Savis Davis Austin is a St. Louis and Los Angeles-based entrepreneur. Formerly a tattoo artist, Savis began styling hair as a creative outlet and as a personal hobby. As people gravitated towards her style and process, she created a business in styling hair and creating custom pieces for the likes of singers, movie sets, and celebrities. She even conjured up a custom hair piece design for WWE wrestler Sasha Banks, showing her skill in debuting a product worthy of being aired for WWE’s two million viewers and Sasha Banks’ 4.6 million Instagram followers.
When she puts the work away for the day, Savis is a full-time parent and wife. She and her husband Muhammad Austin, a music producer and hip-hop artist, are raising their one year old son, Moon. In the age of Corona, the two entrepreneurs find themselves grappling with the changes that come with switching their business from separate offices, to combining family and work life in one household.
Savis sat down to share details about her experience of being an entrepreneur, creating an impactful time-management system, and a few tips for other parents who want to find a balance in their household that accommodates family life with the demands of work.
Q: Hi Savis! Thanks for coming on board to talk about your experiences running your business while providing an efficient structure at home. In regards to running your business, what things changed after baby Moon was born?
A: Once I had Moon, my entire world shifted to being the best mom I could be. The hunger for my own better health got stronger. I want to watch him grow and be an example for him, and I want to become financially stable for him to make sure he has a brighter future than I did.
I was a businesswoman before he was born, but once he was here, I turned into someone I never thought I’d be. Legitimately, all my conversations consisted of building the business and taking meeting after meeting. I felt like my world completely revolved around this little being, and if I had to leave the house, I couldn’t afford not to take it seriously. I had to make sure I was focused at all times.
My business changed because I had that much more passion behind each style I’d create. An idea for expansion in my business had to be the best of the best.
Q: How do you keep yourself organized being an entrepreneur?
A: It’s not something that comes naturally. Muhammad (my husband) does this very naturally and it helps me structure my schedule in a similar way. Seriously, Muhammad is like my assistant, and when it comes to his business I’m his assistant.
After Moon was born I got a lot more serious about taking notes, about scheduling time for reading, for cleaning, for organizing things. I never really took notes; I used to keep everything in my head and depended solely on my memory and just kept moving. Since making these things a habit, clutter just stresses me out now. Overall, organization is still something I’m working on more. Right now my biggest way of staying organized is cleaning the house and making sure I can take a mental breath inside my space. As long as I can be mentally present and grounded, I feel organized.
Q: How has the family been managing in quarantine?
A: Very well, actually. We are always together and are definitely homebodies. So this is starting to almost feel pretty normal for us. Of course we have our occasional, ‘I want to rip your head off’ arguments, but other than that we’re good.
Q: How do you and your husband manage both being entrepreneurs in the same home during quarantine?
A: By keeping all things 70 percent business. Once business comes into play, we get along and can handle things efficiently and with organization. If we treat regular household things as if they’re business matters, I find that we’ll approach it with a similar organized approach.
On personal matters, Muhammad is such a funny guy. I sometimes like to get under his skin, but we balance each other out. I bring the childishness and he brings adulthood.
Q: Finally, what advice do you have for anyone who is curious about how to structure their busy day?
A: Breathe. If your mind isn’t properly organized or at peace, your work will show that. Always breathe, you have the time. That’s the only way you can move smart. A business owner can’t be scatter- brained and moving non-stop. Everything happens with divine timing. Not to say to be lazy or too lax of course, but definitely schedule five minutes to calm yourself and allow your energy and instincts to guide you.
Find out about personalized Executive Functioning coaching from The Chicago Family Tutor at: https://thechicagofamilytutor.com/services/executive-functioning-skills-for-adults/
Find out more about Savis’ business at: https://www.instagram.com/savisdavis/