Episode 92: Alexandria Gilleo

Biohacking Your Way to Feeling Good with Alex Gilleo

This week Samantha chats with beauty biohacker Alexandria Gilleo(@alexgill). She is a seasoned celebrity makeup artist, beauty and wellness expert, content creator, entrepreneur and the founder of My Zen Den in Beacon, NY. She's blended her expertise in both beauty and wellness to enhance her own life and the lives of her clients.

The two discuss daily rituals to start feeling good now, what biohacking really is and how important it is to feel aligned in the work we do.

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To learn more about Alex click HERE

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Podcast Script

Sam: [00:00:00] Monetize your passion for wellbeing like a job you love every single day. Find a happy life from a healthy lifestyle. What's up guys. This is spin, skin and other addictions a podcast by me, Samantha E Cutler of The Fit Fatale. Each week I'm going to take you deeper into the world of wellness with entrepreneurs who are building brands designed to better your life.

[00:00:27] So you'll be hearing from fitness gurus, medical specialists, and influencers in the world of fitness, health, beauty, and nutrition. I hope you guys love it. Let's get down.

Alex: [00:00:43] When I started incorporating red light and infrared sauna is when I was showing up to set and people were like, wow, you have so much energy. What Botox are you getting? What are you getting filler? What's going on? I'm like, no, I'm just. I am taking care of myself and I'm using these [00:01:00] biohacking tools to basically better my health and make me feel really good.

[00:01:07] And the more that I started doing that, I was like, I wonder if there's a way I can incorporate this with my clients.

Sam: [00:01:13] You're listening to spin, skin and other addictions episode number 92 this week, I have Alex Galeo on the show who started her career as a makeup artist and through her own love for skin and helping her clients.

[00:01:28] Really dove full heartedly into the wellness beauty space and became a biohacker extraordinaire. So for those who don't know what biohacking is, it's about combining ancient rituals and really the way the earth has provided a wellness tools for us over time and the way that our communities previously lived with modern technology and modern science to create the best biohacking solutions. So one of them that Alex is super passionate about is red light therapy. And she [00:02:00] recently created a studio for sauna meditations, red light therapy called My Zen Den. So Alex is telling us all about building her career and really how she became so passionate about biohacking. And she also gives daily tips and different things that we can implement into our life right now.

[00:02:19] And she meets you where you're at. This is my new thing right now. Someone doesn't meet you where you're at and provide value for where you are right now. It becomes significantly less value. And I find Alex on this podcast really meets you where you're at. She shares what we can do right now, how we can slowly implement those small steps and build our system up to being used to taking care of ourselves, builds our businesses up.

[00:02:43] There's a lot of different, good suggestions in this episode. So I hope you love it. And without further ado here is our guest Alex. Hey everyone. And welcome to this week's episode of spin, skin and other addictions. Today, I am joined by Alex , who is a makeup artist in New York [00:03:00] and LA, but her love for skin and makeup led her to her newer development, which is My Zen Den.

[00:03:07] So not only is she the founder of My Zen Den, but she thrives on everything. Wellness, beauty, and. Biohacking, which is something we haven't spoken about yet on the podcast. So I'm so excited to dive into that. Alex, thank you for being here with me.

Alex: [00:03:20] Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited.

Sam: [00:03:22] Me as well. [00:03:24]Okay. So take us back to a little bit of your history, how your career has led you to where you are now, your experiences, makeup artist, and share with our listeners a little bit about who is Alex.

Alex: [00:03:35] All right. So let me take you way back. I never was a fan of school. So when it was time for me to go to college, I literally went for a day and I was like, you know what? [00:03:47] I was like, this is just not for me. And I had trouble with school previously. I was kicked out of high school. Didn't have the best schooling situation and basically my parents were like you have to get to work.[00:04:01] Okay, fine. If I can't focus in school, then I need to find a job that I love.

[00:04:09] And I had so much trouble doing that. I had a job as a telemarketer for a week. Got fired. I tried working for another brand, got like it was just not working out. So I was like, you know why? I was like, I'm going to start my own company, my own business because I don't want to work for anyone else.

[00:04:26] I always break the rules. I never listen. I always want to do what I want to do. So what do I like and what do I enjoy that I can create? And I sat down with my journal outside and I wrote down all the things and I was like, I really love making people feel good, super passionate about that. I really love entrepreneurship.

[00:04:48] I always thought it would be super cool to run my own business and brand. I also really enjoyed beauty. And I was like, okay, how can I combine all these things? Let me take up makeup. [00:05:00] So I went to cosmetology school where they did not really teach you makeup. It was more hair based. And there was someone that came in too.

