We caught up with the brilliant and insightful India Hammond a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

India , appreciate you joining us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

Yes, I’ve been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. My mother also was a hairstylist, so doing hair kind of came natural for me. When I went to college, I ran track and would do my teammates hair which eventually turned into a side job/hustle for me. Being as though I had a full track & field scholarship, I had to make sure that I stayed focused and kept up with my school work and track performance in order to keep it. It definitely was not easy, but I seem to have managed everything pretty well by keeping my mindset at a high level. Fast forward to where I am today, I eventually found my way back to the beauty industry after graduating college and took a leap of faith to Los Angeles where my beauty career is growing to new levels. Once I got to Los Angeles, a few months in I signed up to attend Cosmetology school and Paul Mitchell where in 2020 I received my license. I don’t think I could have sped up the process just because I feel like everything that happened so far needed to happen in order for me to be where I am today.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is India Hammond. Owner & CEO of “The Glam Diary.” The Glam Diary LLC was created and founded by India Hammond, a 28-year old Baltimore native whom resided in Stone Mountain, GA. I spent most of her time in Athletics throughout my childhood and through college where I attended Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. There I received my bachelor’s degree in Public Health while using much of my spare time to continue helping women elevate their style along with their confidence. My passion always led me back to the beauty industry… and eventually that passion inspired me to take a leap of faith, moving to Los Angeles where The Glam Diary was brought to life and began to flourish to new levels. The Glam Diary was created with the intention to enhance every woman’s mindset, health and beauty one product at a time. I make some of my own hair growth products including our mega growth hair butter and chebe infused hair growth oil and also have my very own professional smoothing flat iron. I am a self-taught herbalist who also provide my clients and supporters with a few loose leaf herbal tea blends option. I like for my services to feel like an experience and the luxury every person need in their life. While servicing my clients, I always provide one of my herbal tea blends and soothing music so that they can really relax and unwind while getting some self care. I am most proud of my growth as a person because without personal growth, I wouldn’t be able to serve my clients to my best potential. I want you to know that whatever you want to do in life is really already yours, you just have to claim it. The Glam Diary by India Hammond will always provide a safe space and experience for you and your beauty needs.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I am currently still building an audience on my social medias, but my advice would be to always remember that being authentically yourself will always get you the support you need and deserve. Another thing I’ve learned with building an audience on social media is being consistent. CONSISTENCY IS KEY. Don’t focus on creating content because at the end of the day, YOU ARE THE CONTENT.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Yes, my goal is to continuously grow and become better in everything that I do. I know that with the goal to always become better is a goal to always be open to learning new things. You can never have enough knowledge.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theglamdiary.net
• Instagram: www.instagram.com.theglamdiaryy
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-xGwjzb5RVe_537gjAvaHQ
• Other: For my herbal tea business: www.instagram.com/herbsolutelygenius www.herbsolutelygenius.com

Image Credits
photographers: Demi “Legendary” Logan, Dwayne Autery, Zachery Brandan models: Arianna Shakelford, Jessica Parker, Bobbi Abston, Asia Trebian, Mack Wilson