Skin Care, Self Advocacy, and Becoming Self Made with Tracy Rookard
Updated: Sep 6, 2022
Tracy Rookard is the definition of a go-getter and serial entrepreneur today, but her journey actually started with her service in the United States Army. Now a veteran and business owner, it was Tracy’s time in the army that taught her structure and how to stand up for herself. Tracy has taken the lessons she’s learned from all aspects of her life and has used them to build a successful beauty brand: The Naked Face. During our time together Tracy shared how she turns her creative ideas into burgeoning businesses, how she maintains peace, and of course how she cultivates confidence daily.
Fulfilling your own needs can lead you to your next big idea. Tracy built her skin and body care line, The Naked Face, from her desire to tackle her struggle with hyperpigmentation. After perfecting her formula she shared it with friends and family and eventually made a business out of it. So, if you’re looking for your next big idea, try starting from within.
If something is good for you, it should be good for all of you. I mean this both in a physical and mental sense. In Tracy’s case, she wanted to create a skincare product that was safe to use on both her face and body, and she did this successfully. In life, something that’s good for one part of us should be healthy for all of us, not okay for one facet of life and toxic in another.
To be successful, you want to build structure. Being grounded and having a sense of organization can help you keep your ideas in check. This is especially important for career and business. Having a plan and a method to the madness helps keep you focused, on track, and gives you clear milestones to look forward to. The key is to be ready so that you don’t have to get ready.
You have to learn your environment to thrive in your environment. The essence of you should never change, but in order to be successful in life you will need to learn to adapt to your environment. Tracy recalls learning this the hard way when she entered the army. At age 18, she entered a male-dominated field where she wasn’t respected or taken seriously. That changed when she learned how to take herself seriously and how to adapt to her new surroundings.
Your peace is yours to own. People won’t always be for you; in fact, people will talk about you and try to put you down. It’s up to you to cultivate your own confidence and advocate for yourself and your peace. Other people can only bother you if you let them.
Don’t let others talk you out of your dream. It’s easy to get discouraged when you aren’t getting the support that you need, or when you aren’t being recognized for the work that you’re doing. Keep going knowing that others won’t always validate you, but you’re on the right track if you’re living in purpose and doing what you need to do. March forward and don’t stop.
Just because someone else is doing it doesn’t mean you can’t do it too. Many aspiring entrepreneurs count themselves out before they even get started. Don’t let the fact that someone else is on the track you want to be on prevent you from pursuing your dream. There’s room for everyone. Not only that, but only you can do you. What you bring to the table is unique because you’re doing it and you’re putting your own special touch on it.
Failing to plan is planning to fail. Your plan is your guidance and is what keeps you in a proactive mindset. There’s nothing like having guidance and a sense of direction when the going gets tough. It would be great if life always went according to plan, but the fact is that things happen--there are disruptions and distractions that have the power to set you back. However, if you’ve already written out a blueprint for yourself, you have a way of staying focused and intentional about reaching your goals.
Your food is your fuel. Whether it’s actual food that you’re eating, the music that you’re listening to, or the people or circumstances you surround yourself with, you are feeding yourself with your environment. Be mindful of what you fuel yourself with--it has the power to build you up or break you down.
Confidence starts with you. As cliche as it sounds, you have to believe in yourself. Life won’t always be easy, and you won’t always know what lies ahead of you, but if you’re grounded and have faith in yourself you’ll have what you need to keep going. When you have a strong foundation, Debbie and Dan Downer don’t stand a chance. Know that you can do anything and proceed from there.
