Her Story
About Tiera
I've been in the beauty industry for 10 years, starting as a makeup artist in 2016. It all began with doing makeup for my four younger sisters for their proms, homecomings, and graduations. I'm the oldest, so I was there for all their special events, and I had been playing with makeup long before I became a professional. Family members always wanted me to do their brows and makeup for special events, and then word of mouth spread to people outside my family. Eventually I was making enough money that I didn't need to keep my side jobs in beauty sales anymore. I worked at Mario Tricosi salon for several years, where I learned so much as a makeup artist. I did lots of fashion shows backstage with Mario and their beauty team, and participated in many events. During our trainings with the estheticians, I really grew my love for skin and wanted to learn more about how to incorporate skincare into my makeup applications. So I went into aesthetics in 2021, starting at Aveda Institute in Bloomingdale. I had some family issues come up and had to transfer my credits to American Academy of Aesthetics, where I finished and received my aesthetics instructor license. I've been teaching at multiple campuses to find the right fit, and I've found my home at the Institute of Beauty and Wellness, where I've been for 3 years now. This school puts a lot of focus on wellness as well as beauty, not just the beauty and sales side of things, but also the mind, body, and soul as one. I'm very in tune with that, and it's very much in alignment with who I am. I also run Crown Beauty Bridal (spelled C-R-W-N-E-D B-E-A-U-T-I) with my fiance, which I started in 2020. He owns a salon and I have a suite there where I do my private work and bridal trials. We travel to wedding locations with a team of students who assist with our business. It's been slow this year, but we're definitely looking forward to continuing to grow.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Tiera
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my three children. I have done everything that I do literally just so that I can prepare them for their own lives, to live and be able to explore the things they want to. I don't want them to have to work and have to just make means. I'd like for them to explore life and be able to figure out what it is that their true purpose and destiny is, and then be able to go in that direction. So I thought if I would follow that for myself first and give that as leadership to my children, they would follow behind and see that I've made and paved the way for them to do the same.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received was making sure to have a healthy balance between work and home. Making sure that I create time for my family, and also create time to put into my purpose, without losing focus of the most important things, which was my kids and my family. So, never working too hard and too much. Learning and having a balance is the key to success is the best advice I've gotten.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell them to shoot for the stars. There's so many different avenues that you can go in the beauty industry. There's room for everyone. There's no one field that's specific. You can explore all options in the beauty industry. You can be your complete self, and I feel as if when you go into the beauty industry, you can really find yourself and who you want to be, because the beauty industry is so broad. It's not narrowed, it's not small for only one particular type of person. The beauty industry reaches all levels of people, so I think my advice would be come into this and go full throttle, but be yourself and don't try to be anyone else. Just be yourself, and there's room for you.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge would probably be just being able to adjust to all different styles of learning. There's so many new developments with different learning disabilities and things of that nature, so I think the challenges that I struggle with are just being able to adapt to all the different learning styles that are present, and being able to reach each and every one of our students, making them feel heard and seen. Making sure that I'm tapping into each person's learning style sometimes can be a tad bit difficult.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
My values stem from God, meditation, and prayer. That's the foundation. All of my values come from faith.
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