If you follow along on social media, you may have seen that I recently signed on to be a consultant with Beautycounter. Yes. A consultant. Even as I type that a part of me cringes. A consultant? What? No. The other part of me shushes that voice and responds confidently. Yes. A consultant. A consultant for a really cool, socially responsible company that sells awesome products that my clients (and I!) use on the daily. 

But why the cringe and why the enthusiasm?

To be perfectly honest– and I know you wouldn’t have it any other way— I wasn’t initially attracted to the consultant job because I am a diehard Beautycounter fan. Sure I LOVE the product and that was definitely part of it— When I was pregnant with Edith, I became more aware of how my environment was impacting my (and her) health. It became increasingly clear that my make-up, moisturizer and skincare may have looked and smelled nice, but weren’t super safe. So I dumped out my makeup bag, traded in palettes and bottles for more natural alternatives, and sported some truly terrible looks in the name of health. Eventually, I stumbled upon BC, and never looked back. The products actually rated higher in safety and were of the same or better quality than the stuff I’d buy at Sephora. Finally, I could “put my face on,” feel like myself, and not stress if my lipstick or moisturizer got on the baby.  And if I was feeling this way, then I figured some of my clients would also benefit. 

All that being said… I NEVER EVER EVER wanted to get into direct sales. I have friends and family who absolutely ROCK at this work. They approach it with passion and vigor and own it all and I love that. But I’ve been pinned too many times by others trying to sell me on something that is, more often than not, too good to be true. Miracle shakes, miracle lipstick, miracle nails, miracle pants that work out for you (yes really)… the list goes on. 

The only miracle product I believe in is the Instant Pot

Anyway.

Point is: I don’t want to be “sold.” And if I don’t want to be sold, then I sure as shit don’t want my friends, my family, my clients to feel like they are being sold by me. 

I’m in the business of selling myself (Not like that. You know what I mean. Jerk). My brand is me. I am Sprout Wellness. We are a package deal. When you like a post on Instagram or attend a workshop or class, you are supporting Sprout, you are supporting me. THANKS, btw. 

So I was extremely hesitant to tie my name to someone else’s product in this way for fear that I would lose this brand integrity I’ve worked so hard to build, for fear I would alienate those who have had similar customer experiences with direct sales. 

I was actually asked by three separate people to consider becoming a consultant. I hemmed and hawed and deflected. And it wasn’t until I chatted with a fellow nutritionist that I very much respect, about how she integrated it with her business that I started to let my guard down about this particular subject. Sidenote: I absolutely respect those previous askers… I just wasn’t in the right frame of mind, nor did I have the right information. 

So how the hell did I go from NEVER EVER to Consultant?

A few things: 

The Products. If I’m going to recommend or sell something, it better be good. This goes for supplements, kitchen tools, classes— anything I recommend I believe in. Personally, I was tired of spending money on natural mascara, eyeliner and lipstick only to have it melt off, clump, flake or just smell weird. Can’t I have healthy products and not look like a raccoon with sunburned lips? (Sexy right?) Apparently yes. Beautycounter products are on par with your makeup counter products, sans the sketchy shit we are trying to avoid in the first place. 

The Social Mission. This was huge for me. Education and empowerment are at the heart of what I do with Sprout, and I appreciate seeing that reflected in Beautycounter’s social mission. Their mission is to get safer skincare into the hands of everyone. And they aren’t doing that just by selling product. They are consistently advocating for policy change, they are educating people on what ingredients may be harmful and where to find safer alternatives, they are supporting organizations like Environmental Working Group and Healthy Child Healthy World that focus on protecting public health through research and accessible programming. Basically, they are doing cool shit.

The Business. Yes. I am on a team and there are levels to this team. It also happens to be a team of incredibly supportive, smart, and powerful women. I have yet to (and doubt I ever will) feel pressured to hit a certain sales target or to push BC or to recruit, recruit, recruit. I have the tools and support to do all that and I will if I feel called to. But I am free to treat this as an affiliate relationship (which means my sales may be considerably lower), rather than a full time hustle. Also, there isn’t a non-compete agreement. So if I think there’s a better product from a different company, I can (and will) recommend it. So it works for where I’m at in my business, in my life. 

The Financial Freedom. It feels weird saying “the money,” but I won’t lie and I won’t apologize for this one.  I’m a small business owner. I am a staff of one. Which means I am my marketing department, my accountant, my manager, my admin, and I am still responsible for creating content, seeing clients, writing new programs and more. Which I love! But in order to really sustain my life, my family, and keep my rates in a range that my beautiful clients can afford, I have to have a secondary income. And if I want time to work on projects and offer free classes and free content, I need that secondary income to be somewhat passive. And because again, I am in the business of selling myself (still not a hooker), that passive income needs to be in line with my brand and it’s core values. I could make a lot of money pushing supplements or diet pills or miracle pants that workout for you, but I don’t and I won’t… 

So what can you expect from me?

I’ll tell it like it is.  For example. The mascara? Amazing. I love it. It doesn’t smudge, even during a super sweaty workout. But also IT DOESNT SMUDGE– i.e. it’s a bear to take off. So what’s a woman to do? Buy the super expensive (I’m budget conscious if you can’t tell) makeup remover? You can. It’s great and probably worth every penny. But you could also just use coconut oil. Buy a 64oz jar of it from Costco for 1/2 the price of the makeup remover. 

And as always, I’ll continue the same commitment to core values of education and empowerment. If I think you should buy (or shouldn’t buy) or do (or don’t do) something, I’ll give you the why so you can make your own call— just like I do with food or supplements or workouts. It’s of little use if you don’t know why! 

I’m excited to see where this will lead!
Will I invite you to socials to try product? Yup. Because it’s fun… #wine and #freesamples.
Do I expect you to buy all the things, all the time? Never. 
Will I share the business opportunity associated with being a consultant? If I think you’d be interested and it’d be a good fit!
Will I be offended and push it if you say no thanks? Absolutely not.

So that’s where I’m at. This will be an interesting road to travel… come along for the ride?