Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in media but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Hara Allison, Publisher of Beneath Your Beautiful, located in Post Falls, ID, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Beneath Your Beautiful. I host a podcast and publish a magazine. Our customers are those who are looking for inspiration.
Tell us about yourself
Beneath Your Beautiful magazine is born from a desire to show that beauty is everywhere: from heart-warming to heart-wrenching. The title refers to the lightness in our souls, as well as the darkness. It represents all that we've wrestled with, as well as our triumphs. After hundreds of intimate conversations with people I've photographed and as the host of Beneath Your Beautiful podcast, I understand the beauty of a single tear rolling down a mother's cheek as she holds her stillborn baby, just as much as in the image of a sweet elderly couple holding hands. Beauty is in all of us, no matter what we look like or what challenges life presents us. I have seen my share of struggles. My parents divorced when I was 1. Single with six kids, my mom struggled financially as the kids struggled emotionally. My childhood was a chaotic mix of drugs, police interactions, powdered milk, and reduced-cost school lunches.
At 7, I was sexually abused. Nothing was said or done when I told my mom, and I let that define my worth. I carried so much shame. From a child's perspective, I believed it was my fault. It took 45 years for me to be convinced it was a trauma worthy of discussion. My mom passed away from cancer at 46, and I was just 18. For six brutal months, I watched her slowly deteriorate, and then I was thrust into adulthood. I lost my dad twice: once to the fog of Alzheimer's and later when his body succumbed to the disease. I lost a brother to a drug overdose and another to cancer. When my daughters were only 2 and 6, I found myself a divorced, single mom barely making it on one salary. I filed for bankruptcy twice and almost lost my home to foreclosure while surviving on a diet of top ramen because that was all I could afford. Through all of this, I battled my weight and self-worth.
After years of work, however, I have found my way to love. Instead of pointlessly wishing I was smarter, smaller, or anything I was not, I honor my strengths, acknowledge my weaknesses, and appreciate what I have. I am more than my struggles. I am more than what I look like. I'm proof that there is always hope, and to find beauty, you just have to seek it. This magazine, then, hopes to recognize beauty in all things and to create positive change through honest and compassionate storytelling that inspires empathy and understanding.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Utilizing all of my talents to create Beneath Your Beautiful.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Financial struggles are real!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Follow your passion because you'll stay motivated to work through the hard times.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://beneathyourbeautiful.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeneathYourBeautifulMedia
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beneathyourbeautifulmedia/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beneathyourbeautiful/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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