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

Madisen , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What do you think it takes to be successful?

Gosh – such a tough question considering success looks different for everyone. I think to be “successful” in any aspect of life, it does require setting goals, working hard and being disciplined. In today’s entrepreneurial world – there is SO much pressure. If you aren’t constantly hustling & grinding … it is perceived you’ll never get to the “top”.

What I have found in my own career is sometimes these goals we set or the desires we have, aren’t always as rewarding as we expected them to be. It can then start to become this vicious cycle where nothing is ever enough & we just keep chasing more and more… but why!?

I have learned to become content and embrace the journey in my career. To me, I am successful, I have created a job which I love and is my passion. That passion still allows me to be present in my other very important roles as a wife and mother. That passion is also so fulfilling because I am helping others and giving confidence to women through enhancing their natural beauty. My success comes in the moments when I get a positive review or feedback from a client. My success comes in the form of that internal happy dance when someone purchases a retail product I put so much time into researching and investing in. My success comes in the moments that I can be home with my kids when they are sick or be present for their activities & school functions. I have everything I need & for that I am so blessed.

My “success” may look different than most and while I do “hustle and grind” at times, I don’t do it to the point where my passion turns into a “job”. I encourage people to step back and look at their journey – if you work hard, you will grow & that growth will in return reward you!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Throughout your high school career- you are often asked which direction you want to go when it comes times for graduation. The one thing I always knew was that I loved the beauty industry. Approaching my graduation, I ended up choosing to go to a traditional 4 Year College because it’s just what’s typically expected of you. I went in “Business Undecided”. Freshman year was lots of fun, making friends, cheering & finding my independence. When it came to my classes, though, nothing was feeling right. Headed into Sophomore year, you start to get more focused on courses pertaining to your major – still, nothing felt right. Fast forward to the end of Sophomore year, now is where you really should know as the next two years are very focused on your field. At that time I chose to step away and take a year to go to Cosmetology School. Once I was there – it all clicked.

Beginning my career in the beauty world, I was very fortunate that my now Mother-In-Law owned a very successful full service salon. I was able to graduate and immediately start working. Over the years, I dabbled a little bit into everything – hair, nails, makeup & relaxation massage. One of my favorite services to offer was makeup. As Microblading began to gain popularity, I started to do my research. After about 2 years of research – I decided to take training and enter into the PMU world. Everything again, just felt right. Being able to enhance one’s natural features and give them the gift of low maintenance beauty, is my favorite. When my Mother-In-Law retired, I then went out on my own and started my own business – Glow Studio in June of 2021.

One thing about me is that I am a perfectionist. Permanent Makeup is a skill that takes a lot of hard work, patience, grace and proper education. The thing about this craft is that it’s always changing. Products are advancing & techniques are always evolving. I love to challenge and humble myself as an artist. I do this by continuing to take courses at least twice a year so that I can continue to evolve my craft & offer my clients a quality service.

I pride myself in giving my clients a unique and personalized experience. I educate my clients before, during and after their session so that they feel completely confident. There are so many choices when it comes to choosing a permanent makeup artist, so when a client trusts and chooses me, I feel honored and want to ensure I live up to their expectations. I truly feel so blessed every day when I walk into my studio.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

When I chose to start my journey into Permanent Makeup – at the time I was extremely busy raising my young girls and working full time at my Mother-In-Laws salon. When researching and finding somewhere to train and learn Permanent Makeup – I chose somewhere that would be close, fast & convenient – not doing the proper research. Unfortunately, that was the wrong choice, as the quality of education I received was extremely lacking. I was just another student to collect money from – no support during or after the course and very limited information was provided.

For me, though, when I commit to doing something that I am passionate about, I do not give up. Leaving my last day of that course, I was filled with mixed emotions & still had so many questions – along with a massive headache. I pushed through though and started doing tons of research on my own and practicing constantly. I also started doing clients so I could gain hands on experience as well. Fortunately – I had experienced doing makeup all those years so I believe that truly helped me. After about 6 months, I knew I needed more education and advancement in my technique – this time I did my research and found a much more accredited & established company to train under.

Just the first few hours into that course, I was mind-blown. I learned so much and left that feeling ten times more confident in my craft. I now continue to stress the importance of proper education and also continued education because it’s made a huge difference for me in my own personal career. I see so many times that people start into this industry but become defeated or give up – if you truly have the passion and are doing it for the right reasons – do not give up – push through & stay resilient!

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

When building a clientele and also finding new clients, it requires a lot of hard work. For me personally, I do feel because of the service I strive to provide my clients, my work and also word-of-mouth is what has truly helped me. When a happy customer leaves my studio – they then tell their friends & family.

Social Media also extremely helps – it is a love/hate relationship for me though. It takes so much of my time outside of work posting & creating content. I definitely could do more when it comes to social media but I also work very hard to have that work/life balance in order to avoid burnout. In today’s world, however, social media is necessary I believe when trying to reach more people and gain a customer base. I am so thankful every time a new client reaches out – I love finding out more about how they found me and why they chose me as an artist.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.glowstudiobeauty.com
• Instagram: @brows.by.madisen
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GlowStudioBeautyLounge