[00:05:11] Basically teach us a class. And I was like, wow, this girl's awesome. I want her to be my mentor. So I start, this is like before Instagram, I think like Myspace was a thing and I started to  kind of stalk her. And I was like, Hey, I want to be your assistant. I want to be your assistant. I want to learn from you.

[00:05:30] So basically after calling her so many times, she finally was like, okay, let's do it. Like I need an assistant for the shoot. You're up my ass. She's I'll have you come assist me for this job? It was like 30 bucks for the whole day and I was so excited to do it. So the moment that I was on set, I was like, wow, I really love this.

[00:05:49] So basically I started assisting her and through that, I started taking up my own jobs and word of mouth and networking just carried me [00:06:00] throughout the years. And eventually, I started a bridal company where we focused on global weddings. Then, my makeup business was having me travel in New York, LA, Miami.

[00:06:10] I was picking up bigger and bigger clients as I went on and then I then through that, I started to really understand wellness. And I started working with a lot of brands and companies that were focused on wellness that I was doing makeup for Well and Good, for instance, they're one of my clients. So I started to connect with a lot of people in the wellness industry and the more I started to focus on wellness myself, I started noticing, wow, like my skin is glowing.

[00:06:39] Or I feel like really good. I have such great energy and that eventually led me to open Zen Den, which is a wellness biohacking studio with red light therapy and infrared sauna. And basically, I feel like when you are in investing in your [00:07:00] health and your wellness, and when you look and you feel good, like you are, your skin is glowing and it's just amazing.

Sam: [00:07:07] I couldn't agree more. And I love that transition from just realizing it naturally by taking care of yourself and stumbling upon, hang on when I do take care of myself. And like you said, I care a little bit more. It turns into the results that I'm looking for naturally through makeup and feeling good and looking good and just embodying that entire experience.

[00:07:28]And I love what you're doing with My Zen Den. First of all, you guys are based in Beacon, New York, right?

Alex: [00:07:34] Yes.

Sam: [00:07:35] Which is a super cool little town. If any of our listeners don't know it, it's just North of the city in New York. It's about an hour away or so.

Alex: [00:07:43] Yeah. It's about an hour and 20 minutes.

Sam: [00:07:45] Awesome. Yeah. And so I know a little bit about beacon because I used to live in New York and my partner always talks about wanting to move there by the way. He's obsessed with beacon.

Alex: [00:07:52] Oh, you guys should come.

Sam: [00:07:54] We'll probably be there at some point after, the border and things open up, cause we're up in Canada, but we'll [00:08:00] definitely come and visit My Zen Den, but I think Beacon is like this cute just gem near the city that has so many cool, innovative spots to check out. So if you are there and you want to check out My Zen Den, go ahead and do that, but can you share a little bit more of what you guys offer? I know you have red light therapy. We talked a little bit about biohacking and I want to dive into some of the benefits and why you felt so connected to having these as a physical location and what that's been like in developing that.

Alex: [00:08:32] Totally. So basically I also have, auto-immune problems. And the more that I was like working in commuting all the time, and my schedule was so busy, nonstop, New Yorkers, we don't know how to say no we're hustling. We're on the go. We're always working. And I felt my body depleting itself.

[00:08:51] So as the more I got into wellness and started learning about it, I started using my time commuting to listen to [00:09:00] podcasts and to listen to audio books. And I basically used those hours of commuting every day for years to study and to learn things. So with that being said, I decided I needed to make daily shifts.

[00:09:14] Every day to help me in some way. And through that, I discovered red light therapy. So red light therapy is this medical grade device that has far infrared light near infrared light and basically when that targets your skin, it's starting to heal the mitochondria in your cells. So it's lowering any kind of inflammation it's helping with your energy levels.

[00:09:39] And one of the side effects is that it's building more collagen in your skin. So you're going to be radiating after. So I got into red light therapy. And I started to notice that my energy levels were increasing and  I had psoriasis and my psoriasis started to go away and I was like, wow, how interesting.

[00:09:57] Then I started to incorporate [00:10:00] infrared sauna and  I started using the sauna, which also lowers inflammation and it helps detox the body. And it's so good for your cardiovascular health and you're boosting your immune system, all the things. When I started incorporating red light and infrared sauna is when I was showing up to set and people were like, wow, you have so much energy used to not have as much energy.

[00:10:22] They're like, what Botox are you getting? What are you getting filler? What's going on? I'm like, no, I'm just, I'm taking care of myself. And I'm using these biohacking tools. To basically better my health and make me feel really good. And the more that I started doing that, I was like, I wonder if there's a way I can incorporate this with my clients.

