Meet Holly Haynes | Miss Georgia USA 2022

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

Hi Holly, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
After winning Miss Georgia USA at the end of February, my work life balance has changed dramatically! It’s been challenging, yet extremely rewarding, figuring out how to balance my duties as Miss Georgia USA 2022 with my personal and professional life. An average week for me includes multiple sponsor visits, appearances, preparing for the Miss USA pageant, planning and organizing future events, regularly engaging with social media, and more. In addition to being Miss Georgia USA, I am also a professional model, singer, and actress and an aspiring CEO of my own sustainable fashion company.

I think about balance like the “Life Jar” metaphor, which is a jar full of rocks, pebbles, and sand. The larger rocks represent the extremely vital things that sustain you, like your health and relationships. The pebbles are things that are significant but not permanent, such as work or school. Finally, the sand signifies small stuff, like playing video games or material possessions. If you were to flip the order and place the sand in the jar first, the pebbles and big rocks won’t fit; meaning, if you fill your life with trivial things, you will run out of time to spend on the truly important things. Balance is making sure everything fits in my jar!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I wear a few different hats: I’m a marketing professional, model, singer, actress, and published children’s book author! I believe what sets me apart the most is that I’m multifaceted; I don’t fit into one particular box, and I love that. I can bring a lot of different skills to an organization based on my experiences, including public speaking, interviewing, branding, writing, editing, creativity, and performing. By participating in pageantry and community service endeavors, I have been able to pave a different path than most of my peers, and it has paid off! It was certainly not an easy road to get here, but I did it by working extremely hard in school at the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business and afterwards in my career, relying on my teammates/coworkers, and trusting in my abilities while understanding when to ask for help.

As far as specific challenges I faced, I remember applying to a MULTITUDE of jobs after graduation and not hearing anything back, simply getting a “no” in return, or interviewing with a company and not thinking it was a good fit. It took me about six months to truly find a position that worked! In my professional life, I had several challenges to overcome, such as working in a very particular, fast-paced environment, pivoting with the many changes in the real estate and insurance industries, and even taking over the responsibilities of two higher-ranked employees that resigned simultaneously within six months of me being at that company. By overcoming these challenges, I learned that I am strong and capable of more than I realized. It also emphasized just how important it is to rely on people you trust to help you and give you constructive feedback so that you can continue to grow!

In pageantry, my first pageant was Miss University of Georgia. I competed for three years before I won in 2018, and I did not even make top five my first two years! I competed for Miss Georgia America five times and inched closer and closer to the title, eventually making it to second runner up during my last year of eligibility. I was devastated I did not win and would never go to Miss America, but I decided to work as hard as I could to win Miss Georgia USA because I was only going to give this system one shot. Luckily, my hard work paid off, and I’m able to fulfill my dream of representing my home state on a national pageant stage (and maybe international if I win Miss USA and compete at Miss Universe)! The bottom line is that I have learned to never, ever give up. 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.
Oh my goodness; there are so many amazing places in Georgia to try out! My hometown is Sugar Hill, Georgia, so I would spend a day showing them around our cute downtown area. We would eat brunch at my favorite local spot, Rushing Trading Co., and then we would walk along West Broad Street to tour the haunted movie theater, get a sweet treat at Sugar Hill Bakery, take a pic in front of “The Sweet Life” mural, and then attend a concert at The Bowl @ Sugar Hill.

I also have such a love for our Blue Ridge mountains in North Georgia. I would take my BFF to Dahlonega to show them the gold mines and eat at The Smith House, go hiking to see Amicalola Falls, visit Monteluce Winery for lunch one day and some gorgeous views, and then go to the German-style town of Helen to eat authentic German food at The Heidelberg and homemade fudge at the Hansel & Gretel Candy Kitchen. It would also be super fun to go whitewater rafting on the Chattahoochee River!

Of course, I can’t forget to spend a few days in Atlanta! My favorite spots that I would take my best friend would be The Battery for an Atlanta Braves game (I love the Braves and lived in the area for three years), Ponce City Market to shop and eat on The Roof, The BeltLine to ride scooters and get some sunshine, and then Buckhead Village to eat at The Southern Gentleman. We’d probably make a pit stop at Saint Germain or Read Shop in Vinings for coffee at some point because I’m obsessed with their espresso drinks! To top off the week and my friend’s Georgia trip, I would take them to our world-famous Georgia Aquarium and World of Coca-Cola because, what’s a trip to Atlanta without visiting those places?!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people who deserve thanks! First and foremost, I would not be where I am today without my parents. They have always loved, supported, encouraged, and pushed me to be my best and to pursue my dreams! They’re truly my biggest allies and cheerleaders, and I’m so glad they taught me to never give up. I also would be remiss if I didn’t thank my many family and friends who have cheered me on every step of the way. I’m so blessed to have each of them in my life!

To get to this point, I have been aided by several coaches and friends in the pageant community along my journey. A few of those impactful people include the Miss Coastal GA USA board, Frills by Scott, Angelo Frasier, Randall Smith, Chris Saltalamacchio, Kim Vaughn, Thomas Barnette, Alyssa Beasley, the Miss Cobb County board, Susan Hamm, and my Miss Georgia America family.

Now, I am very grateful to be a part of the Greenwood Productions team led by my Director, Kim Greenwood, and Director of Operations, Martha Ellen Christopher! They truly spoil all of us Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi queens and provide us with the best Miss USA prep team and generous sponsors to utilize throughout our year. I am so blessed to have them by my side now and in the future!

Website: www.missgeorgiausa.com

Instagram: @missgausa

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MissGeorgiaUSA

Other: @hollyjanehaynes (personal Insta)

Image Credits
Grant Foto Demarcus Bowser Mileshko Video TJ Baker Matt Boyd High Intensity Productions