EBKSalon

A New Leap in Life: Is it Time for a Change?

It is the last Friday of the month.  The usual habit is for everyone to blow out the weekend – focus on letting all the stress of the week fall behind.  It is time to gather with friends, family, and focus on anything other than responsibilities or work.  However, it could be used for a much better purpose – “YES!” a much better purpose.

There is perhaps no better time to reflect on the past, review the present, and consider the future than the last day of the week and the last weekend of the month.  There is a great opportunity for you to make changes and take a new leap in life.

Perhaps you have been considering a job change, a move, going back to school, taking on new responsibilities in your career, or you are on the cusp of a new opportunity and you just don’t know how to take advantage of it.

The first thing you need to do is to put your goals to paper.  If you don’t put your goals down then you can’t form a plan to take them to completion.  If you have been carrying around your goals, aspirations and dreams in your head you need to get them on paper.  It is time you quit talking and you start doing!

Put your goals down at the top of the page.  At the bottom of your page put where you are now.  All you have to do is fill in the middle with the path that is necessary to help you get from one point to another.  Then the true planning begins – what do you need to do to take the first step, the second, the third toward your goal? 

Perhaps it is time to invest in you in a way that serves your goals.  Instead of new purse, a new pair of sunglasses, or a $300 dollar weekend with friends you should invest that money elsewhere.  Become focused!  Pay down debt, go inquire about financial aid for school this fall, hire someone to do your resume professionally, hire a professional to do what you haven’t been able to accomplish, or volunteer for an internship.  Just invest in your future instead of your now.

It is also important that once you get things to paper that you put forth the best image for your new goals.  Don’t wait till you get to your goals to start looking the part.  Does your everyday look reflect the professional, the star, or the entrepreneur you want to be?  Perhaps it is time to update your look, to cut your hair, or perhaps it is time for a whole professional make-over?  Nothing can add to your confidence and help you along the path better than looking the part.  I don’t mean accessories either – I mean you – the “you” in your mirror. 

Here at EBK Beauty we have the expertise, the one on one, the we care work ethic, the we want the best for you when you are in our salon attitude to help you get the look you need to start “looking the part of a leader, the entrepreneur, the author, the speaker, or the winner in life” and give you the confidence you need to take you further and to be viewed as someone that has become serious about their future.  Spend the weekend getting ready for August and for all the tomorrows to follow.  Give us a call and make your appointment for your makeover – at EBK Beauty we’re here to give you our best so you can look your best!

Sharing Some Informational Treasures from the Internet

Always on the search for creative and insightful blogs and Web sites, I decided I would share some of my favorites.  I hope you will do the same and leave your favorites in the comment section below!

If you are in the beauty industry and you have aspirations of being a bigger, better, more professional you AND you want to have the door to the world open at your touch then you better know who Crystal Wright is and you better have read her book and be reading her blog called “Freelance Advantage”!  Not only will you not know how to get that door to open for you without her keen advice but you won’t know what to do once you walk through the door without her.  Get familiar with Crystal Wright and up your game!  Buy her book today and subscribe to her blog too!  Don’t miss out on following her on Twitter or Facebook either!

I have great intentions to one day become an avid reader of Mashable.  I have it bookmarked on my computer and when I can I try to catch up with all there is to learn there.  I follow them on Twitter too.  It is the place where you will hear things first that are important to the small business owner, the social media guru wanna be, the tech savvy salon owner wanting to find more time in your day…yes, I so need to read it more.  I have aspirations of doing just that someday soon.  Meanwhile I will have to settle for quick glances throughout the site and a scan of their twitter feed.  I do love the folks at Mashable.

Where would a girl be without her friends?  Even in social media we need our girlfriends and I am proud to say that in the beginning stages of the movement I dubbed myself a #SMGirlfriend in Twitter.  Not only should you read their blog but you should hurry and follow them on Twitter.  Long time acquaintances on Twitter or new friends to be made – the girls (and guys) at #SMGirlfriends are always there to offer a quick inspirational quote, a pat on the back, or a reminder to not take things too seriously… everything a good girlfriend should do!  Oh, and you will discover a wealth of knowledge from those sharing on their blog and through social media.

Here is a fashion site full of articles and blogs that I love to read because I can do so quickly and feel like no matter how long I spend there it was just enough.  Sometimes it is a few minutes and other times it is much, much longer.  It is the sexy layout of the site that helps to draw readers in and keep them there and it is the wealth of information that makes it worth the effort…at least for me.  I’m always inspired.  Check out Elle online.

And one from my favorites list – check out the cute girls hairstyles blog.  Enough said, they have a great blog that more people should be reading.  Happy to share this one with you!

