A salon chair can be the most honest place in town. I am joined by Alisha Gordon, a longtime Ellensburg hairstylist and salon owner, to unpack what really happens when people sit down for “just a haircut” and end up sharing their whole lives. We talk about growing up with constant moves, how coming back to a small town helped her get steady, and why deep roots and familiar faces can change your trajectory when you’re headed down a rough path.
Alisha also tells the story of meeting Jason in high school and building a relationship that lasts through distance, uncertainty, and the messy early adult years. We get into her road toward cosmetology, including the wild alternate timeline where she could’ve gone to beauty school back east and worked around New York City productions. If you’re searching for real talk on marriage, community, and finding work you actually love, her perspective hits home.
Then we go deeper on what makes the beauty industry so personal: loyalty, trust, and the way stylists quietly become part therapist, part historian, part friend. Alisha shares what it means to serve clients through weddings, babies, hard days, and even hospice and funeral moments where helping someone “look like themselves” becomes an act of dignity and love. We also break down salon leadership, building a welcoming space, and why “Happiness is a choice” can be a daily practice, not a slogan.
If this conversation makes you think of your own people, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review. What’s one place or person that helps you feel seen?
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