We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jamia Morrow a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jamia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Moving to Atlanta was the biggest risk I have taken and not just mine but my family’s life in 2018. Leading up to this time I was really down, depressed and not feeling like I had a purpose in life. In 2016 I was laid off for my government job, lost my big brother in August of that year and my grandfather in October and was set to get married in December of that same year. Talk about life’s twists and turns I felt that I was being tested and pulled on each side of my life. I did not know whether I was coming or going but knew I needed a change not just for me but for my family. I had always wanted to live in the south and thought what better place than Atlanta because I had family in Alabama and North and South Carolina. I prayed on it and asked my husband if I found him a job would he be up to moving out of the state. After some convincing he was willing to up root our family from the DMV area to Atlanta. And so the process began of us securing employment, finding good schools for our kids and beginning our new journey. After being in Atlanta now for 4 years I would say it was the scariest but most beneficial and rewarding risk I’ve ever taken in my life. I want people to know that even though things may be scary have faith, trust in yourself and take that leap!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Jamia Morrow-Perkins, MA, LAPC has been in the Mental Health field for over ten years. She is a native of Riverdale, Maryland (DMV). She is married and has two beautiful children. Jamia completed her education at Bowie State University where she received her Master’s in Mental Health Counseling and Certificate in Addictions Counseling.
She has endured her fair share of trials and tribulations on this journey called life. There have been bumps in the road, detours, stop signs, and road closures, but through it all, she has never let her drive and determination for a better life be taken over by Depression. Jamia used her savvy, sassy personality to carry her through those tough times. She believes the key to overcoming any barrier in life is through Faith, Education, and Support. She strives to help as many people as she can reach with her company Br8k Thru Lyfe Inc. This company was created after the devastating loss of her brother and grandfather. Jamia suffered from Major Depression, but knew she had to find a Br8k Thru. Thus her business was born by creating Br8k Thru she was able to provide a platform to allow people to express themselves in a positive, inspirational and meaningful manner via her T-Shirt Company, Br8k Thru Designs and new book: Living with a Secret: Hiding in Plain Sight with Depression. She understands through therapy we all can heal from the traumas of our past if we take the TIMEE (Time Invested in Myself Enables & Encourages my Healing)! She plans to create her non profit in 2023. to extend her reach to a greater audience to introduce community resource to empower traumatized and marginalized individuals to Br8k Thru to a new level of strength, peace and awareness!

At Br8k Thru Lyfe we invest in your mind, body and soul by providing services such as Mental Health counseling, Substance Abuse counseling, wellness products: Shea butter, sugar scrubs, soaps, body oils, etc) and educational classes ( financial literacy, housing, parenting, etc). We believe by empowering people in underserved communities is the way to better our communities because we are stronger together than divided and each one should teach one!

What sets me apart from other businesses is I have learned to partner and network to build a stronger collective for my clientele versus trying to work independently.

I am most proud of the brand that I have built and my ability to help people heal from brokenness.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Being a entrepreneur there are many things that you feel you have to do alone. That is one of the things I have had to unlearn on this journey is that by creating a strong Network and team of people to help you along your journey makes entrepreneurship less daunting. I have learned by cultivating relationships and building rapport with people has allowed me to gain access to resources that would not have been readily available to me had I done all the work independently or not reached out to others. Oftentimes we get caught up in only I can do it correctly however that one-sided thinking can blindside you, keep you out of circles and hinder progress you think you could be making in your business. So I encourage people to work with others that are like-minded have the same values and goals as you and seek to build a better place in life to help you further your entrepreneurial goals.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

The best advice that I can give for managing a team and maintaining high morale is treating others how you want to be treated. I know that this is an old saying or cliche but it holds true that when people feel appreciated and feel that you value their opinions, their time they are more willing to go beyond their day-to-day to perform the job at hand. I feel that as a manager you should also lead by example so if you speak about it then you should also be about it. I feel that employee should be valued and recognized for their achievements and accomplishments. I believe that managers should have opened door policy and allow for employees to also make suggestions that can enhance or better your brand and business. Remember it does take a team to make anything run smoothly and two heads are better than one.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.br8kthrudesigns.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thebr8kthruexperience
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/thebr8kthruexperience
• Other: www.br8kthrusupportservices.com

Image Credits
Eleven16Media