So, my list could get longer, but now it’s your turn, what blog or site would you consider a treasure, worth sharing, and what site do you consider your own discovery from the Web?  Share away in the comments section please!

Competition in Business: A Lesson Learned

Being a business owner involves more than a financial risk.  It means developing a deep and committed relationship with your business.  It is that relationship in which an entrepreneur will invest their money, their dreams, and the majority of their time.  It is that relationship that family and friends will often learn unfortunately comes before much else in the entrepreneur’s life. 

No matter how I try and balance that relationship in my life to not let it consume me I often come up exhausted, stressed, and bewildered at how all-consuming it can truly become for me.  I am not ashamed to say that there have been times when I have basked gleefully at my own accomplishments and at other times, and much too often, I have stood alone wondering how my emotions and dedication have taken the best of me.

I have been a consuming and jealous business owner.  I have awakened to the thoughts of my business and laid my head weary on my pillow with thoughts of it at the end of the day with little else gaining my attention in between.  I have done it for the life and growth of my business as well as the financial well-being of my family – and those two things are deeply entwined.

As I take each step I learn more about myself as well as what it takes to truly be a successful business owner.  Some of those lessons are harder learned than others and I wish I were less likely to fight change and the lessons and could embrace them quicker and learn from them much sooner.  I’m trying to do that more.  The latest lesson I learned is that competition can bring out the worse in a business owner.  It can bring out all kinds of emotions that have their roots embedded in nothing more than fear – fear that all they have gone through has been for naught and that there could be loss involved.  The greater the sacrifices to get to where they are or the longer the journey then the more likely the deeper the fear will be when facing competition.  No matter the emotion or behavior that surfaces  - the roots lie deep in fear and are fed by it.

For a long while I have let that fear, no matter how misplaced or misunderstood, bring out reactions, decisions, and stress that should have never been a part of my experienced behavior.  I never said I was a fast learner – only that I eventually do learn.  It is in this area that I saw the lesson more clearly and I did so just recently. 

When competition comes along I realize that it is the opportunity not to put energy into fighting it but in climbing to be better.  Competition should bring out the best in someone whether that is an athlete on the court or on the field and it should bring out the best of an entrepreneur when it comes to business.  It should make someone draw down deep past the fear and find that dream and dedication that set them on the path in the first place.  In the best of situations, businesses that compete for customers make each other better and those that are local businesses stand up together for the community.  There is a place for all of us and competition should bring out the best in a business and definitely not the worst of the business owner.

I got past the fear last week.  It took a few tears and some deep breaths and even deeper exhaling and then I got it.  I really got it.  I realized that there is always going to be competition and eventually a business has competition from the established businesses as well as the new ones coming to town.  It is a part of growth.  I also "got it" that this is my moment of growth to make sure that competition brings out the best in me and that it keeps me focused on what I truly want EBK Beauty to be for Jacksonville. 

Being a business owner involves more than the risks that are obvious such as financial, time, and sacrifice, it involves looking at where you need to change so you can offer the best of yourself and your business to those that are your customers now and in the future.  It was a hard lesson learned but I have embraced it and am not only a better business owner for it but a better woman as well. 

Here’s to me focusing even more on what I can do to make you and the world more confident and beautiful…

Let's Connect and Make the World More Beautiful and Confident

Are you planning to enter into the beauty industry?  Do you love hair and makeup and want to see if perhaps you have what it takes to be the next celebrity stylist?  Are you a veteran in the beauty industry and looking to add to your repertoire of skills to better serve your clients? 

One of the best parts of my job is sharing my knowledge, skills, and personally developed techniques with others.  It combines my love of teaching and helping others with my love of adding to the beauty of clients.  After I teach an individual or group how to do my personally developed technique of applying lash extensions or how to design and make a custom wig, I know that I have had a part in something big.  Nothing is more satisfying than seeing a person gain confidence – whether that person is a client or a student.

My classes have evolved over the years and I am confident in the direction that I have taken them.  I don’t have a long list of them – I offer what I know I can teach better than most others in the industry and I stick to those.  Technology has made it possible for me to teach some of my classes via Skype so my students don’t always have to travel to me.  It is a convenience that I have found people are very appreciative of and a money saver as well.  Who would have thought I would be in Jacksonville last week while teaching someone in Michigan?  It truly is amazing.

We launched this new site last week and I was so excited to have added my classes and workshops to a section of it.  It now widens the opportunity for others to learn about what has been in some aspects a “secret” in the industry – only someone that really, truly liked you and didn’t view you as a competitor would have shared that I had instructed them!  Now people can connect with me without the benefit of a referral – though I so love those referrals from students I’ve instructed!

If you are looking to add to your “toolbox” of beauty applications or to hit the floor running by starting out being one of the BEST then I can’t begin to express to you how you need to enroll in one of my classes!  Let’s connect – let’s make the world a little more confident and beautiful!