[00:10:47] So I ended up getting like a little red light device and I started bringing it with me and I started using the red light on my clients as I would give them like facial massages and stuff. And they noticed that their skin was [00:11:00] feeling great. I also work with athletes and there were some athletes that were like, I banged up my knee.

[00:11:04] Can I use that on my knee to lower inflammation? I was like, absolutely. So through that, I got this nickname for my clients that was like, Oh, she's the beauty bio-hacker like, she's all into beauty, but she's also helping us heal and feel our best selves. So it was pretty cool. So all of these little, all these little tiny additions to my lifestyle, I feel was healing my autoimmune healing, my energy levels. And then I was able to help bring that to my clients as well, which was so fulfilling.

Sam: [00:11:40] Can you share for our listeners who don't know what biohacking is, what that is in the most simplest form?

Alex: [00:11:46] Totally. So biohacking is, I like to think of it as. Ancient rituals and ancient modalities that modern day science has tapped into [00:12:00] to heal us from the inside out, keeping us more useful and radiant.

[00:12:04] So for instance, if you're going out into the sun has infrared lights, infrared light, but there's also a lot of harmful light with that as well. So we were able to create a device that has that infrared light without the harmful UV rays. So there you have the red light therapy machine.

[00:12:25] Also infrared sauna, people have been using heat therapy for years. And in ancient times, people would use like sweat lodges and things like that to detox their body. So with modern day science, we're able to create infrared saunas.

Sam: [00:12:40] It's so fascinating and it's like taking the original way things were done mixed with the technology and the science of 2021 that we have and building tools to live your optimal life and feel your best.

Alex: [00:12:54] Absolutely. Now what's really popular too, is like blue light blocking glasses. Those are something [00:13:00] that I wear after the sun goes down. Because we're not supposed to be exposed to blue light after the sun goes down, we need it during the day. We need it for our energy levels. We need it, to stay energized and awake throughout the day.

[00:13:12] But after the sun goes down, we shouldn't be explosive blue or green light. We should be exposed to Amber or red light. So I actually bio hacked my house and I put all red light bulbs in. So once it's nighttime, it's just red light beaming from my windows. My neighbors probably think I'm a witch.

Sam: [00:13:31] Oh my gosh, awesome, is it like a switch in your house that switches to the red lights? Are there different lights you put on at night?

Alex: [00:13:38]They're literally all the light bulbs in my house. I put a red light. That is correct, but it's also really good for your circadian rhythm. So basically when it's time to wind down at night, it's not like this alarming bright light, it's just like the soothing, calm light that's going to help you get into your rest mode.

Sam: [00:13:59] That is, that's just wild. I absolutely, I love that. And so you've come, you've combined the infrared saunas with the red light therapy at Zen den.

Alex:[00:14:06] Yes.

Sam: [00:14:08] I love that. And so you're doing both at the same time, he would sit in the sauna. There's the infrared light. You're getting both of the benefits. You also have meditation as well.

[00:14:18] What else do you guys offer?

Alex: [00:14:20] So right now, those are the three modalities that we're offering. How I got started with this was I ha I told you I had the red light in my house. I was going to a place in New York city. For the sauna, but once COVID hit and we had to quarantine and, people weren't getting makeup anymore.

[00:14:37] We weren't allowed to leave our houses. And I saw a lot of people struggling with mental health and with self care and all the things. And I was like, wow, like people aren't getting  make up right now. I need to pivot for business-wise I need to pivot this. And I also feel equally as passionate about wellness and bio-hacking.

[00:14:56] As I do with makeup and beauty and skincare. [00:15:00] So when I saw the space in Beacon open up, I was like, wow, this would be a beautiful space to help create some kind of Zen for the community. People are always asking me, where can I get a red light or I can't afford a red light or there's no sauna around here.

[00:15:17] Like all the places in New York city are closed and, people aren't traveling. So I was like, this is a really great opportunity to bring this to the community. And I also incorporate meditation into my daily life as well. And I was like, people need to come and Zen out. So I wanted to create the space.

[00:15:38] I saw a void. And it's been so transformative to see so many people healing, whether it's weight loss, whether it's peace of mind, whether it's detoxing their bodies or lowering inflammation, helping their autoimmune or just mentally feeling better. Cause it's just them alone in a space for 30 minutes and it's really just transformative, [00:16:00] so profound.

