Why Independence Day is the Perfect Launch Day
This Is Me
I’d much rather talk about skin care, but we’ll get to that…
Happy Independence Day! I’m celebrating the launch of Aging With Confidence on this day, because it just feels right. I’ve never felt more independent than I feel right now in my life, so Independence Day holds special meaning (and I mean, there’s already fireworks and festivities so why not pretend they’re also for the kick off of my Substack).
This is me. If this were my Linked In profile, it would say something like this:
Leah Rae Yawn is a seasoned medical esthetician, beauty industry expert, and entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience. Leah is the founder of Skin By Leah, a thriving skincare brand dedicated to providing expert skin treatments, high-quality products, and personalized care. Beyond her business, she is a passionate mentor, guiding aspiring aestheticians to build successful careers through education, empowerment, and hands-on training.
But since this is Substack, I think you want to know WHO I am more than the resume points.
I don’t like talking about myself. I’d much rather talk about skin care. So, I delegated this part of the “about me” section to my family, friends and longtime clients.
Here’s how they described me: authentic, compassionate, trusted authority in skincare, mentor, kind, honest, encouraging, resilient, integrity, elegant, positive, deep, generous.
(Awe. I should start a Substack every day to get this kind of incredible feedback from my tribe. So nice!)
Of all these traits they were so kind to bestow on me, resilience and integrity really resonate the most with me. I’ve navigated the challenges of business partnerships, redefining my brand with ethical principles, rebuilding after a tough lesson on collaboration and regrouping to nurture my music career after losing a record contract.
It’s been a journey – one marked with unexpected plot twists – that has led to me finally feeling completely comfortable in my own skin. At now at 51, I’m peeling back the layers of my long career as a medical esthetician, entrepreneur and beauty industry expert to share REAL, down-to-earth and attainable advice on treatments, products and techniques that work.
This industry has always been there for me – I really think it saved me in many ways. In my 20s, it supplemented my aspiring music career. In my 30s, it allowed me to be a present Mom to my growing daughter. In my 40s, it helped me find confidence and purpose as I navigated a divorce and losing my Dad to Covid.
In my 50s, I achieved my longtime goal of creating my own skin product. But my true career focus for this new chapter is to give back to this industry that I love by mentoring the next generation Good, meaningful mentorship in this field is hard to find (IMHO). For any of you starting out in this industry (or really, any in any business the same hard-learned lessons and mistakes still apply) - think of me as your entrepreneurial fairy godmother.
I’m not gate keeping here at Aging With Confidence –in this space I’m going to shine a light on being literally comfortable in your own skin. And also – theoretically.
One of the biggest plot twists in my life is that in 2018 6 years ago, I met and fell in love with a woman. An amazing, successful, strong, gorgeous spitfire of a woman who just happens to be on a hugely popular reality TV show with millions of viewers around the world. When I married Captain Sandy Yawn of Bravo’s Below Deck, I became part of the fascinating world of reality-TV culture and I’m not keeping all that under wraps, either. Prepare to learn about our relationship, how it effectively ended my gospel music career and how I rebuilt a beautiful life with my soulmate.
So what’s this Substack all about?
1. Aging With Confidence - The Origin Story
Over the last 30 years of working in skin care, I’ve noticed a pattern with my female clients. If I tell a client something like “you look nice today” or “your eyes are so beautiful” or “love your new haircut” the response (nearly 100% of the time) goes something like “oh no way, I don’t even have make up on” and “if I didn’t have all these little lines around them” and “I’m just trying something different”.
Why can’t these women believe these compliments? Why are so many of us not comfortable accepting them?
I feel compelled to help other women feel absolutely comfortable in their skin — especially those close to my age and stage in life. And I needed a bigger platform than my cozy skin studio. So here we are! It’s my goal with this Substack to use it as a megaphone to share my journey of love, entrepreneurship and personal growth so that it empowers you to discover and embrace your true beauty and to pursue your dreams with confidence.
2. No Gatekeeping Here.
Aging With Confidence keeps it very real. Absolutely no gatekeeping here. I’m sharing with you the most effective ways to handle skin issues; my honest opinion on skin and beauty trends filling up your timelines; and musings about business ownership, relationships and living life with the captain of a ship.
3. Here’s A Sneak Peek.
Here’s what the Aging With Confidence looks like:
Real Clients + Real Skin Issues. Lots of “before” and “after” pics of my real clients with real skin issues, with details on what transformative treatments they received, and how to determine what’s right with you
Blame It On The Algorithm So many of us get served up endless content about beauty trends stuff like snail mucin, at home laser treatments or gua sha rollers? Get my hot takes on the trends du jour – I’ll let you if it’s worth it or what to try instead
Confidence Boosts In every issue, discover messages to help you see the beauty in yourself and inspire you to see beauty in those around you
What Goes Down in my DMs – Want to know what I get asked about the most? You’d be surprised. I’ll share the questions I always get asked plus my answers (and even some of the craziest ones I get)
BTS with Captain Sandy. Aging With Confidence readers get exclusive behind-the-scenes views of my life with my wife Captain Sandy Yawn – from Below Deck, exploring the world, adventures with family, living life on the Florida coast and more.