Summer Hair Styles to give you a Signature Look for Summer 2012

Summer hair styles are always the most fun and creative of all the season’s styles.  Though summer may not officially be here the weather outside definitely says that is has arrived full force.  Get a jump on the season and start experimenting with the style or styles that will be your signature look for Summer 2012!

Most important to any summer style is one that will keep the hair off of your neck as much as possible to keep you cooler and a style that can hold up to the added humidity in the air.  Immediately that can be achieved through pony tails and braids.  Being creative with the braids and the pony tail holders will give you a great summer look that is stylish and all your own.  It is also a great time to get creative with hair extensions.  Pony tails are perfect for added volume and length with hair extensions.  At EBK beauty we can offer our expertise in hair extensions and braiding to give you a one of a kind look that will fit your need to be stylish, cool in the heat, and your busy lifestyle. 

A cool summer hair style can also offer relief from the humidity ruining properties of summer weather.  Pony tails and braids can hold the style in place while the hair can be treated with a light application of humidity fighting hair treatment.  It will keep frizzes away and give you a polished look.

Whether you are walking down the aisle toward a new life, going in to work, out to dinner with friends, on a date with someone special, or curling up on the porch with a book to catch a cool evening breeze you can look great doing it with a new summer style.  If you’re stumped at how to do it, you want a new creative look, you want to try hair extensions, or you want a new summer look and a bit of relaxing pampering then we are here to serve you.  Come in sip a cold drink and relax while we take care of you and get you ready for summer!

A Dream Comes True as a Beauty Salon Business Takes Shape in Jacksonville

Jacksonville’s premier salon – it started as a dream and now is on its way to becoming exactly as I had pictured.  Starting a business is a risky but driven enterprise for me.  The road has been long and winding as it is for any entrepreneur but I have stayed focused with my eyes ahead on the distance ahead – at least I have made a grand effort to do so.  Through following a plan and taking each baby step toward the grand goal I now find myself with the salon open and now the launch of my Web site.  EBK Beauty has a home on the Internet – woo hoo!!! (Happy dance, happy dance)

My name is Kobe Ellis,  I am the owner of EBK Beauty and I am a makeup artist (MUA) with a passion for all things beauty and fashion.  While I don’t think that makeup and fashion are the only things that can make you beautiful – it can give you confidence.  There is nothing more beautiful than a woman or man standing tall and assured and happy in their own body.  Through my own skills and those of my staff I hope to offer services that are not only exceptional but that the experience itself will help you shed stress and find yourself taking a deep breath.  I want to know that you walked out having found a new focus on that person you see staring back at you in the mirror and the result will give you a better outlook on the day. 

I hope you will give me and my staff the opportunity to be your beauty and lifestyle salon.  Stay a while and browse through our site and the services we can provide.  Then come back often because we will be sharing specials frequently on our site and I hope to inspire and inform you through our EBK Beauty blog posts. 

I want to personally thank you for visiting us on the Web and I hope you will come and do so in person in the near the future at our salon.

Here’s to you looking good and feeling even better than you look!

Keep flying high,

Jacksonville's Premier LifeSTYLE Salon & Demi Spa

Welcome to the cyber home of EBK Beauty.  

We specialize in 3D Microblading for Eyebrows, Hair Weaves and Extensions, Eyelash Extensions, Skin Care, Threading, Body Waxing, Hair Styling, and Custom Wigs. We are well known for our expertise in creating hair replacements for men, women and children who are undergoing chemotherapy and /or suffering from other hair loss conditions. We provide our customers with unique "Look Good, Feel Good" services. 

 

EBK Beauty Professionals are interested in not only being your "go to" professionals for your styling and beauty needs but as a source to consult for your questions and inquiries. Assisting you with your lifestyle goals is a part of the EBK Beauty experience. Our professionals make sure they are on the cutting edge of all things beauty, fashion and overall whole body health. They seek to educate themselves on new products, techniques and trends. You can be assured you are in very capable hands, providing you with the tools to help you achieve a true "Look Good, Feel Good" enhancement, whether through our services or our highly screened and chosen retail products.

 

At EBK Beauty we cater to a multicultural clientèle. Our team of professionals will pamper you, cater to you and exceed your expectations. During your EBK Beauty experience, we invite you to sip a glass of wine, enjoy a warm cup of imported coffee, a chilled bottle of water or a cup of aromatic herbal tea.  For your convenience, we also offer complimentary Wi-Fi.  

We look forward to sharing the EBK Beauty experience with you and thank you for visiting our Web site! 

Kobe Ellis

Owner, EBK Beauty

 

Click here to meet the EBK Beauty Staff!