March 28, 2024

INFO 10

THE TRUTH IN BLACK AND WHITE

Xianne Munroe has turned her lemons into lemonades

  • by becoming an entrepreneur after being fired

By Vanessa Braithwaite-Moore

Cosmetologist Xianne Munroe

Many persons, when life hits a bad patch, they would become victims of anxiety and depression, which is quite justifiable, since everyone deals with setbacks and disappointments differently. Xianne Munroe however, a young 24-year-old woman who was raised in Linden, has decided that she will not become another statistic. The first few years after completing High School, was rough for the young Munroe but she never lost hope. After graduating from Mackenzie High School, Xianne applied to universities to pursue a career in medicine but never got called. She used the time waiting, working in her family’s grocery store, where she would get a weekly allowance. “My parents and I never got a call from any of the universities, so I thought that I was in the percentage of students that didn’t get picked so I wished my other friends well that were called to start and I continued to work with my parents,” she relayed to INFO 10.

After three years of working there, Xianne yearned for more and left Linden for greener pastures in the city.
That move however, did not iron things out for the young woman immediately, since she was flooded with rejection letters. Not wanting to be dependent anymore, she got her first job as a sales girl. She reasoned that maybe she needed to make herself more qualifiable for the jobs she was applying for and started a course and Global Technology. The silver lining suddenly appeared for Xianne, when she landed a job as an accountant cashier at Woodlands Hospital. “It was almost three years after when I quit my job at Woodlands because of the work load and I wasn’t being able to do my work to the best of my ability so I left(among other reasons).” With a lot of free times on her hands again, Xianne decided to pursue an Eyelash Extension course with Cosmetologist Setra Oselmo, but was called to start working as an accountant at the Bertram Collins College of the Public Service. She was so busy with her new job that she had to put the course on hold.
“Working in the government system was great, I wasn’t overworked even though I had a lot of responsibilities but I had a great boss to guide me through it. My job also sent me to do a mini course at the University of Guyana, under the National Data Management Authority (Centre for Excellence in Information Technology) where I obtained a certificate course in Information Technology with a Grade A. I was working and attending classes so I had limited time for myself,” she related.
After the change in government however, Xianne said things got different at work but she along with her colleagues, tried to remain hopeful. All hopes were crashed in February 2021, when everyone received their termination letters. “I was told we can reapply, so I sent around my CV and was called to start working on a project that the present government started, I attended meetings and started to help around and two weeks after, I was told to pack my stuff and not to come back until they have a contract for me to sign and when I heard that, I already knew cause they were interviewing others to start working. I felt so used in the moment, I cried and I went home,” the emotional Monroe related.
Being the fighter she is however, the young woman decided to activate the adage, “a woman only falls if she wants to,” and decided it was time to make lemons out of her lemonades. A few months after, Xianne completed her Lash Extension Course and is on the verge of being one of the most sought after, in that field of cosmetology. “This inspired me to start my own eyelash extension business and it’s something I always love, I model part time, so the make up and everything that come with it excite me so I completed my course and the money I had in the bank, I invested it into my business,” she said.

Xianne Munroe posing with her certificate

With the help from her facilitator whom she said also contributed tangibly to her business, Xianne got the ball rolling almost immediately. She already made her logo and activated a business page and already received a few clients. “My course took four weeks I had practical sessions and an exam. And I would say it’s mostly Setra Oselmo who pushed me to become my own boss, she would tell me you can never go wrong there and she is a successful business woman, so I took her advice.” Presently, Xianne’s studio is located in Georgetown. While her focus is in lash extension, Xianne said she does have plans to extend her skills and services to include other aspects of cosmetology. “I see myself as a very successful cosmetologist in the next five years, I just need to keep focus and continue to do a great job.” Xianne also sells accessories and has an online accessory store.

One of the Xianne’s clients showcasing their lash extensions


The budding cosmetologist and entrepreneur, encouraged youths who would have experienced disappointments in the world of work, to take disappointments and transform them into success. “Never ever give up, when one door closes, another will open. It might not be as soon as you want it to be but just be patient follow your dreams, stop procrastinating and start! You have to start somewhere. We were taught to go to school, do well and get a job, collect a paycheck which makes us an employee and most of us are stuck in jobs we don’t even like, we’re just there to get paid at the end of the month to survive. I’m not saying to leave your jobs but come out of your comfort zone and do what you love, invest in your self and start your business!”