Sam: [00:16:02] So rewarding to just  be helping people, especially at a time like this, when people are feeling so disconnected, so uncertain and things are starting to open up a little bit more, definitely in the states versus up here in Canada, we're still locked in, but as things do that, people need safe places to start to reintegrate as well.

[00:16:22] And it sounds like somewhere that is so calming as My Zen Den is the perfect experience where you can still begin that integration process and feel safe and comfortable and also be taking care of yourself and feeling good.

Alex: [00:16:37] Absolutely and right now this is what people need. And I also made it a space where it's okay.

[00:16:42] One-on-one if someone wants to bring a guest like a significant other friend, that's fine, but I want it to be a very personal space. I don't allow like more than one appointment at a time because I want people to have, well one, I want to make sure that I'm using all the safety precautions  and people are being socially distant and stuff, [00:17:00] but also I want people to have that peace of mind.

[00:17:03] That's what people need. They just spent a year on lockdown over a year on lockdown at this point. And I think community is so important and self care is so important and some people just need to get out of their houses. So if they're coming to this space alone, it gives them the opportunity to just really get into their thoughts, connect with themselves and just do something that's beneficial for their mental health, their skincare, their physical health boosting their immune system, all of the things.

[00:17:30] Sam: [00:17:30] And for some of our listeners who aren't local, they aren't in the city, they aren't in beacon or, they're wishing they can get there, but they can't at this time, given restrictions or other reasons, what would you suggest to those listeners who can start implementing some of these bio-hacks or shifts in their mindset and their health at home?

Alex: [00:17:52] So I think that most of the bio-hacks or things to boost your [00:18:00] immune system, it's actually free. And what I mean by that is go outside in nature and take your shoes off and your socks off and get grounded. And when you have your bare feet on the grass, on the soil, on the beach, wherever you are, it's literally grounding you.

[00:18:15] It's eliminating free radicals going on in your body, lowering inflammation and it relaxes you. So it's like just spend time outside in nature, make sure that you're drinking enough water. A lot of us are dehydrated. A lot of us are not thinking about drinking enough water, drink, drink, or water. You can also can take cold showers for a boost of immune system, a boost of mental, like helping your mental health and also sleep.

[00:18:41] Sleep is so important. Making sure you're getting enough sleep. I always aim for seven to eight hours, but a lot of these little tools you can do at home also if you want to create your own little Zen space, getting a little meditation pillow, maybe a little crystal and just taking a [00:19:00] moment to breathe every morning.

[00:19:01] Maybe you're writing a couple pages down in your journal, or maybe you're just taking five minutes or there's an app that's free called insight timer, I really liked that app. They have a lot of great guided meditations and just using some time alone to just connect.

Sam: [00:19:21] Absolutely. And I think a lot of people don't know that they have all these tools at their fingertips, totally. They can create that at home. So Alex, tell me what's your daily non-negotiable.

Alex: [00:19:32] Daily non-negotiable I got a few I like to wake up and go for a walk as soon as I get up. So I get up, I make the bed, I go outside for a walk because I usually listen to a podcast. So I feel like, I'm educating myself and I'm moving my body.

[00:19:49] I think getting movement in is super important and being exposed to natural light, first thing in the morning, also important. And you're getting, grounded by being outside. So you're checking off a [00:20:00] couple of boxes. So for me, getting up, making my bed and going for a morning walk, getting those steps in getting that movement in.

[00:20:07] That's a super non-negotiable for me. Even if it's snowing out. And no matter what the weather is, I am outside. I will bundle up. I'll go. I also have my tea ritual is super important. I love to make my macho or my, turmeric lattes in the morning. And I feel like that's just taking time out to, again it, it feels good.

[00:20:28] It helps you stay in the present moment. You're enjoying the warmth of the cup and having that tea and it's good for your immune system or it's giving you energy. Turmeric is an anti-inflammatory. So I like to make like turmeric matcha lattes in the morning. So it's just some time that's a non-negotiable for me.

[00:20:47] And I always make a to-do list at the beginning of the week. So just going over my to-do list and checking anything off that I need to do is super important and always taking time out for myself. [00:21:00] I have a busy work schedule and when I come home at night, I make sure to put my phone down, turn my emails off and just have some time for myself to ground and recharge myself that way I can show up efficiently for my job.

Sam: [00:21:16] I think that's the hardest part right now, because we've all been so isolated and only on our phones and only on our emails and computers and zoom calls. And so it's really difficult to find that, this comes up time and time again, as I speak with entrepreneurs on the podcast and they tell us, their practices or what are the best practices, but separating from your phone or your devices or your work is so difficult for everyone now.

