I am Petula Skeete, an Emmy-award winning hairstylist and mother of two. I’m also the force behind Uplifting You Inc., #beautyFULL and Motivational Mondays.
It started with a DREAM when I was about six years old.

I wanted to be validated by my peers at that tender age because society said that I was too tall, too black, my feet were too big. I had too much of everything, still not enough of anything. I was constantly trying to figure out how to become beautiful, how to be a pretty girl, how to be someone who the world said I was not.

I was so obsessed that I was robbed of my childhood.

I wanted to purchase beauty. In my mind that would mean bleaching my skin a shade or two lighter and having bone-straight hair. I figured the best route to take was through beauty school. However, what started out as a search for beauty, turned into a roadmap that led to an amazing career in the beauty field.

After working in salons for about eight years, I was ready to move to the next level. I wanted to work with celebrities. I got the idea after watching a pretty, young anchor reading the news. I told myself that I could do her hair and customize a look that is perfect for her. Fear told me that I was not a candidate to be a celebrity hairstylist, so I decided to stay in my lane.

Two years later I got the opportunity to work with a celebrity hairstylist who asked me to assist her with one of her famous clients, but the client’s name didn’t ring a bell. That was before social media, so I had to wait to see her on television the next day.

When I saw who it was, I said to myself, “Look at God.” It was the same woman that fear had told me was out of my league. It was none other than Robin Roberts of Good Morning America. I am now her platinum American Express Card. She does not leave home without me. When preparation meets opportunity, you have success.

It took more than 10 years to turn this DREAM into a reality due to blurred vision. In spite of the long journey, I am thankful for the outcome because I learned lots of lessons along the way that is allowing me to share as I mature gracefully. It doesn’t have to take you a decade to turn your DREAM into a vision and your vision into reality. You just need to invest 20 minutes a day for 20 days, yes 20 days to ignite your vision.

So, let’s take ACTION.