Samantha Asprelli

I attribute my success to my Massachusetts community - whether that be my parents, my King Philip DECA organization in high school, Project 351 (which is a nonprofit I've volunteered with for 8 years), the Wonder Fund who I also volunteered with, or Northeastern University. It's the people that saw the spark in me and believed it, not the people that saw the result and then started believing in it. It's the people who realized my potential and just kept fueling me with encouragement - they are the ones that truly see me for me.

The best career advice I've received is to recognize the power of human connection, and that it's always a people-first operation. The business or the nonprofit doesn't run without the people behind it, and as a young leader, making sure the people who we give to, who are our partners, who's on our team, are happy, passionate, and feel seen and heard. As well as in my professional life, making sure that everyone around me feels seen and heard for who they are, rather than the function, or their title, or their leadership role. Everyone's a human first, and recognizing the power of human connection outside of a professional one and learning who they are below the iceberg of what we see day-to-day is really important. Recognizing everybody else has lives outside of work, and getting to know them on a deeper level creates connection in the workplace that furthers the mission of the organization.

Don't be afraid to ask for help. Nobody has all the answers, and the best way we're gonna get to an answer that we can work with is by collecting multiple perspectives, seeking out mentorship, and not being afraid to ask questions. Asking questions shows intelligence in that you're thinking about the issue in a broader context, rather than seeming confused. I think there's a common misconception that questions can equal confusion, but questions is just another way that means collaborative effort.

One of the biggest challenges I've faced is proving yourself when you're young. The immediate label of being a college student, or now newly post-grad, puts a stereotype on young people that is often not true, such as being unreliable, unexperienced, or not really knowing what they're doing. I think young people have a different drive and mindset of what success can look like than most people think, and I believe in every young person who wants to chase their dreams. You don't have to feel ready, you need to decide when you are ready, and when you decide that you're ready, taking that full jump and jumping in 110% into your vision is what's going to offset that challenge. Another challenge is raising capital and money. It's so hard when there are other nonprofits doing the basic necessity and the critical work for survival for people that we serve, and advocating for dollars when it comes to redistributing beauty products is hard to persuade investors and donors and sponsors. In terms of opportunities, I think there's a massive opportunity for me to break into the beauty industry from this unique lens that few people have of working in a nonprofit that overlaps with the beauty world, and how we can further bring philanthropy to the beauty space when it comes to all of the excess product that they have. Instead of that expiring and going to the landfill, it can be used to empower women who are struggling to get through their day-to-day.

Authenticity is a tough one. I think being authentic is easy in a moment, but being consistently authentic and not molding or changing who you are in different environments is a hard task that I think few people master. Being consistently who you are and sticking up for what you believe in, even in moments where you know you're going to receive negativity in response to what you believe in, is the most powerful display of character. I would also say perseverance is another great value of mine. You can be disciplined, but only the people who persevere through the moments that you don't want to do something, or you're tired, or you're stressed out, and working through those inevitable emotions when you're trying to change the world or build something is the difference between the folks that make it and the folks who fall short of their potential. And then, partnership is another one. Nobody can ever achieve anything alone, and leaning on others to bring into your mission, to learn from them, and seek out mentorship is very important, because nobody achieves vision alone, and you need to be mindful of giving people the credit of where they helped you along the way in your journey.