“I’m just a Mom, Dreaming BIG.”
Written By: Ashley Stiernagle
If you had told me four years ago that today I would be standing here, in front of a car awarded to me by two world-renown dermatologists because of my growing skincare business, I KNOW that I would have laughed you out of the room. Seriously. And yet here I am...beyond blown away, SOOO elated, humbled, and in awe over an achievement that is NOT about me, not for one second. This is a celebration of EPIC teamwork…a milestone made possible by a team of passionate women, men, stay-at-home-moms, best friends, family members, successful and driven individuals who ROCK their day jobs, nannies, college students, military spouses, retirees….who each wanted something MORE, who dream BIG…because they want big things to happen! BUT, what you may NOT know is that most of these incredible dreamers also probably laughed at AND shut DOWN a precious friend when they were initially approached about Rodan + Fields.
Yep. I did that. I was the super supportive friend who called my friend “crazy” and told her that “there was no way in H-E-Double Hockey sticks that I was doing a business like this.” WHOOPS. Huge regrets now, but Lord help me, I KNEW that I wasn’t a salesperson, and the words “direct sales” were enough for me to say “this absolutely 100% is NOT my thing” before I ran for the hills. And I ran. For a year and half. But here’s the thing: I’m so thankful that the Lord has a sense of humor…because He had me watch not one, not two, but SEVERAL of my close friends decide to take a leap and join my friend in her Rodan + Fields business (I honestly had no clue what they were thinking at the time). They were all young moms, all cool, NOT sales people…they were MY people! And I watched as they each began to create something that afforded them freedom. Freedom socially, freedom financially, and beyond that, they were creating something for themselves. Something that I found SO attractive and began to crave. I’ve always known that I wanted to be a mom first and foremost, but if you know me, you KNOW that I love people. I’m not and never will be a “salesperson,” but I do LOVE people and am passionate about relationships. I had been watching on the sidelines for a year and half when one of my closest friends came to me and told me that I needed to consider R+F because it would fill my cup in this way. She told me i would be successful because “Ash, you care about PEOPLE.” And when she said that, I knew that I was willing to take the risk, to jump into something I had no experience in, knowing that I wasn’t doing it alone, and confident that I was going to have the opportunity to change lives.
You’ve probably seen a fair share of transformative before and after pictures (because our products work), and if you know me, you’ve heard me rave about my precious team, without whom I would NOT be where I am in my business. You may have seen posts on social media about our empowering and unique culture, because it truly is a culture unlike any other I have experienced in my corporate career. In the last 4 years, I have been blessed with incredible friends who have come into my life because of R+F and have left an indelible impression upon my heart. This journey has been one of the most refining and rewarding of my life, and this is WHY I am SO privileged, humbled, and EXCITED to share it with others. I have people ask me all the time: “Ash, how do you do it all?? How do you spend 2 hours a day commuting to/from a school you’re actively involved in, teach yoga, invest in friendships, run a house with a husband who’s gone often, AND build this amazing, thriving business where you’ve just gotten a LEXUS??” Well, those who really know me are already laughing, because you know my life is beautiful, messy CHAOS. It’s not perfect. I’m NOT supermom or superwoman, and I need a WHOLE lotta Jesus….but here’s the deal: I love what I do with R+F and everything else because I love people, and because of that, R+F is SO MUCH MORE than a “job” for me. I never saw myself as one of the top 1% in the company…I never thought that I would be a leader to a team of over 400 men and women…and Chris can tell you that I ABSOLUTELY did not ever imagine myself receiving a free CAR!
But this is what makes this story worth telling. I’m nothing special. I’m a girl who decided to join one of her best friends in a venture because I wanted to help people feel beautiful, look younger, and help send our kids to Christian school. My success in this business is testimony to the fact that passion is contagious, because there are SO MANY PEOPLE on my team who are next in line to receive shiny wheels of their own! Lives are being changed in REMARKABLE ways, and I’m just so incredibly honored to work with people I adore, and be a small part of so many peoples’ stories. One of my precious team members told a story this week and really just said it perfectly. She said: “Rodan and Fields is different… It’s empowering, life-changing, relationship building, goal-setting, and for the team I’m on, for a lot of us, it’s a spiritual journey. It’s an outlet to develop skills, and be a boss doing it.”
So, if you’re at home in the trenches of motherhood and miss social interaction with those older than 3, or if you have a job that requires you to leave your heart at home during the day, or you LOVE your job and just see the promise of this globally expanding billion dollar brand, OR perhaps you and your partner are dreaming BIG and just need some extra income to make things happen….Whatever life looks like for you, this opportunity can enrich your life in COUNTLESS ways.
