The Secret to Completing any Project

We always forget how hard it was.

We are so strong and we’ve been through so much that it honestly just makes it easier to forget how hard things were.

But when we’re teaching others how to do what we did...we need to remember that. When we’re telling others about our success we can’t forget all the struggle we’ve been through to get there.

Too many people are painting a fake picture of how easy their success has come. They forget about the struggle they’ve been through or don’t want to mention it. 

But people need to hear it because when they’re struggling they don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. They think that it’s always going to be like this because they only see your highs. Why do people only show their highs? It’s not relatable...at all. But sometimes honestly, we just forget.

I have been coaching musicians and small business owners on their digital media presence for the past few years and I have been working in digital media for the past 10 years. I’ve had this website for a few years so I honestly FORGOT how hard it is to start from nothing.

I just launched PrettyAF.com. It’s a philanthropic lifestyle blog that gives tips on beauty and wellness. And OMG it took so much longer and took so much more work than I expected it to. I FORGOT HOW HARD IT IS TO START FROM NOTHING. No wonder so many people never get their website up or start their email list. It’s a lot of work. 

I had to push my launch date by 6 weeks. 

I had to figure things out.

I cried A LOT.

I felt like it was NEVER going to happen.

I questioned my decision to launch it.

I messed up A LOT.

But despite all those setbacks and fears...I did it anyway. 

Before I started I wrote down WHY I wanted to launch PrettyAF. And I recommend if you’re thinking about starting any new project...you do this too. It’s what kept me going at times I wanted to quit or I thought it was stupid. 

This is my why for PrettyAF. I hope it helps you write your why for your next project so you don’t quit when times get tough. Look back at your why and you’ll remember why you started. 

My why for PrettyAF:

There’s a lot of things I’ve gone through that when I was going through them, I felt like I was all alone. I didn’t know who to ask for help and I didn’t know if I did ask for help if I would be helped or taken seriously. I joined a sorority when I was in college and with that came the knowledge of a ton of women. I learned how to do my make-up, how to make my hair not orange when going blonde, how to get the perfect spray tan. I also learned how to be a really good friend. How to be there for someone. How to trust and open up. But there were still somethings that I felt like I couldn’t tell people. Like I was going through them alone and that’s just the way it was. I was surrounded by people but I felt alone. I thought no one had been through some of the things I had gone through so I just had to go through these things alone. Things like being molested as a child, my parents divorcing, having an eating disorder, never feeling good enough, being in a shooting, being bullied, being cheated on. But the truth is I’m not the only one. There are others all around the world going through the same things and I’m guessing they felt just as alone as I did at times. I want PrettyAF to be the thing that connects us. That makes it okay to talk about these things. I want PrettyAF to not only be a place where we can talk about the best beauty and wellness hacks, but also our struggles and our trauma and how we handle it (or don’t) and how we use that to make this world a better place and give back because we know how much it hurts to feel alone and to struggle. I don’t want anyone to feel alone like I did. I’m hoping PrettyAF helps to make that happen and helps to shine a light on all the women that are PrettyAF inside and out. PrettyAF is what I wish I had at my darkest moments. It will be there for you during yours and during my future dark moments. I’m here to shine a light on the darkness and slowly we will make this world a brighter place. 

I want to hear your “why”! Send me a DM on IG at @AzaleeMaslow! 

Learn more about PrettyAF here!