What inspired me to apply for this scholarship is that I am the surest of this timing in my life than ever before. From 2020-2023, I’ve had at least two deaths per year in my family and it was both shocking and eye-opening for me. I’ve never experienced death in such a short period like that in my life and it showed me that time was not on my side and that I have to seize the opportunity when it comes. I always put others' needs before mine and tell myself “I’ll do it at this time” and then the time comes and the cycle is repeated. I’ve also put off my hopes and dreams of furthering my education due to fear. Fear of not being good enough, or adequate for the field. Fear of not living up to the stereotype and stigma that black men should grow up and be ball players of some sort. When I saw this scholarship, I felt deeply compelled to apply for it. The fact that it's catered towards me as a black creative in the field. I have been in the beauty industry for 10 years and have had a lot of opportunities. While I have many opportunities, there have been stipulations and uncertainties within. In my 30 years of living, I’ve always been drawn to the excellence of the black beauty creatives. From our hairstyles, makeup choices, nail art, fashions, dances, etc. We have started many trends in the beauty space and continue to transcend and excel in that area. From the cover of the magazines, the big screen, and everything between; you see how our work inspires lines to be pushed and barriers to be broken. However, those accomplishments have and continue to not come at an easy cost. We often get ridiculed and mocked for our trends and even try to have rules/stipulations enforced in certain spaces. While our styles are imitated, we still show up and show out to remind them why they cannot be duplicated. Often I've experienced and seen where black creatives are overlooked when showcasing our talents, unless it is for an opportunity provided for BIPOC, by BIPOC. There have been several instances where my artistry has been overlooked due to others thinking my (our) style is monolithic or one-dimensional. One of the many phrases I've heard before beginning a service is "I don't want too much", as if we tend to give everyone the same style of service rather than collaborating with them on the type of service they want and what we recommend from an expert level. With the opportunities I've been provided, I've also experienced that black creatives are more versed in various hair and makeup styles than other races/ethnicities. We've seen many instances in the industry where we work with clients of all skin and hair types but when it comes to BIPOC, they're either unprepared or unskilled to work on, or with us. There have been many times that we had to rely on ourselves to complete and render self-services, even if we can't do it to the level of professionalism that we would like. I’m ready to break through my barriers and get into the industry to inspire others with a similar story. I hope I get some assistance that will help on this journey. I hope my story reaches the right person one day.