Alex: [00:21:41] It's really difficult. Yeah, it is. I also, I turned off a lot of my notifications on my phone. Yes. And I also got a hatch alarm clock. I don't know if you've heard of those, so I don't have to sleep with my phone in my room.

Sam: [00:21:55] Ooh. Is that the one like where the light comes on? Okay. We have that, but from Phillips and it's the same idea, like it mimics the sun.

Alex:[00:22:01] Is that what it is? Yes. Yes. [00:22:03] It's great. I feel like it's, for me, it was a game changer. Cause I'm like, wow, I don't need to have my phone in my room. I can have it out charging in the living room and it wakes you up so peacefully, but I, little tiny habits like that, like just switching your alarm clock to not have your phone on you before bed.

[00:22:20] And then that releases any kind of temptation in the morning when you wake up to go grab your phone and start checking your texts and your emails. And, I like to be grounded in the morning because I want to set the tone right for the day. So I'm not just reacting to my phone immediately because if I wake up and I'm looking at my phone and I'm like, Oh, this one's posting this on Instagram.

[00:22:42] I have, this many DMS, I have this many emails. I have all these texts to respond to. Now I'm in reactive mode and it's not like alex time. And in order for me to be my best self and serve the community the best I can or my clients, I need to have that morning, time to myself, where I make my tea.

[00:22:59] I go [00:23:00] for my walk. I  do my little morning meditation. Otherwise I'm just, I'm reacting to everyone.

Sam: [00:23:06] Yeah and for someone who has a role, a job to serve, to help others, to guide them, to feeling better our most important job in that and I'm sure that you resonate strongly with this is making sure that we are in a good place, as you just said, to be able to provide that insight and guidance.

Alex: [00:23:25] Absolutely. And it's not, it's definitely easier said than done.

Sam: [00:23:28] Oh yeah.

Alex:[00:23:30] Especially for my mom, friends out there, they're like easy for you to say you have cats, you don't have kids, but with that being said, I do feel that you have to do what you can to try to make time, even if it's five minutes for yourself.

[00:23:44] Because if you're not taking care of yourself, you're not taking care of your loved ones or anyone around you, whether it's with work or family. Your supportive community to really help and serve. You have to fill up your own cup.

Sam: [00:23:59] Yeah. [00:24:00] And I think also just starting those transitions, small, if anyone's listening, some of the things that Alex, you mentioned, like just beginning somewhere, because it does sound intimidating when people, everyone around you has a routine or something that they've been doing for a while and it's.

[00:24:15] It seems extremely intimidating to start meditating, to start, separating from your phone, just start taking care or incorporating biohacks. So I think, just choosing one or two of the things that you've shared today, Alex, or anything that people can begin to incorporate to separate themselves.

[00:24:31]And I'm not sure how you've noticed this, whether it's with your community on social media or through your clients, at Zen den. But I find that. People have put their health on the back burner. We're moving a lot less obviously being at home, but we've just pushed it aside.

[00:24:49] Cause it's like survival mode instead of thriving mode.

Alex: [00:24:53] Absolutely. Yeah, and I think a lot of people have, I know a lot of people have struggled and I [00:25:00] tell my clients and I tell anyone that's coming into the Zen den. I know it seems overwhelming to do all these things. And my morning routine doesn't need to look like your morning routine.

[00:25:10] Like everyone's schedule everyone's energy levels. Everyone is completely different. So instead of just going cold Turkey, and I'm just going to eat all the healthy food, and I'm going to go to bed, I'm going to do this. You usually don't stay as consistent when you're changing everything. So I always say just add one new step in once a month.

[00:25:30] Whether it's you know what, I'm going to start implementing a 20 minute walk in the morning or I'm going to implement instead of changing everything, I'm going to implement maybe just adding a little bit more organic greens to my lunch. So just implementing. Tiny little steps that are easy and adding things into your routine, whether instead of taking them out, I think you're going to have more of a success rate of creating your own [00:26:00] long-term successful routine that are gonna, that are gonna end up helping you benefiting you even more.

Sam: [00:26:05] And that just completely encompasses, why this podcast is called spin, skin and other addictions. It's a joke because obviously we don't want addictions, but it's a joke on how the second we start taking care of ourselves, they become these feel good addictions.  It's all about one entrepreneurs feeling so passionate about telling their story and sharing this because they're like addicted to the work that they're doing, but it's also this mindset around, once you start, your skin starts glowing, as you mentioned earlier in the podcast, or you start  doing spin and you're feeling really good all the time.

