Dear Michelle,

Life is very unpredictable for you right now. Losing a job is never an easy pill to swallow, but many incredible milestones are on the horizon for you. Lean in your friendships and your family; they will provide the pillars of strength you need to get through this time.

Your dad is going to ask you to come work with him, you’re not going to want to, but do it. Soak up as much knowledge as you can about sourcing, formulations, how to run a business. You’ve looked up to him for so many years, treasure this time. The knowledge you gain in this next period of life is going to alter the trajectory of your career and your life’s work. 

Enjoy the Ayurvedic beauty rituals and traditions with your mom and grandmother now, relish in those weekly hair oiling rituals. Those memories will come in handy after you have your own gorgeous boys and start going through postpartum hair loss. You’ll develop a hair serum with a divine jasmine scent that people will fall in love with.

On beauty rituals, take the time to understand the why and how behind the turmeric face masks, the hair oiling, and the Ayurvedic teas. There will come a time when Ayurvedic beauty is mainstream, when South Asians will begin to dominate in media, entertainment, politics, and beauty, you’ll be a big part of this movement.

You’ll discover a love of sourcing ingredients, specifically incredible Ayurvedic botanicals like saffron, amla, manjistha, and bala. Embrace the knowledge of these ingredients now, they will serve the foundations for some of your most successful product launches.

Treasure the relationships you’re making from dancing. Those friendships will become the foundation for your growth, personally and professionally. Your warmth and openness to others will be your biggest strength in the future. This time now is temporary, you’ll get through it and you’ll look back one day and realize that getting let go was probably the best thing that ever happened to you.

Love,

Michelle