Purpose Before Profit: Masha Amelina Of MesoLyft On The Benefits Of Running A Purpose-Driven Business
An Interview With Chad Silverstein
…Find your passion and niche. When you do something you truly love and you are great at it, it stops feeling like work, it feels more like play. Everything comes easier when you play and avoid stress…
In today’s competitive business landscape, the race for profits often takes center stage. However, there are some leaders who also prioritize a mission-driven purpose. They use their business to make a positive social impact and recognize that success isn’t only about making money. In this interview series, we are talking with some of these distinct leaders and I had the pleasure of interviewing Masha Amelina.
Having fulfilled her dream of being a Reconstructive Surgery PA at Boston Medical Center and learning everything about skin healing, Masha founded her own cosmetic injectable practice, Visage Sculpture, where she listened to her clients’ multiple complaints about skin issues. She knew there is a natural effective solution to each issue. Fueled by her passion for beauty and science, Masha has created MesoLyft Microneedling Skincare to make people look and feel better.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us your “Origin Story”? Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I’m honored to be included into your roster of people who create positive social impact, thank you for having me! I grew up in a happy family of Physicians in Russia. My grandmother, who is now 100 years old, was a Primary Care Physician who also practiced natural and herbal medicine. She taught me many things as a kid walking in the forest and collecting herbs. My Father was a General Surgeon and being only 8 years old I remember looking through his Surgical Atlas and finding a chapter on Reconstructive Surgery. I was fascinated to learn that you can take a cartilage from the ear and make a new nose with it and back then I decided that this is what I want to do when I grow up.
I came to study in the United States when I was 17 and I was planning to be a plastic surgeon. I’ve met my now ex husband then and was happily married for almost 20 years with two beautiful children who also follow my passion for beauty and medicine in a way.
I ended up becoming a Physician Assistant to maintain balance between family and work. I did get the job of my dreams right out of Graduate School at the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Boston Medical Center and after working there for four years I have started my own injectable business, a med spa named Visage Sculpture, where my main focus (you’re not going to believe it!) is Non-Surgical Rhinoplasties (adding filler to erase nose bumps, lift tips, make dorsum thinner). So my dream of reshaping noses came true in the most unexpected ways! MesoLyft Microneedling Skincare was born out of love for helping people, making potions with natural remedies, and knowing how healing of the skin works.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
The most interesting to me is hearing from people on how it helped their confidence, both MesoLyft and injections. It is so heartwarming to be able to make someone’s life better!
I guess the most interesting story would be me convincing MTD, a micro molding plant that makes medical devices and only works with big companies, to work with me. I called and emailed every few days for about three months until I was granted a meeting with all the engineers and a salesperson. After proving that I can fund the project myself I got green light to created my one-of-a-kind microneedling applicator for MesoLyft skincare. I own several USA and International patents for design and utility of my invention!
We often learn the most from our mistakes. Can you share one that you made that turned out to be one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned?
In life in general the biggest mistake I made is not listening to my intuition (and my parents!). If you are in tune with your body and soul, they tell you everything about a person or a situation in front of you. I have learned to trust myself more and to love myself so much I make the right choices that benefit me and my family.
Another lesson learned, especially with MesoLyft, is finding the right people in time to accommodate growth and get advice, as well as investments. You want to have a team and not to feel alone!
As a successful leader, it’s clear that you uphold strong core values. I’m curious what are the most important principles you firmly stand by and refuse to compromise on. Can you share a few of them and explain why they hold such significance for you in your work and life?
- Treat others the way you want to be treated. We are all one, everything you do to a person in front of you will be returned to you triple in time. These principles worked incredibly well in my business. I often talk people out of unnecessary procedures or wrong choices to continue looking natural and that’s why we are booked six months ahead!
- Money is a concept, and everything is energy. If you do something you love and you are good at it, and you sincerely do your best by people, you are destined for success. Don’t focus on money, focus on value you bring to people and essentially to the World. Money will follow.
What inspired you to start a purpose-driven business rather than a traditional for-profit enterprise? Can you share a personal story or experience that led you to prioritize social impact in your business?
I have always been that annoying customer who read all the labels of skincare, salespeople rolled their eyes at me! Skin absorbs chemicals and they add to cancer and hormonal disruptions, it has been a proven fact. I wanted to create a skincare line free of toxic chemicals, but I wanted it to be very scientific and actually bring forth results and fast. I wanted to use it myself first, and then I wanted to give people something valuable at a reasonable price.
Can you help articulate a few of the benefits of leading a purpose-driven business rather than a standard “plain vanilla” business?
When the intention behind your actions is to create something that gives people more value than what they paid for and you sleep well at night knowing that you really gave people the best product or service, that’s a purpose-driven business in my opinion.
