Hi EDEN family! It’s Ijeoma here - creator of the blog and YouTube channel, Klassy Kinks. After several years of sharing content designed to change perceptions of kinky textured hair around the world, I recently changed my motto to “thriving at the intersection of beauty and brains”.
Photo credit: Jeff Brooks
You see, in addition to being a full time beauty and lifestyle blogger - based on the number of hours I spend building my brand each week - I’m also a full time PhD student. I’m in my sixth year (hopefully of seven!) of a public health program at Columbia University, writing on the history of asthma in black urban America. I often get questions about how I balance my school and my blog. Being in a PhD program actually created the perfect environment for me to become a blogger. Many doctoral programs are individually paced - you create your own course schedule, decide when you’re ready to take exams, and do your research on your own. So I had the flexibility to start and grow a blog in a way that I might not have been able to do if I had a traditional career. The self-starter traits that are necessary for navigating higher education are the same ones needed to be a successful blogger, so the two roles mesh well together.
In addition to being a PhD student and a blogger, I’ve also recently added on the job title of wife. Planning a large, intercultural wedding gave me tons of new and beautiful content to share with my readers, and by taking them along my process, I was able to connect with people on a more personal level. Even though I’d been sharing a bit of non-hair related content before the wedding, people really now understand that I’m not just a hair blogger.
Photo credit: Alakija Studios
I hope my story can encourage you to pursue ALL the dreams that have been laid on your heart. I firmly believe that God does not give you ideas unless he wants you to act on them, so go forth and thrive in whatever you are meant to do!
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Photo credit: Taylor Carment
1 comment
Hi, do you have a salon?