Boss Ladies | Kayla Seah — The Refined Woman

Kayla Seah grew up in Canada and started Not Your Standard in 2012, right before moving to Berlin, Germany. After living in Berlin for 3 years, she relocated to Toronto to work with North American brands. She has a degree in Fashion Design and Communications and has been working within the industry since her early twenties.

Growing up I really wanted to be

An editor or stylist at Vogue

My go-to order at a coffee shop is

Black Americano

I don’t know how I ever lived without

Quality skin care products

One thing people don’t know about me is

I love Hip Hop!

My real life hero is

My Mom - she is the most selfless human being I know. She is my biggest supporter and I go to her first for advice in almost every aspect of my life. She is the best!

What I love about my work is

I love what I do so much, nothing I do feels like work. I never wake up NOT wanting to work - I’m very fortunate and grateful!

The hardest thing about my work is

People not understanding this business. They think I wake up, doll myself up, and then take pictures of myself. That’s about 10% of my job. I guess it comes with the industry, but I work so hard that when I hear people’s negative opinion of what I do, it’s frustrating.

How I got started with my current career

I completed 2 internships while in University about 8 years ago - one was online based, and the other was like a magazine. After working in both fields, I saw that the online world was the way of the future. When I finished school, I decided to create a creative space online, and that is how Not Your Standard was born.

The dumbest thing I did when I was starting out

Using a self timer instead of hiring a photographer - but you do what you have to do.

My typical day looks like

No two days are ever the same. A typical office day would be: wake up, wash face, brush teeth, make a smoothie, and then sit down at my computer tackling whatever needs to be done that day. This can be answering emails, scheduling for the week. I usually then meet with my photographer, have a meeting with my team, go to the gym, and work on the next day’s blog post.

I used to think success meant

Making lots of money

My current definition of success is

Loving what you do and being excited for opportunities that may come your way in the future.

An example of when I had to push through my insecurities

The geographical moves in my life have been scary. It’s hard to be in a city for so long, then leave it behind and start fresh again

I know my work/life balance is out of sync when

I always make time to work out -- it gets me away from desk, gives me a new scene on top of all health benefits. When I am travelling or really busy with work, I don’t always stick to my work out schedule and I feel it immediately. That’s when I know I have to slow down and regroup.

The last time I created something I was proud of was

I am branching out and wanting to create more video content. When I was in New York in the fall, I created, edited, and finalized my first travel video and was very happy with the final project. I have also worked with Chanel recently, and got to create my own look and feel for a photo shoot. It turned out well and the company loved it - which is the best compliment of all.

I wish I could tell my younger self

Relax…have fun….don’t get caught up in boyfriend drama….be confident in your decisions

The legacy I hope to leave is

To be an inspiration to someone - both career and style wise.

XO,

Kayla