We recently connected with Alyssa-Monet Young and have shared our conversation below.
Alyssa-Monet, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Surprisingly, the most considerable risk I’ve taken has been within the past year. In February 2022, I was laid off from a job that I truly enjoyed and was ideal for how I saw life going for myself. I was devastated because this was my first layoff, and I didn’t have a plan. So the following day, if not within a few hours of finding out, I had to figure out something all while trying to complete my master’s degree in performance psychology. I decided to create a budget and cut back on a lot of things I didn’t need. Budgeting was always a struggle for me, but when you are almost forced to do something and have to stick to it because this is your new way of life, it creates a habit. I decided not to return to work for an employer and focus on building my business. I was able to do more local community pop-ups to advertise The Inner Scents Candle Co, and I truly enjoyed networking and getting to meet other local woman-owned businesses. During this time, I also began to take the necessary education to become versatile in the doula business. Not only did I receive birth and postpartum education, but I wanted to serve my community and study to become a placenta encapsulation specialist and a childbirth educator. Eventually, I knew I would return to the workforce to follow my passion for mental health, but I wanted to establish myself and understand how to make my businesses work for me. In the past nine months, I have built my businesses to the point that they are stable. While it does require me to sometimes work late at night after working 9-5 or on the weekends, I am happier now than I was nine months ago because I can follow my passion in my businesses and also have the option of working with my passion in a 9-5.
Alyssa-Monet, 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?
It’s always hard to decide where to start when asked this! I began in the aromatherapy business in 2021, which stemmed from my background in mental health and bachelor’s degree in psychology. After researching and being interested in how aromatherapy can affect your mood, with the help of my mother, I began The Inner Scents Candle Co. I wanted to create personalized scents that made you feel inner peace when you smell them in your home or office. It was larger than ‘just candles’ because I would use candles for meditation or when I needed to create a calming space. Aromatherapy is very versatile and can be used in many things. Research shows that having eucalyptus in the air can help with anxiety, relieve cold-like symptoms, and promote relaxation. Therefore when you combine eucalyptus and lavender, you create a relaxing aroma that can promote deep relaxation and calming effects. I also began to study how I could use them to benefit my customers and clients from my doula business, Nurturing Nuggets. Making custom candle scents is a science that requires precise measurements, and I truly enjoy it because that is why we pride ourselves in producing hand-crafted candles. Our focus is to promote mental health awareness through candles and aromatherapy. Mental health in 2021 became a topic that was a significant focus and still is today. As the owner and someone who has endured anxiety and depression, I want others to know that they are not alone and there are other ways to cope. This is also why I decide to complete my master’s degree in performance psychology. As a performance consultant, I will work with those who need to overcome obstacles that are difficult and affecting their performance and assist with finding ways to cope by approaching the situation at an optimal performance level. Everything I have done within the past few years has all been tied together. I plan to use my education and experience to help those in my community dealing with mental health struggles who want to overcome life’s many obstacles but need guidance or ways to cope while continuing to reach their optimal performance level.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
The one source that has significantly impacted my management and entrepreneurial thinking are people. From a young age, I was surrounded by business owners and adults who consistently networked. I have also had the experience of working with large companies and high-profile clients. I have always learned at least one thing from every person I encountered. Therefore, all the advice I received and observations from the employment positions I have held allowed me to know what type of manager I wanted to be and how I wanted to run my business.
Have you ever had to pivot?
I believe I briefly mentioned it, however, after being laid off from my job, which provided a steady paycheck, and then not having a plan or time to figure out one, I had to make immediate changes. I began to budget, removed unnecessary things and monthly bills, and paid more attention to my spending while building my businesses. When I had a consistent check, I knew when bills would get paid, and now I had to worry about how. This was probably the best thing that happened during my journey because I could go nine months with things being paid in advance due to budgeting. It was a major shift that required cutbacks, but it made me work even harder because I had a monthly goal I need to now meet with my business income.
Contact Info:
- Website: theinnerscents.com; wenurturenuggets.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theinnerscents/; https://www.instagram.com/nurturing.nuggets/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theinnerscents; https://www.facebook.com/wenurturenuggets
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/nurturing-nuggets-doula-services-jacksonville