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

Tara, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

I recently saw a meme with a woman who said she quit her 9-5 to open her own business to work 24/7. It gave me a good giggle, but gosh, it really is the truth.

As anyone with children will tell you, they are in your thoughts constantly – subconscious, or otherwise. The same goes for business ownership. We have a consistent flood of work-related thoughts and responsibilities, and it can often feel overwhelming in conjunction with the pressures of parenthood. I regularly find myself conflicted to spend time with my children or to use that time to work on Radiance. Because I continue to personally see clients three days a week, that puts restraints on how many hours of productivity I get in per week.

My husband will tell you that I have trouble prioritizing tasks. Please don’t tell him, but, he’s not wrong…

*Everything* is at the top of the list…laundry, meal prep, kids’ activities, business responsibilities, etc. The pressure and overwhelm of that can become paralyzing. I’m sure you can relate.

So, yes, there are times when I think it would be much easier to sell the company and seek out another opportunity. I keep trudging forward not only for my team, but also for the lessons and examples it is teaching our boys. Despite the challenges, having built this company with little capitol and mentorship, initially, gives me such a sense of pride and keeps the fire ignited within.

Tara, 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 consider myself an Accidental Entrepreneur. I studied Hospitality Management at KSU and went on to Culinary School at JCCC, so my career path took a very unexpected turn. The restaurant industry is quite grueling and after a few years, I knew I could not continue down that path and simultaneously create the life I had envisioned.

After a nudge from my best gal-pal, I joined her in Aesthetics School and became fascinated with the functions and structures of the skin. Through working in the industry, I was able to find areas of missed opportunities in the Spa world and it became my mission to own a Spa that encourages healthy internal relationships while constantly seeking ways to improve the client experience.

Our objective is to bring confidence, along with renewed physical and mental energy to our guests. We achieve this by creating honest relationships and crafting homecare and in-office treatment plans specific to our clients’ goals. We pride ourselves on being client-focused, relevant, and open to new ideas, while approaching healthy aging from a holistic approach.

Earlier this year I completed an International Nutrition Course as it relates to skin function, and I am excited to introduce a more unique client experience in the future for maintaining and improving skin health.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

I (until very recently) had been working with a local marketing agency for brand awareness on social media platforms. We were experiencing a great deal of success, until we weren’t. I began seeking advice and support from my business coach and peers after new efforts from the marketing team were unsuccessful. My coach nudged me for months to fire said agency, but I refused as I assumed it was ‘good enough’ and other agencies were far outside my budgeted comfort. Not to mention that Facebook Ads Manager looks like a foreign language (if you know, you know)…

After a year of flat results, I (hesitantly, with feet dragging) signed up for an online marketing course specific to Facebook Ads. Within a week of the program, I was able to pinpoint a variety of roadblocks that could have been avoided with more devoted attention to my account. Taking this course continues to be intimidating at times, but the amount of community support has boosted my confidence as I’ve learned to create, edit and report my own Ads. I am a huge believer in outsourcing whenever possible, but this experience has taught me that sometimes you have to get outside of your comfort zone to get the results you desire. If you are a company who struggles with ad conversion, I want to encourage you to research undertaking this on your own, or even hiring it out to a Virtual Assistant.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Doesn’t the ‘simple’ act of owning a business qualify as resilience?! ;)

To be frank, we are eight years into owning Radiance and each year has presented a variety of different challenges, mostly on a personal level.

From 2015-2021 I had four babies. Two for myself and husband. Two for my sister and her husband as they were unable to carry children in my sister’s womb.

Becoming a parent in the infancy of Radiance was nothing short of overwhelming. I recall the stress of navigating what a maternity leave would look like as I was, at the time, a solo practitioner. Upon consulting my peers, several of them told me that, as the business owner, I would not get a maternity leave. A couple of weeks at best.

I was flabbergasted. I was shocked. I was disgusted.

Many of my colleagues shared that they either didn’t take leave, or it was less than a month so they could take care of their clients. What?! Prioritize clients over family?

Nope. Not in my book. That may be an unpopular opinion, but it is greatly from this experience that I’ve labeled ‘Family’ as one of the core values of Radiance. Fortunately, I was able to craft a plan that allowed me to take two months off with my first child. Of course I craved more, and luckily, with each subsequent birth I was granted that gift.

Resiliency in my situation came with some sacrifice. I delayed the growth of the company. I sacrificed my body and mental sanity (I suffered post-partum after all four children). My team sacrificed the presence and support of me.

There is no doubt that the strength of the Radiance Team allowed me to navigate this season of child-bearing. I will forever be indebted to them for their extra hours, self-motivation and maturity during what has been a terribly challenging chapter in my life. I am so grateful for THEIR resilience and dedication to ensure the survival of the company – without them, we would have suffered greatly.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.radiancebeautifulskin.com
• Instagram: @radiance_beautifulskin
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/radiancebeautifulskin

Image Credits
Kelley Chance