If you’ve hung on through this novel of a blog post, this is for you: Our team has big plans for 2017…we are dreaming BIG dreams. Maybe you’ve already laughed at me and ran once already.…you wouldn’t be the first or the last, BUT if you’ve been curious, watching, waiting, yearning for something more…now is the TIME, and I promise it is worth it. This is a business that can fulfill you and a team that will support you every step of the way! #togetherwerise
Yep. I did that. I was the super supportive friend who called my friend “crazy” and told her that “there was no way in H-E-Double Hockey sticks that I was doing a business like this.” WHOOPS. Huge regrets now, but Lord help me, I KNEW that I wasn’t a salesperson, and the words “direct sales” were enough for me to say “this absolutely 100% is NOT my thing” before I ran for the hills. And I ran. For a year and half. But here’s the thing: I’m so thankful that the Lord has a sense of humor…because He had me watch not one, not two, but SEVERAL of my close friends decide to take a leap and join my friend in her Rodan + Fields business (I honestly had no clue what they were thinking at the time). They were all young moms, all cool, NOT sales people…they were MY people! And I watched as they each began to create something that afforded them freedom. Freedom socially, freedom financially, and beyond that, they were creating something for themselves. Something that I found SO attractive and began to crave. I’ve always known that I wanted to be a mom first and foremost, but if you know me, you KNOW that I love people. I’m not and never will be a “salesperson,” but I do LOVE people and am passionate about relationships. I had been watching on the sidelines for a year and half when one of my closest friends came to me and told me that I needed to consider R+F because it would fill my cup in this way. She told me i would be successful because “Ash, you care about PEOPLE.” And when she said that, I knew that I was willing to take the risk, to jump into something I had no experience in, knowing that I wasn’t doing it alone, and confident that I was going to have the opportunity to change lives.
You’ve probably seen a fair share of transformative before and after pictures (because our products work), and if you know me, you’ve heard me rave about my precious team, without whom I would NOT be where I am in my business. You may have seen posts on social media about our empowering and unique culture, because it truly is a culture unlike any other I have experienced in my corporate career. In the last 4 years, I have been blessed with incredible friends who have come into my life because of R+F and have left an indelible impression upon my heart. This journey has been one of the most refining and rewarding of my life, and this is WHY I am SO privileged, humbled, and EXCITED to share it with others. I have people ask me all the time: “Ash, how do you do it all?? How do you spend 2 hours a day commuting to/from a school you’re actively involved in, teach yoga, invest in friendships, run a house with a husband who’s gone often, AND build this amazing, thriving business where you’ve just gotten a LEXUS??” Well, those who really know me are already laughing, because you know my life is beautiful, messy CHAOS. It’s not perfect. I’m NOT supermom or superwoman, and I need a WHOLE lotta Jesus….but here’s the deal: I love what I do with R+F and everything else because I love people, and because of that, R+F is SO MUCH MORE than a “job” for me. I never saw myself as one of the top 1% in the company…I never thought that I would be a leader to a team of over 400 men and women…and Chris can tell you that I ABSOLUTELY did not ever imagine myself receiving a free CAR!
But this is what makes this story worth telling. I’m nothing special. I’m a girl who decided to join one of her best friends in a venture because I wanted to help people feel beautiful, look younger, and help send our kids to Christian school. My success in this business is testimony to the fact that passion is contagious, because there are SO MANY PEOPLE on my team who are next in line to receive shiny wheels of their own! Lives are being changed in REMARKABLE ways, and I’m just so incredibly honored to work with people I adore, and be a small part of so many peoples’ stories. One of my precious team members told a story this week and really just said it perfectly. She said: “Rodan and Fields is different… It’s empowering, life-changing, relationship building, goal-setting, and for the team I’m on, for a lot of us, it’s a spiritual journey. It’s an outlet to develop skills, and be a boss doing it.”
So, if you’re at home in the trenches of motherhood and miss social interaction with those older than 3, or if you have a job that requires you to leave your heart at home during the day, or you LOVE your job and just see the promise of this globally expanding billion dollar brand, OR perhaps you and your partner are dreaming BIG and just need some extra income to make things happen….Whatever life looks like for you, this opportunity can enrich your life in COUNTLESS ways.
If you’ve hung on through this novel of a blog post, this is for you: Our team has big plans for 2017…we are dreaming BIG dreams. Maybe you’ve already laughed at me and ran once already.…you wouldn’t be the first or the last, BUT if you’ve been curious, watching, waiting, yearning for something more…now is the TIME, and I promise it is worth it. This is a business that can fulfill you and a team that will support you every step of the way! #togetherwerise
How I Met The Author
I was blessed to meet Ashley when our sons where in Pre-school and Kindergarten together. The only way that I can describe Ashley is with her own words.. SHE LOVES PEOPLE. I can only imagine that she was the girl in middle school that invited the new kids to have lunch with her..."here, you CAN sit with us". In the short 3 years that I have known Ashley, she has taught me to live passionately and truly enjoy the life that God has blessed us with. From her date night and recitals posts to updates on the kids' lemonade stand and her R+F successes, Ashley celebrates it all. God knew what he was doing when he made a way for our paths to cross because... People that love People are my kind of People! Love Ya Ash!
Ashley lives in Geneva, IL with her Beloved husband Chris, and their two amazing children.
**This is my unique story; for info regarding typical results click here.**