How has your company’s mission or purpose affected its overall success? Can you explain the methods or metrics you use to evaluate the impact of this purpose-driven strategy on your organization?
I measure success by amount of returning customers and their raving reviews and recommendations to their friends and relatives, and thank God, we have many!
Can you share a pivotal moment when you realized that leading your purpose-driven company was actually making a significant impact? Can you share a specific example or story that deeply resonated with you personally?
I have many examples of people telling me tearfully how they used to be so embarrassed of their skin, whether it’s acne or pigmentation, or large pores, or dry scabbing lips; and now that MesoLyft helped them solve their skin issues they are so confident in the daylight without a stitch of makeup. It resonates with me deeply because I myself had all of those issues and there’s nothing more beautiful in person than that skin glow and confidence!
Have you ever faced a situation where your commitment to your purpose and creating a positive social impact clashed with the profitability in your business? Have you ever been challenged by anyone on your team or have to make a tough decision that had a significant impact on finances? If so, how did you address and reconcile this conflict?
Great question! I probably could have reached the finish line sooner with more financial riches if only I wasn’t so adamant about the cleanest ingredients, the most honest photographs that are never photoshopped, the most honest copy that never overpromises. It is what it is, I made my choices and I certainly sleep well at night! I did find the investor, however, that has the same values as I do, so when the time comes I know I will not be pressured to compromise MesoLyft’s clean precious formulas.
What advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs who wish to start a purpose-driven business?
Take time off, connect with nature and yourself, find your true purpose, see what resonates and makes you happy the most and see how you can make people’s lives better. That’s going to be your answer.
What are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Purpose-Driven Business.” If you can, please share a story or example for each.
1 . Find your passion and niche. When you do something you truly love and you are great at it, it stops feeling like work, it feels more like play. Everything comes easier when you play and avoid stress.
2 . Have a good business plan to accommodate growth and don’t rush. I took a loan for Research and Development of MesoLyft and my mistake was placing a big first order. Without having sales channels in place it’s was a huge undertaking, lesson learned.
3 . Find great team members who have your back and help you grow.
4 . Find the right investors. I sponsored MesoLyft completely myself, took a loan, and with the money my injectable business made, paid it off. I was afraid that they will pressure me into using bad or toxic ingredients or doing anything that I am not comfortable with and being authentic is so important to me. I found out that you can find people with similar eth8ics and values who will support you.
5 . Find the balance between work and play. It is so important to recharge batteries and reserve time for recreation! Before giving to the world you have to give to yourself! I used to work too much and my body responded in a bad way, with injuries or pain. The more you nurture yourself, the more the world around you nurtures you.
I’m interested in how you instill a strong sense of connection with your team. How do you nurture a culture where everyone feels connected to your mission? Could you share an example or story that showcases how your purpose has positively influenced or motivated people on your team to contribute?
I think it starts with choosing the right people to begin with, people who share the same values and ideals, and really listening to them. They often see things at a different angle, so their opinion really matters. I also love sharing food. Food is love. I think that when you love and take care of your team, it takes care of you.
Imagine we’re sitting down together two years from now, looking back at your company’s last 24 months. What specific accomplishments would have to happen for you to be happy with your progress?
I would love to see overall trend in beauty industry toward clean non-toxic skincare and more educated consumers who also want the best for themselves. I feel that MesoLyft was ahead of it’s time, too innovative and too honest. I was waiting for the industry to catch up! I’d love to see MesoLyft in all the Duty-free stores and international pharmacies, besides all the Sephora and Ulta stores.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I want people to understand that beauty and beautiful skin starts on the inside, as cliché as it sounds. It starts with healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables and good protein, exercise, with learning to manage stress and being mindful, it’s a much bigger picture. Skin shows your emotional state and your overall health. MesoLyft Skincare is very transformative by itself, but combined with holistic approach it’s that much more effective.
How can our readers further follow your work or your company online?
Follow both businesses on Instagram @mesolyftskincare and @visagesculpture and check out the websites www.MesoLyft.com and www.VisageSculpture.com
This was great. Thanks for taking time for us to learn more about you and your business. We wish you continued success!
About the Interviewer: Chad Silverstein is a seasoned entrepreneur and Thought Leader with over 25 years of business experience. He has founded, operated, and exited multiple companies and now builds into a handful of high impact CEOs. Chad has launched multiple online communities, including a recent leadership development platform, and also serves as a strategic advisor for Authority Magazine’s thought-leader incubator program.
To learn more and connect with Chad visit: chadsilverstein.io
Purpose Before Profit: Masha Amelina Of MesoLyft On The Benefits Of Running A Purpose-Driven… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.