their guiding light. I couldn’t allow who and what wasn’t meant for me to shatter me. Instead, I would see the temporary breakdown as the breakthrough. I would seize the lessons that I’d pass on to my students, and share with future teacher colleagues that would remind me there was nothing wrong with me. I would step into the version of me who’d one day excel in a space of my own, my business, that would guide others in becoming the best versions of themselves despite their own difficulties. In retrospect, it was all for the best. It was quite timely, and divine.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://soulfulbeauty111.com
• Instagram: @soulfulbeauty111; @ashlee.simone_
• Facebook: Ashlee Garrett
• Twitter: @soulfulbeauty__
• Youtube: soulfulbeauty111
• Other: I welcome you to explore our beloved Patreon world. (App accessible). A place where we collectively journey towards the best versions of us, cultivating our real life dream worlds. Join us for your daily dose of timely readings, motivation, support, confirmation, affirmation, humor, and love. (Patreon.com/soulfulbeauty111)