CANDICE ROSE EASTMAN is an entrepreneur, digital creator, ‘Editor in Queen’ and founder of She Rose Magazine. Her passion lies in finding, connecting, and showcasing talented women scattered around the world of all walks of life and socioeconomic statuses, who have stories of turning their pain into the power to create the life of their dreams. Candice created She Rose Magazine in the midst of the pandemic, when she found herself like many people, reflecting on what was important to her. After a 20+ year career as a hairstylist, she sought a new purpose and realized her calling and passion came from inspiring others to find their inner power by pursuing their truest dreams. Candice wanted the creative freedom to host a platform that allowed opportunities for herself and other women to authentically share their creativity. She Rose is a project and publication that celebrates women of all kinds. It collaborates with women from all places, backgrounds, creeds, political views, income levels, colors, religions, sexual orientations, ages, and more. Each issue offers breathtaking artwork, inspiration, heart-warming stories, profound advice, captivating gifts, and timeless wisdom to its readers. Candice hopes to continue to support women who have dreams like hers and help them to connect with women who will be touched by their work. Find Candice on https://www.sherosemagazine.com/.
Welcome everybody, welcome to Spiritual Biz Chat for Spiritual Biz Magazine, and today we have joining us a spiritual entrepreneur and digital creator Candice Rose Eastman. Welcome, Candice, thank you for being with us, how are you doing today?
CANDICE ROSE EASTMAN: Great, thank you for having me!
It’s a pleasure to have you here, Candice! Could you share the story behind your personal journey down the path to your current life’s purpose and work?
CANDICE: Of course. In October 2020, I came to the realization that it was time for a change as I reflected on my longtime love of writing. I had a long and fruitful career as a hairstylist, getting to connect with countless amazing women along the way, and all the while, I dreamed of finding a way to celebrate the beauty and depths from within myself and so many women I had come to know. Many of us had worked tirelessly to overcome all sorts of odds and create lives we were truly proud of and fulfilled in, and so the thought of creating a magazine built from my own ideas along with the stories of many others, brought this dream to the forefront of my reality. I wanted to host a platform that was centered on creative freedom and allowed opportunities for myself and other women to authentically share their creativity. The goal was to find a way to connect talented women with audiences that would benefit from their work.
And so, this past summer, I took a risk and left my successful hairstyling career of over 20 years to fully pursue this new dream. When I first launched the magazine, I knew of the barrier that COVID created for small businesses, and especially those who push the envelope in terms of featuring content that expresses the authenticity of its contributors. The magazine is meant to be an authentic expression of the dreams our women contributors possess, which in many cases includes topics that aren’t always supported by mainstream culture. I knew that in order to take on this endeavor I would face potential challenges from various audiences, but I also have known in my heart that this magazine is my true calling, and so I have refused to waver in my mission to serve my fellow female creators. This past June, we released She Rose Magazine’s first issue “Dreams,” and I finally saw all my hard work and dreams manifest into a digital magazine.
The business of spiritual growth can be scary to some, especially when one is pulling all their strength together to quit their stable 9-to-5 job, invest in their spiritual gifts, and run their own business. And you bravely did just that in the middle of the pandemic! What are some ways to make that fear productive instead of allowing it to spiral out of control?
CANDICE: Fear isn’t a bad thing. In fact, nothing is a ‘bad’ thing from a true, spiritual perspective – it just IS. That being said, whenever I experience fear, I know that it is my sweet mind and body trying to protect me from something that it believes is harmful, or potentially harmful. Anytime it comes up, I know that’s where my work is – that’s where I am holding onto a belief that is not in flow. I am trying to grip to ideas about how things should work out, how things should be, which is then creating inner disturbance because life is a constant ever-changing flow. So, if I feel fearful, I slow down and direct my attention towards self-care to allow myself to become more conscious. Knowing from experience that when I move into something in a state of fear, I often make mistakes and even create less than desirable outcomes. Fear is my queue to be extra good to myself and allow my mind the time to open and see more clearly. Fear tends to cloud the mind and so I turn to meditation, yoga, burning incense, playing inspiring music, reading mindset and self-development books, or even taking a bath with candles and salts to clear my mind. This allows me to get centered and come back to a state of peace where my vibration is higher and in turn, so is my consciousness.
From there, I call on the lessons I’ve learned about how all things will pass, how the universe is never out of order nor am I ever anywhere than exactly where I am meant to be, about how I must have the patience to allow the seeds I plant to grow, focusing on ensuring they have the proper situation to grow in, and then I remember that having an attachment or expectation for a certain outcome will likely result in suffering for me. So, in reality, there are no “less than desirable outcomes” – there is only what is being made manifest in the divine moment. For me, fear is an indicator that my garden needs extra care.
All the careers that you introduced us to are full of creativity. So how does creative freedom inspire your daily work? And what was your creative process in starting She Rose Magazine, your new publishing project?