Alex: [00:26:42]Or, you're taking care of yourself in other ways, it just, it snowballs, but you have to start small in somewhere. And like you said, not that all or nothing mindset because it's not sustainable ever.

Sam:[00:26:51] Exactly.

Alex: [00:26:52] And that's where people, their consistency will not for everyone, but some people, most people, it will fall off because it's like when you're just going in and [00:27:00] changing everything, that's when it gets complicated and that's when you can feel overwhelmed or maybe it doesn't match with your schedule, everyone's schedules are different.

[00:27:07]Just adding those little things in can make the world of a difference, those little steps, those little routines, those little daily habits, just start adding them in very slowly and you'll see how good you start to feel. When I first got a red light and I was consistent with using the red light for 10 minutes a night, I noticed my skin was glowing.

[00:27:26] Then I noticed my psoriasis was going away. Then I noticed the inflammation in my knee was gone. So I was like, wow, I'm going to keep doing this. This feels really good. I made it a non-negotiable. So just adding those little things, what will make such a difference. And then when you start to feel good, you want to do it even more and you want to, you make it more of a goal to do this every day.

Sam: [00:27:46] And how long do you think someone should be sitting in front of a red light? Let's say they have one at home or they're going into My Zen Den or anywhere that they can access near them. How long does that process take to actually receive the benefits?

Alex: [00:28:01] So I say, if it's a full body row light, I like to recommend 10 minutes in the front and then 10 minutes in the back.

[00:28:08] So a total of 20 minutes to start, I still do 20 minutes once in a blue moon, I'll boost myself up to 30 or 40, but I think you're getting the most benefits at 20 minutes. And I do think that consistency is key. Just like with anything else such as working out, you can't work out. Once a month and expect to see the biggest changes or results.

[00:28:28] So I think consistency with anything, whether it's the red light, whether it's the sauna, whether it is movement and exercise, whether it's your nutrition and your diet, the more consistent that you will do, these things, the more results and the better you are.

Sam: [00:28:42] Do you have a favorite? What's your favorite at home for anyone that can't get to see you like a red light therapy that they could use at home?

Alex: [00:28:50] I love the Joovv. Okay. Yeah, it's great. I'll have to send you their Instagram.

Sam: [00:28:57] Okay, send it to me.

Alex:[00:28:58] Yeah, I'll send it to you. I really [00:29:00] enjoy the Joovv. I trust their research. I like their customer service. If I ever have a question they're very quick to respond and answer. I liked the Joovv and then I also Lightsim. That's another brand that I think they have a full body red light, and I think they have a face red light, which is great.

Sam: [00:29:18] Amazing. Talk a little bit more also about your entrepreneurial journey. So I'm sure some people listening at the beginning when you shared your intro about how you hated school, you didn't want it and now you're an entrepreneur. Who's probably, if I had to guess working, crazy hours, because as entrepreneurs, we don't get the chance to turn off all the time. We're always connected, but we love it. How has that shift just completely changed. Obviously you've been in this and an entrepreneur for your entire professional career and it seems like you just knew right away.

[00:29:51] You're like, I am an entrepreneur it's in me. I really believe it's not, it can be learned, but I do feel like it's, an innate sort of.

Alex: [00:29:59] Not for everyone.

Sam: [00:30:00] A hundred percent, but what are the biggest changes you've seen? And what were some of those signs for anyone that's maybe listening and feeling like, maybe they're in school or maybe they're actually in a career where they're just so stuck.

[00:30:12]And that's come up a lot for people, especially during this pandemic. What are some of those signs and how does that resonate with how you feel now in the complete opposite?

Alex: [00:30:23] So I believe that if you're truly passionate about something and if you're really willing to be consistent and put in that work, then I say, go for it.

[00:30:33]I explained earlier that school was just not for me. I think, Of course, if you want to be a doctor, a lawyer, something like that, school is great. Otherwise, if you're going to start your own business, you need to experience and you need to be out in the field, working, whatever that is.

[00:30:46] Do you want to gain the most experience you can and as long as you're driven, there's going to be a lot of bumps in the road. There are going to be a lot of people and it could be your family, it could be your closest friends, it could be your boyfriend, your girlfriend [00:31:00] that are going to say to you.

[00:31:01] You're crazy. This is not a good idea. What are you doing? Even when I opened up,  some of the closest people to me was like, what are you doing? We're in a pandemic. Like you're going to open up a storefront when all these other stores are going out of business, like you're crazy. And I was like, I believe in myself.

