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This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Jessi Draper, a 34-year-old star on Hulu’s “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” and the owner of JZ Styles, who is based in Utah. It has been edited for length and clarity.
No two days are the same for me because the scope of my work is huge.
I run a hair salon, a hair school, and a hair-extension company. I’m also filming a reality show, “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.” I have two kids, half the time now that I’m divorced.
I don’t have a routine. Every day is different and chaotic. One thing stays the same, though: I always start the day with coffee.
I start my day at 7 a.m. with a coffee, then it’s onto dirty sodas
I’m usually up at 7 a.m. On the days I don’t have my kids, I like to sit outside on my porch or in my living room by the fireplace and take a moment for myself. My life is so crazy, so it’s nice to decompress, whether that means journaling or slowly drinking coffee.
At my rental home, I have a full coffee bar in my butler’s pantry, with a machine, syrups, and everything else I need. Sometimes, though, I still DoorDash Starbucks.
Coffee gets me going in the morning, but dirty sodas get me through the rest of the day. In Mormonland, dirty sodas — sodas mixed with creamer or syrup — are a big deal. At my salon, we have a whole dirty soda bar, so I can unfortunately end up having four a day. I’m often having Dr Pepper with vanilla cream and English toffee syrup.
If I have my kids, I get myself ready before they wake up: hair, makeup, feeding my dog, and letting him out. Then I go to my 6-year-old son, lay out his uniform, wake him up, and let him get himself ready. Next, I wake up my 3-year-old daughter.
My kids need to be at school by 8:30 a.m.
It’s always a shit show trying to get everyone ready and out the door. If we have time, I’ll prepare Little Spoon meals. Depending on the day, breakfast is sometimes a cup of cereal in the car.
The kids have to be at school by 8:30 a.m. During the ride, they get jealous of each other, so we make sure everything is fair. My son chooses a song, and then my daughter chooses one. We go back and forth between hot DJs’ music and “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt.”
If I’m not filming, I head to the salon or academy
After drop-off, if I’m not filming, I could be teaching at the school one day and at the salon the next.
I opened the JZ Styles salon in 2016, then launched a company that sells hair extensions and other hair-care products. Since 2022, we also have a hair-styling academy. I wrote the curriculum for our nine-month academy program, but our amazing director now runs most of it.
I’ll often start the workday by going to the office at my salon to discuss logistics and coming launches with the team. I also like to hang out in the salon’s break room and see my employees. When I’m filming, I’m so removed from them, so I want to make sure everyone is feeling good.
Before the show, I used to joke that I lived at my salon. It was my whole life. Nowadays, I pop in when I can. I don’t take clients anymore because it would be too hard with my schedule, so I focus on everything that happens behind the scenes.
Later in the morning, I might go to the hair school down the street to talk to the director, say hi to the students, and check in. There’s always something to do on my phone, too, whether it’s brand deals, the show, or the business.
Filming runs my days
When we’re filming a season, my day is determined by the production schedule, and I usually don’t know what I’m doing until the night before. I bounce from place to place to film scenes.
The show is my friend group and my real life, but I also see it as a job, so I’m always on time. This season has been especially tough because I was going through a divorce while filming. There were times when we were shooting a scene, and I’d get news from my lawyer.
I DoorDash lunch whenever I can
Lunch is whenever I have time, and it’s usually DoorDash. I eat like a child: chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, or my go-to, a turkey sandwich. Every hairdresser will tell you lunch breaks don’t exist. I’m usually multitasking, and I can’t remember the last time I sat and ate lunch in silence. I have a sweet tooth, so my guilty pleasure is always having Smarties in my purse.
On a typical workday, I’m in my salon office responding to emails and texts, approving marketing materials, or shooting and editing content. I’m always asking ChatGPT random work questions, but we have a graphic designer, accountant, and other in-house professionals, so we don’t need to use AI for that. I love a personal touch.
From 5:30 p.m., I focus on my kids
If I’m working or filming, my nanny picks the kids up at 3:30 p.m. and watches them until about 5:30 p.m. Then I’m home with them for homework, a game or activity, dinner, and bedtime.
I cannot cook to save my life, aside from tater-tot casserole. We usually have Little Spoon meals or DoorDash pasta from Olive Garden. Luckily, I eat like my kids.
Dinner is around 6:30 p.m., and then we start the wind-down routine around 7:30 p.m., so they’re in bed by 8 p.m.
If I don’t have my kids, I try to decompress
I listen to podcasts in the bath, like “The Toast” and “Call Her Daddy.” I do my skincare routine, put on cozy pajamas, and watch a show with popcorn and a HydroJug of water.
A month ago, I deleted social media from my personal phone. There was so much chatter and negativity around the show that it was easy to spiral. Now I can actually decompress instead of scrolling. It’s a game changer.
Before bed, I check Google Calendar
At the end of the day, I look at Google Calendar to see what’s coming up and figure out my priorities for the next day. I’m Type A and organized, but my life is Type B: I never know what’s going to happen. Google Calendar is my best friend.
I’m in bed by 11 p.m.
By 11 p.m., I need to be in bed. I rarely stay up past midnight.
I dread the next day if I have nothing going on because I like to know I’m busy. I normally look forward to tomorrow because I feel blessed to love everything I do.
I get to work with my best friends and family, and to me, that feels like success.
