At the young age of ten, I was on a mission. My precious baby sister had eczema and I had the deepest concern of how it afflicted her. I recall the red scaly and crusted lesions that took over her cheeks and the rancid odor of raw and open flesh I smelled within close proximity. I couldn’t bear to watch my sister as she scratched in agonizing pain. “There must be something I can do '', I thought to myself. So I sat myself down and searched “ways to help eczema”. One of the first results that came up was shea butter, which includes anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe skin and moisturize it! I’d never expect that finding a solution for my sister’s eczema would be a catalyst of what I want to do in my future. A factor that also contributed to my career of interest was when I woke up one morning with a volcano on my face. My first pimple. I knew the day would come, but I didn’t think that it would arrive so soon. Long story short, as more pimples appeared, I found myself using salt mixed with olive oil as a face mask. I thought that all the YouTube home remedies and face washes were the solutions. But as I realized that nothing seemed to work, a sense of frustration began to arise. Frustration from my pimples and developing acne, frustration from the #flawless selfies I saw from celebrities, and frustration from myself. For I thought my acne defined who I was. An unfortunate tale, but a reality for many. Through my own experiences and a developing fascination of how a combination of compounds could help improve skin, I have developed my own product line of Whipped Shea Butter. As a result, I realized that I wanted to pursue a career in Chemistry with a focus on cosmetic sciences. In a society that’s focused on image perfection, the reality is that we can’t always expect to be “perfect”. The same thing goes with our skin. Thus, this is why it is my mission to help others feel confident in their own. As I pursue my degree in the Cosmetic Sciences, I hope to set an example and continuously provide for the black community. At times, we as the black community are constantly being pushed aside from various fields. But that's where my hopes and dreams continue to fly. By creating my own products, I'd be able to cater to the black community and further bring positive impacts along the way.

As a young black woman in a predominantly white area, I have noticed that my white peers are given more opportunities than I am. Maybe it’s because of the color of their skin, or coming from parents with deep pockets, but it's like every opportunity presented to them is served on a platter. In recent years, this issue has been addressed and discussed in schools. I hoped for a change, but things remained the same. That was my wake-up call to make things happen for myself. So the quote that means a lot to me is, "Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them." - Madame CJ Walker. When I read this quote, the message I receive is to work hard. Actually, scratch that. The message I receive is to grind hard like nobody’s watching. To do that, I look at the talents, gifts, resources, and education that I’ve been blessed with, and figure out how to use them to the best of my ability. Whether it's staying up late at night, joining numerous clubs, lots of practice (and coffee), getting direction from the people in my life, etc., I try my best to utilize the things I’ve been blessed with. With every step I make in my life, questions I ask myself are, “how can I do better in this area?”, “am I maximizing my potential?”, and among others. By asking those questions, I’m able to see my areas in need of growth and the progress that I’ve made. To me, this quote has a deeper meaning. And it’s that challenges are guaranteed. Many trials and obstacles have been presented before me in the process of making my own opportunities. Some of them include racial discrimination, many “no’s”, frustration, and feeling stuck (almost to the point of wanting to give up). So while I’m at my lowest (and highest), I turn to God because I know He has my back, a plan, and more! This quote has allowed me to realize to have a positive attitude, to strive for my goals, to have strength, courage, passion, love, joy, and most importantly to have faith in God in all I do. I can’t give up when things don’t go the way that I would like them to go, but to give it my all (while remembering to breathe). If I had sat back and waited for the opportunities, I probably would’ve gotten nowhere and wasted precious time. But because I made my own opportunities, I’m able to maximize my potential, look at every challenge, take it head-on with no regrets, and be able to see what I’m capable of! That’s why that quote is so special to me!

In more ways than I could have imagined, my support system has provided me with the tools I need to be successful in running my business. Teaching me to think outside the box, having various connections/resources, recommending that I take classes/programs or reading different books on business, and having their overall support and love has helped me tremendously.   They taught me the ability to think outside the box. They've taught me to think outside the box and how to identify what makes my business unique and special. When my support system encouraged me to think outside the box, I analyzed the examples they've set in the past and present for their businesses (which was a huge help). My support has blessed me to help make ideas become a reality simply by presenting my product or sharing things that I had planned to do with my business. "Oh, I know someone who can help with that!", "I actually have access to that!", and so on were the constant responses I heard when I told my support system about the different ideas I had intended to do with my business! It was incredible to know that my support system was eager to use their resources and connections to help me with my business! I was able to expand my understanding on how to manage a business by being encouraged to take other classes/programs and read different books on business. I assumed I had everything under control when I first started my business. Fortunately, my support system recommended to enroll in several classes/programs and read multiple books on business!   I had discovered that there was so much I didn't know about running a business by taking those classes, engaging in different programs, reading books on business, and so on. My support system has provided me with numerous tools to help my business succeed. But their love, support, and honesty is what I'm immensely grateful for. My support system never attempted to bring me down while I was running my business, but instead constantly lifted me up! They made sure that I understood the difficulties, costs, benefits, and even drawbacks of running a business without causing me to lose sight of my goal. In addition, if I ever had an idea that wasn't the best, they would be completely honest in their opinion and offer me possible alternatives (in which would always listen to).   I am incredibly grateful for my support system and everything they have done to help me run my business successfully!