We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashleah Walker. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashleah below.
Alright, Ashleah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Setting up an independent practice is a daunting endeavor. Can you talk to us about what it was like for you – what were some of the main steps, challenges, etc.
I’ve spent over 20 years in the hair salon industry, and ten years in energy medicine and healing.
When I discovered energy healing, it was a profound spiritual experience, and made sense for me to intertwine it within my beauty business.
I created a holistic healing salon, and I was reinvigorated in my craft behind-the-chair.
I had a team, I trained other stylists locally and online, and my coaching practice started out as a natural extension of who I am, what I’ve done, and how I can help others.
But! I was burning the candle at both ends, and as a healer it’s important that I walk the walk so I can serve others the best of me, not what’s left of me!
It took an insanely tumultuous series of unfortunate events, including a parent’s death and even an attempted homicide in my salon, for me to stop and ask myself a deeper question: “Ok Ashleah, what am I actually building, who am I now, and why am I doing this?”
This required a big time ego death because sure, I’d been serving others, but I’d also been chasing a success that looked good on paper and was incongruent with who I’d become.
I listened to my heart and my contract with God, and decided to close the salon and focus fully on service to the Light.
I have two businesses now: Becoming Light, which teaches salon and suite owners how to eradicate burnout and merge wellness within a profitable salon business; and Becoming Ceremony, my energy healing practice I share with my husband, Anthony, where we teach workshops and facilitate 1:1 energy healing sessions and activations.
If I could have done anything differently?
On one hand, my ego says I should’ve bought a house first before starting a holistic healing salon!
But on the other hand, I had to go through that beautiful journey in order to be who I am today.
If you’re building a brick and mortar, can put on my CFO hat and say: I advise starting small and making sure your lease is as cheap as possible so you can be mega profitable from the jump. Clients care less about a downtown location, and more about accessibility and parking. Don’t blow your buildout money on things you can’t take with you like floors or marble countertops.
And then, let me put on my Healer hat: it sounds so cliche, but it really is important for you to meditate so that you can get clear on who the heck you are, and what you truly desire.
In a digital world that demands speed, the antidote is stillness.
It’s easy to get seduced by social media, what others are doing, and then try to keep up!
And yet, we’re at an all-time high for depression, anxiety and existential ennui.
That’s why energy healing is important, because it clears the noise and returns you to your essence, so that you can discern from a space of clarity at a physical, emotional and spiritual level.
And then of course: build your business around a real solvable problem that you have lived wisdom and understanding in.
Your hero’s journey is your currency in today’s market.
Learn sales, branding, communication, leadership and money.
And, accept you will mess up extraordinarily!
Failure is merely feedback, and often becomes the foundation of your greatest expertise.
Ashleah, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I have two businesses today:
This first is Becoming Light at becominglightcoach.com, where we help booth renters, salon and suite owners (and other beauty professionals) merge wellness into their lives and business, and create meaningful, profitable brands. We can train solopreneurs or full teams how to enhance the client experience; design a brand from the ground-up (think done-for-you installations for website, social media, email marketing and copywriting); install proper pricing and packaging; leadership and communication development; financial management and tracking, and ads.
That business began in 2018 and evolved through my own journey of becoming a healer, merging it within my hair business, and later, owning a suite, and finally, becoming a salon owner running a team. I know, inside and out, every point of that journey, whether someone is a beginner or a more seasoned pro.
The second is Becoming Ceremony at becomingceremony.com where we hold advanced spiritual training workshops and 1:1 healing sessions and activations. Anthony and I have over 10 years training and experience in energy medicine and in the Modern Mystery School, an international organization of lightworkers whose mission is to anchor peace of Earth through our work.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks
Hands of Light by Barbara Brennan
The Hermetica by Hermes Trismegistus
My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem
The Mystical Qabalah by Dion Fortune
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
Ads and a premium online brand has been the most effective strategy for me. I value systems because it allows me to focus on my clients, rather than feeling like I have to organically market every day. At the same time, you have to have a good experience and pour into your clients so they return, and refer. Austin really likes supporting small businesses, so making time to network and establish relationships has been a big touchstone!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.becomingceremony.com
- Instagram: becomingceremony
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/4ias36y1atpA01ib0lXxZe?si=ae041ac962284142
Image Credits
Laura Morsman Photography