CANDICE: I want to feel like myself in a world that has programmed me to feel otherwise. Being free to express my true nature and sense of self is something I believe most of us long to feel, but with so much pressure from the world at large, we can often find ourselves not only unable to be authentic but sometimes unsure what that even looks like. Creating this publication was my way of sectioning a ‘space’ in the world where women are able to convene, to share, and to be inspired by one another to be reacquainted with their truest selves. We all have dreams that of course have come about through life experience, but so often they go to the wayside out of the necessity to fit in, to play it safe, and to just get by. Creative freedom for me is about being true to my truth – about knowing myself and what I truly want and having the courage to honor that, even if it doesn’t always align with everyone else. My goal on a daily basis is to listen to myself, to follow my intuition, and to find creative ways to express myself that don’t impact others in a negative way but instead, inspire them in positive ways.
My creative process for starting She Rose came out of that same philosophy. I have been a magazine collector my whole life, I grew up with artistic parents, and I have always been a lover of the arts. I have used my ideas from everything I love to create this magazine. I’ve thought long about the design and visual elements that I would love to see and from that, have created something that I’ve wanted to own. I was inspired by a dear friend to start the magazine and it came to me in what felt like a magically divine moment – out of nowhere it was like she had a message that had been waiting to be sparked inside me all along. From there it has been all about staying the course and honoring the flow of my creativity, despite encountering challenges from the outer world and even challenges within myself. From being told it won’t work to doubting it myself, I’ve had to continually remind myself to put my passion ahead of the noise.
In the current health and economic crisis, it may be a challenge sometimes to not let the stress from such crisis affect our enthusiasm to keep going, to keep thriving, to keep creating. Based on your own experience, could you share one or two strategies with those who are currently searching for much-needed inspiration?
CANDICE: Just like fear, I try not to view the crisis as a problem. Instead, I work to remove my judgment from it and even to find the silver lining in it. I have seen it as an opportunity as we advance in the digital world. People have been both separated and limited in terms of financial resources to have access to connect and enjoy art and wisdom due to the pandemic. But out of that has come opportunities – to be more focused on themselves, often forced to address issues that were easier to ignore before it all happened – to find new ways to connect and be creative. The pandemic provided the space for me to have the time to create this publication. Previously, my days were packed with work and family, so I was more limited in terms of being able to pursue what things I truly wanted to. So, the strategies I’ve used to keep the stress levels low and to stay focused, have first and foremost, to trust reality. It can be a hard one for people because it often feels unfair and far less than ideal, but that is always due to having judgments. As I shared before, having fixed ideas about how things should go and the way things are will often result in suffering, so it’s about trusting that there is a higher purpose for all of this and while it may not appear “good”, we find peace through it by accepting it and letting life flow.
Next and again, remembering that ‘this too shall pass’ like all things helps to calm the nerves some. Creating boundaries to protect my mental state has been paramount and so limiting the amount of fear and negativity that is unfortunately very present in the media has been a super important strategy. I create rules and limits for myself in terms of television, social media, and the internet, as I’ve learned that so often, I get triggered by things I see in those places. I’m not trying to avoid it, but rather limit it. Anything that doesn’t encourage me or fulfill me gets very little of my time and energy. In place of tuning into all that, I have become obsessed with finding women who are creating masterpieces of art and creativity, as well as teaching powerful lessons. I fill my mind with the beauty in our world that is hugely abundant if you go looking for it, but ultimately it takes discipline – you have to be willing to cut yourself off from the junk – whether it’s unhealthy food, habits, media, or people. Finally, I have made the practice of self-care and personal development my top priority. Instead of wasting my time worrying about all that could go wrong, I’ve dedicated it to making myself into the person that would successfully create and drive this sort of magazine. I have thought about what she would be like, how she would behave, what her life looks like, and then I’ve pushed myself to become her. I ROSE into my Editor In Queen Self.
What is your ultimate goal with your work? What is your mission? Your dream?
CANDICE: My goal is to sell over a million copies on every issue and promote the heck out of small businesses and women creators. I want to develop a network of women that all thrive and live out their dreams with the support of our millions of readers. I want to remind people that they have the ability to transform their pain into the power to create the life of their dreams.
Is there a final message you want to let our readers know? Or just any last little words that you have for them?
CANDICE: I know you have a dream so don’t give up on it even if it’s not possible to see it to completion yet. There is always something you can do right now to inch closer to it, and even the smallest efforts have impactful ripples. Our world was designed by people taking steps towards making their dreams real, and whatever your dreams may be, they were born in you for a divine reason. They wouldn’t exist if they weren’t important, and so it’s your job to honor them regardless of what happens in the world. They are meant for you and they are undoubtedly meant for others too.
Thank you, Candice, very much! It has been such a pleasure chatting with you today!
CANDICE: Thank you!