[00:31:18] So I think as long as you believe in yourself and you're willing to be committed and dedicated to do the work, I definitely recommend to everyone to just go for their goals and to always have your own voice, never to get stuck and comparison. A lot of people will sit there on Instagram and just compare themselves, and  businesses take time. Entrepreneurship takes time. So someone else's success can look entirely different than your success. And you just can't give up. You have to do it. There's been so many times where I've been in situations where I'm like you just got to figure it out. Be confident, believe in yourself and figure it [00:32:00] out.

[00:32:00] Everything is figureoutable ,everything. I remember one time I was doing makeup for a really big CEO of a company. And I forgot blotting papers,  that was like the one thing that I like really needed for him. And I was like, okay, I walked into the bathroom and I like had one moment of panic and I was like, I'm going to figure this out.

[00:32:24] And I look over and I'm looking at the toilet seat covers. And I was like, Oh my God, I touch it.  This is a same exact material as a blotting papers. So I went ahead and pulled them out, no one knew I went back to the makeup. I took my little eyelash, scissor, I  cut them into little blotting sheets.

[00:32:46] No one knew I figured it out. There's always a solution to everything. And I just, I really think as long as you believe in yourself and you're willing to put out fires, you're willing to problem solve and just [00:33:00] really just being consistent. I'd like to also make vision boards that I also call execution boards because , every year I'll make a vision board for.

[00:33:11] Whether it's like my health and wellness or my brand. I really like to do this with work and brands and any kind of companies that I'm working on. And I like to sit down and be like, I just don't want to put like a vision on there. I want to break down or I want to, Take out clippings from magazines, articles, print things out, whatever, to help me execute my goals.

[00:33:33]What micro goals do I have to hit to get to my macro goals? And I know I have to be patient, and I know I have to work at this every day. And if I'm seeing this hanging up on my wall every day, subconsciously, I'm going to be working towards those goals.

Sam: [00:33:48] I love that. Also just breaking things down into micro goals because we see it's so easy to see the big picture and to write that down, it's like your to-do list is okay.

[00:33:58]Launched business. [00:34:00] It's these are not realistic approachable goals and breaking them down. And I think that's something you learn over time, as an entrepreneur, especially when you have a team, I'm sure you have a few employees or, people that start to work with you and you can't just give them the bigger vision because they are not in your brain.

[00:34:16] They won't have a clear understanding of where you're headed and breaking down those micro goals to start getting there. I also love what you said about your success will not look the same as anyone else's and that's something that people who have achieved success in one, one way or another, success doesn't necessarily mean you're exactly where you want to be. I think we're continuously evolving as entrepreneurs always, but success looks different at every stage and we have to celebrate it at every stage and acknowledge where we've got into and not compare continuously. One thing that like is super important.

[00:34:51] I'm sure Alex, you do a great job of this as well. And it's so important on social media to inspire people, to find their own, instead of telling them how to get yours.

Alex: [00:35:00] Absolutely. And I always try to tell I always try to give as much value as I can especially on social media and especially in my brands.

[00:35:07] And, I told you I have a bridal business. I have the makeup and hair production business, and then I have the Zen Den now. But I'm always trying to create value for people and teach them what I know. And so many people are always asking me, like, how do I start, like how do I get the motivation to just do it?

[00:35:25] And I always say it's, for me, it was writing everything down, making those vision and execution boards and just really getting clear about all of the micro goals and not sitting there on social media, comparing yourself to other people it's just not productive. Focus on your own grass, focus on your own lane and always ask yourself, how can I be better than I was the day before?

[00:35:49] But the only person that you're in competition with is yourself. Period. 

Sam: [00:35:53] I love that. Yeah. And just I think sometimes it's hard for us to also step away from that and maybe [00:36:00] setting boundaries until it becomes normal. That we stop comparing. So maybe that's like boundaries with your phone that are more time sensitive.

[00:36:08] I'll only be on social media for this amount of time or during these hours. But I think just like creating that boundary and even as two individuals chatting who's businesses succeed and thrive because of social media, we can recognize for anyone listening, like how important it is to make that separation.

[00:36:25]And I want to ask you, on the topic of social media and how much it benefits us, it connects us. It also inspires us. What are some and who are some of the people you look to for inspiration as well?

Alex: [00:36:37] Okay. So my favorite accounts to follow, I follow this guy named Dr. G I think his Instagram is like @dr.christian.gonzalez, but he is a holistic doctor. And he's all about preventative health. I told you I'm like super into health and wellness, so I really love following him. I also really like following @melissawoodhealth. I think she had, do you follow [00:37:00] her?

Sam: [00:37:00] Yeah, she's awesome.

