We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lyndell Werling. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lyndell below.

Hi Lyndell, thanks for joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

Life is a risk but the greatest exposure is not taking any risks at all. Playing small, staying safe, waiting until the right time, missing opportunities, and seeking permission rather than forging ahead with courage and tenacity are sure ways to not live one’s finest life and experience true fulfillment.

Throughout my career, I’ve gone down roads that didn’t lead where I wanted. It’s never too late to pivot, re-route, and start over which led me to follow my dream of pursuing wardrobe styling. Originally, I didn’t know if I could make it work as a career which was my desire. I knew it could be a side hustle. The thing about side hustles is that they can remain passion projects that lead to self-actualization but not always self-employment.

Early in my transition to wardrobe styling, I realized the demographics of my ideal target market weren’t right. I felt incredibly discouraged and defeated. And, I was also fearful my business model might fail. My Dad, who is a great coach and incredible entrepreneur, helped me create a new focus and said something very profound. “If it was easy, everyone would be doing it”.
That’s the challenge; doing the work that isn’t fun nor easy but is nonetheless necessary to achieve success. Reflecting back on the infancy of my business, I often get overcome with emotion and exhaustion. However, the lesson I learned is that risk and reward can’t be decoupled. Big risks are catalysts to great outcomes. Success is not an accident. It is the result of opportunity meeting preparedness and perseverance. Risk is equivalent to opportunity. Stepping out of the comfort zone is the only place where the magic can happen.

Lyndell, 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?

I am a wardrobe stylist to entrepreneurs, executives, and everyday people. My goal is to empower men and women by creating a unique signature style characterized by an appearance that stands out from the crowd. I style clients for commercials, magazine covers, television appearances, special occasions, as well as branding and social media photoshoots.

In 2016, I experienced a significant energetic shift. I knew I no longer wanted to hold a corporate cubicle job. This coincided with my decision to end a very unhappy marriage. These events set the stage resulting in a perfect opportunity to chart a new course that included doing work that I loved. I reinvented myself and possess tremendous gratitude for the difficult circumstances that facilitated this transition.

After a software sales career at Oracle, SAP, and Fiserv, I received my personal stylist certification from the prestigious Los Angeles School of Style. I have a business administration degree from the University of San Diego, an MBA, and a masters in project management from the University of Southern California. I’m a lifelong learner and enjoy immersing myself in different industries and facets of business where income can be generated.

I offer a variety of services that pertain to wardrobe including:
– Closet cleanses
– Creating wardrobe strategies for executives, celebrities, entrepreneurs, and every day people
– Onset production styling for commercials and television
– Fashion show production
– Special occasion styling
– Corporate workforce uniform and attire styling
– Content creation. I’ve worked with brands such as Kollectin, Members Only, Behind the Buckle Belts, Hairdousa, The Million Roses, Rebeca Minkoff, and Macy’s.

While it may sound trivial, dressing for success is time consuming and can be costly. I offer my clients solutions that resolve this challenge.

Many women are highly concerned about their appearance. The thought of looking old or not being confident causes significant stress. The challenge of remaining relevant style-wise, and age appropriate, results in anxiety. Finding time to prioritize wardrobe requirements can tax time constrained professionals, who are often juggling the pressures of parenthood and family demands. Most of my clients are self-employed and own businesses. They understand that their appearance reflects on their brand and credibility. These entrepreneurs, business professionals, and celebrities, who recognize the importance of crafting a visual image that precisely represents their brand, trust me to manage their wardrobe needs.

Because my clients are primarily entrepreneurs, my business background instills confidence that I can help create a look for their professional image. I know that the face they present to the outside world must be impeccable. I strive to differentiate the wardrobe that they wear for their professional endeavors while providing affordable, fashionable attire that supports their success.

In short, I provide on brand clothing for personal and professional events, that showcase my clients’ brands and empower them to look their best in the media and online. This goes beyond personal shopping.

Affordability is a core element of my services. The solutions I deliver are attainable for every individual with whom I’m blessed to work. A good stylist can work on any budget. Making wardrobe styling available to anyone is my primary objective.
I am very proud of the transformation that happens when my clients wear clothing that makes them feel better about how they look. Most of my clients are female entrepreneurs in their forties. At this age, body positivity is critical. Yet, sadly it is absent in many beautiful women. I experience tremendous satisfaction when I hear a client tell me that their new wardrobe, or their photography that I styled, improved their lives and self-image.

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

The most wonderful thing about social media is that it is FREE! It is perhaps the most powerful tool entrepreneurs can leverage to create brands.

When I started creating content, I focused on Instagram because clothing, and the work I do, would be best showcased visually. I established brand partnerships with Kollectin, a jewelry company, and HairdoUSA, a wig company. Their products help me visually illustrate how I construct looks.

Many stylists would likely focus on clothing partnerships but I wanted to do something different. I wanted to show my followers that I can make myself look very different thus leading them to believe that I could orchestrate transformations for them too. I eventually added video and started doing Instagram lives to let followers get to know me. That built trust, interest, and differentiated me from others in my niche.

Most people don’t know how to wear a wig and many don’t know how to accessorize looks. Because this is fun for me, and I had supportive brands to make it possible, I created an online presence that supported my value proposition and confirmed I understood the significance of establishing an online brand.

When starting off on social media, don’t try to be on every single platform. Figure out where your customers are. Go there and build a platform that represents your product or service. Post content that does one of three things:

1) Inspires
2) Informs
3) Entertains or provides humor

I shared this advice with Vivica Fox on her show, “Face the Truth”, in an episode about social media etiquette. Your posts aren’t about you. They should be about your audience and reward your followers for the time they spend reading and viewing your content and engaging with you.

This is how you build a growing, sticky, and loyal audience. Ultimately, you can be seen as an expert which is why people will hire you, follow you, or buy from you. With a smart phone, a plan, creativity, and some consistency, you can build your empire and generate income!

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Earlier in my career, I would have benefitted significantly from more partnerships. They can offer significant support for the advancement of one’s business in the form of ideas, networking within your industry, free resources, content creation, and even access to events where clients can be met.

Partnerships should be established for the mutual success of the entities with whom you collaborate. Ideally, a partnership portfolio should include referral partners, brand partners, partners who do the exact same thing we do, and of course vendor partners who supply us with the critical resources we need to deliver our offerings. Entrepreneurship can feel isolating and moral support is worth it’s weight in gold.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lyndellwerling.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lyndellwerling/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lyndellwerling
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyndellwerling/
• Twitter: @lyndellwerling

Image Credits
https://www.instagram.com/13th_era/