Meet Tolu Adelaja | Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tolu Adelaja and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tolu, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I feel that fear is what stops a lot of us from taking risks, fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of the opinions of others, however, a lot of great opportunities come from simply taking a risk. A lot of success stories all started with one person taking a risk or a leap of faith. For me, I’ve operated from fear and complacency the majority of my life, and because of that I felt I was not living the life I had envisioned for myself, I was miserable going to work and even by the time I clocked out I was still so unhappy to know that I would have to wake up and do it all over again, I didn’t feel any sense of purpose in the job I was doing and one day after an unpleasant one-on-one with my manager, I had to make a decision and that was to either continue to stay at a job where I was overworked and underpaid and just complain about it, or really grab my life by the horns and start making changes. When I decided to resign, that was a huge risk I had to take knowing I would have to be ok with leaving behind a life of stability for uncertainty, now here I am 7 months later turning a hobby into a small business and doing an interview. It’s still unbelievable how God works when you move fear out of your way and take risks in life, the important thing is to keep God involved always and remember that even if something doesn’t work out as planned you can always say that you tried it and keep on moving forward. Failure is not the end it is simply a life lesson.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
The name of my business is Soulcology, it’s a wellness brand dedicated to self care. My products are handmade with natural and gentle ingredients. I think what makes my products unique is that there is always a message associated with it which I wanted to incorporate into all of my products to give my costumers daily reminders to enjoy life, take care of yourself, mind, body and soul while also being mindful of the things we put into and on our body. I’m most proud of my brand and how natural it came to me, I found something that I enjoy doing such as making candles and room sprays and curating signature scents that may be an unlikely pair or unique scent to some people but when they smell it the reaction is always “mmm omg! this really smells good!” that makes me feel like I’m doing something right. I think what really kicked off my journey into wellness was my first pregnancy, I had developed a golfball size lump on the side of my right breast and I also use to get really big painful cysts under my armpits. I had to go in for and ultrasound and mammogram at just 29 years old while being pregnant. They confirmed that the lump was benign but offered to do a biopsy, I declined and instead decided to throw out my deodorants, when I switched to natural deodorant the lump shrunk drastically overtime and never came back. I also drank a lot tea during and after my pregnancy, that snowballed into me becoming more mindful with the type of cleaning products and candles I was using in the house. A lot of our favorite products are so toxic and slowly making us sick, so I wanted to be intentional with what I create. This journey was not easy, it took a lot of time and a lot of my own investment and research, but me focusing on the bigger picture and asking myself “does this align with the life that I want for my future self?” that is what helped me to stay on track, it doesn’t necessarily get easier but it gets better and the challenges and overcoming them are the rewards for me. I was just out here making candles because I thought it was fun but then when I started getting feedback that is what made it real for me and made me realize I have to really study and do my research on anything that I’m putting my time and effort into. I’ve learned that feedback is what you make of it, if you look at it as something to hurt you or discourage you, you will quit, but if you use it as a tool and use it to perfect your craft your business or whatever it is you’re doing will grow to new heights. I’ve learned not to take things personal and to not be afraid to promote myself and my brand. I want the world to know, my story is like so many others, I’ve always felt like I was behind in life or like I didn’t do things in the traditional sense or societal norm, but the truth is, I just had my own path all along with a few roadblocks that I may have even contributed to putting in my life. Once I realized that my life is what I make out of it, I began to accomplish things that had been on my list of goals for years such as graduating from college, quitting a toxic work environment, becoming more hands on with my kids and also starting my own small business. I just want everyone to know that we only get this one life so let’s make it beautiful while we are here by nourishing our mind, body and soul and also taking a time out to simply enjoy life.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Houston is such a great city because it is a huge melting pot of different cultures. The Houston Museum of Fine Arts is somewhere I enjoy going, I also enjoy riding the Metro Rail and just exploring Downtown Houston without any plans or destination. Downtown has so many hidden gems and so much street art to stop and admire. I would definitely stop at Frank’s pizza to grab a slice on the go, but if I wanted to sit down and dine for brunch I would go to Lucille’s or Leeland House. The Heights is also a very cool eclectic area I like to visit especially for cool Vinyl shops, I like old records so going to those shops are always fun for me. I remember I found an old Fela album at one Vinyl shop in the Heights but I cannot remember the name! But it was such a rare find. Miyako has a great happy hour so I like to go there for drinks and Sushi. I also love going to Rice Bowl in Alief (the real rice bowl!) for some good Chinese food. I’ve been going to that place since I was a kid and have been loyal to it since. I recently discovered an adult arcade called Cidercade and it was so much fun, definitely a great hangout spot with drinks and food trucks. The Post downtown is such a cool food hall, I love what they’re doing with that place and if you’re a lover of food definitely check it out. I’m pretty simple, I’m not too big into the nightlife anymore but I enjoy food, art and music and sneakers and I feel like Houston embodies all of that for me. And for the culture and as a Houston staple everyone should visit FunPlex and hit the roller rink there.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would love to give a shoutout to my partner and father of my beautiful kids! Having a support system and someone that is on board for your vision is such a blessing, when I start to slow down or feel a little timid he definitely gives me a push which is needed for me at times. My mom and dad have also given me so much encouragement and just the simple “I’m so proud of you” which goes a long way having immigrant parents.

Website: https://soulcology.co

Instagram: officialsoulcology_

Twitter: Soulcology1

Other: TikTok: @Soulcology