Alex: [00:37:01] Her classes are great as well. Yeah, like her workout classes are great, her branding is great and she's always creating value for people. And I think that's super important. I don't want to follow someone where I'm not either learning something or finding humor in something like I've muted a lot of people on social media because I don't want to get too consumed watching, you're the person you went to high schools with sisters, brothers, cousins, neighbors, and that can easily happen. Like you can just scroll and be on social media for so long. I try to only follow certain accounts that I'm learning something from, or they're creating some kind of value.

[00:37:39] So I have Melissa is more @melissawoodhealth , I like to follow more for workouts and also like Dr. G I like to follow him more for like preventative healthcare. And then I also really following Saw D Simone who used to be my life coach. And he has a book out now called spiritually sassy, [00:38:00] and he is all about mental health, self care meditation. So I find a lot of value in his social media as well.

Sam: [00:38:08] I love those for anyone listening to, to check out those are great suggestions and yeah, I think it's funny, as you mentioned it's really easy to go down a rabbit hole and see a lot of things that we don't want to consume. I also think the, as much as I love Instagram, it's allowed me to create a platform and a life and a job. And you as well, I find the algorithms are really strange the past six months or so where I'm seeing a lot of those people, as you said, like your friend from high school, his brother, cousin who got married and we were like, did I even follow this person? I'm so confused?

Alex:[00:38:40] That algorithm is definitely tricky. Yeah. I think it's hard for a lot of people.

Sam: [00:38:46] Yeah, I think it's like showing us other accounts that we're not sure of.

Alex: And I don't know if it's a test in some ways, or if it's more, because it's trying to be like a Facebook and share older accounts.

Sam: [00:38:52]But I think it's brought more [00:39:00] attention to people in who they want to be following and consuming. And it's also created we need to be creating more value it's we need to be consuming more value and educational and feel good content. Are you on TikTok, Alex?

Alex: [00:39:15] I  recently made a TikTok and I'm still figuring it out. I'm having fun with it, but again, it's be careful of the content you consume.

[00:39:26] And I find when I'm on TikTok, I'm consuming a lot of content. That's not really giving me much value. But I want to be more of a creator on TikTok, that's one of my goals for this year. 

Sam: [00:39:36] I could totally see you thriving there. TikTok to me. I think they do a really great job around how they target accounts with your content.

[00:39:44] So like the amount of content you produce in a certain subject, there'll be showing it to people that want to see that. Versus I feel like with Instagram, it's the wild West and hope that the right people see it.

Alex: [00:39:57]Yeah. Instagram is hard to grow. I know [00:40:00] reels are really important there.

[00:40:01] I know Instagram is pushing reels, so anyone that wants to grow their Instagram account they have to be creating reels right now. But I think you're right. We're TikTok is much more organic.

Sam: [00:40:11] Yeah, a hundred percent. But I think just with the value that you provide, I feel like you would kill it on there, but and they will definitely follow you.

[00:40:19] But besides from that I would love to share like one last thing with our listeners that you want to provide value that you think everyone needs to know and needs to start. Maybe either implementing in their life, bringing to their day to day bringing to their communities to their mindset. Is there any little last nugget you want to leave our listeners with?

Alex: [00:40:40] Hold on. Let me think about this one. Let's see. Okay. I'm gonna, since we were talking about consuming content, I'll leave the audience with this. Be very strategic with the content that you consume. I recently took my TV out of my house. I don't want to watch it and [00:41:00] I think that the podcast, you listened to whatever TV shows, you're watching, whatever books you're reading, the people that is in your friend group, the people that you're surrounding yourself with.

[00:41:14] It's all content, right? The people you're following on social media. I think it's very important to be cautious and careful of the content you're consuming and if someone wants to be a health coach, maybe start shifting all of your books and podcasts into learning more about that. So you can become an expert in that field.

[00:41:31] So the content that you're consuming is creating so much value for you. And then the last thing I would say, is when it comes to your skin care less is more and less exfoliating. We don't need to exfoliate every day.

Sam: [00:41:44] I love that. Those are some great tips. I agree. Especially I'm acne prone. If you exfoliate too much, it's like an absolute nightmare.

Alex: [00:41:52] Everyone's always asking me skincare questions. So I had to throw that one in there.

Sam: [00:41:56] I love it. I want to say thank you for  [00:42:00] giving us time today, jumping on here, chatting with me. I will a hundred percent let you know if and when we're in Beacon.

Alex: [00:42:06] I would love to have you guys.

Sam: [00:42:07] Yeah, we would love that and I just think you've provided lots of value and thank you for being here.

Alex: [00:42:13] Oh, thank you so much for having me.