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

Teekwa , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

First, I have to kick this off by letting you know that I never wanted to be an administrative assistant. I feel I have to tell you a little bit about the backstory leading up to my business. My dream was to have a business with a huge nice office. Because I always did events for family and friends, I thought celebrity event planner! I became a young mom at 19, with unexpected twins. They were born prematurely, and I made the decision to be there for my boys. One of them had a cardiac arrest at seven days old. My baby was severely brain-damaged. The promise was made to my parents that I was going to college, but as a Mom, my babies were first. Jonathan, who was brain damaged, had many health issues; he passed away at 11 months. As a young mother, I was hurt and angry that God had taken him away and wanted my baby back. Fast forward, I went through many odd jobs, became a temp at a company doing check processing/reconciliation, and loved it. It was a night job, but it paid more than the odd jobs, and I had benefits. After two years, the night job was becoming too much as a single parent picking up my son from the Bronx at my parent’s to go to Harlem to take him to school, sleep, and back to the Bronx so I could commute to New Jersey. I started to look and apply for other positions in the company, but administrative positions kept showing up. I wanted a business support or analyst position but had no experience or college degree. I did not want to be anyone’s secretary. However, I had to consider my son and how he needed me. I applied, and with no experience, God opened doors for me, and I got hired. It was a plan God had for me. I was able to go back to college to get my bachelor’s degree; I became a highly technical admin, became a supervisor, and earned my six sigma green belt certification.

This was in the plan leading up to my business idea. I started to research being a virtual assistant, working remotely from home because I wanted a job to be home with my youngest son. The more I learned about it, the more I was determined to make it happen by starting my own business. I wanted to have the business I dreamt of and wrote about in my diary as a little girl. I was doing this for my children, to show them that they could do whatever they wanted to despite statics, where they live, and the environment they grew up in. I did not want to be that woman retiring with no savings and back to living from check to check. I wanted to show single black women with children that they could do and be more. I worked with 35 – 40 administrators in our department, and we became a family; we worked together. Assisted one another, and I became the tech guru and started to do training during my lunch hour to get the others up to par. One day, we sat in a conference room for lunch, I told them about my business idea, and we spent the entire hour brainstorming a business name. PowerPro Assistants is the name. This name means a lot because of my colleagues, the support, and the power of professionals I was blessed to have during my 25 + years as a senior executive assistant. At the end of the day, we put fires out, solved problems, worked as a team, and served others. If it were not for my job, the managers that pushed me out of my comfort zone, the admin team, and the people I was surrounded around PowerPro Assistants would not have existed. We are not just admins; we are the ones that make things happen. I am now the company’s CEO that simply serves others in their business. They allow me to act in my zone of genius so they can stay in theirs.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

A little about who Teekwa P Scarborough is. I am a single mother who still works a full-time job as a senior executive assistant and owns a virtual assistant agency, PowerPro Assistants Inc, and a coaching business, She Asked, She Sought, So She Knocked LLC. I am a very shy introvert. You will not know this because you will probably see me all over the internet on social media, live streams, interviews, and blogs. I would have never imagined it if I was not pushed out of my comfort zone, just wanting to live a very quiet life. It was not in God’s plan, obviously (laughing) I like spending time with my kids and my family going on annual trips to places that we’ve never been before. I never experienced this as a little child. But I wanted to give my kids the opportunity to experience what I’ve never experienced. And because I was such an introvert, I never was the type of person that ventured out. However, my children are the total opposite of me. Quiet around others until they got warmed up, but so energetic, never stayed still and talked too much. I did not talk much and was not around too many people. I loved my solitude.
That was who I was. However, God had a plan for me. And throughout my life experiences, I had to quickly learn that it was not my experience to keep to myself. God had placed people in my life strategically to move me out of my comfort zone to push me as far as I can be pushed because I had something in me that I could offer to the world. I have to say that God is a funny God because as I am doing this interview, I remember and see the faces of the people who said that they see something in me that will make a difference. I remember interviewing for a job I did not want, but it was an opportunity I could not pass on for the sake of my son. It was for a position as an administrative assistant. I never wanted to be an admin, however, because I was a single mom and needed a job that paid more, health insurance, and to get off my night job. Unfortunately, we live in a world where there are a lot of single women with children that have to take on one or two jobs, pay for daycare, take care of the children, and ensure our kids are safe and healthy. I was that single mom. So my journey started when that one person saw something in me and took a chance on me, knowing I did not have the experience or technical experience as an admin.

Although I did not want to be anyone’s admin or secretary, I did not know that it was the best thing that happened to me. I worked hard to become the best administrative assistant and created a brand for myself at the company. I had so many mentors and people who cared about my career and pushed me to go finish my college degree. I had management who celebrated my success by surprising me with a gift and a small get-together at the office. I was blessed to be around colleagues who cared about me and my success. After I came back from my maternity leave, I was given an opportunity to become a supervisor. I gained so much experience from my full-time job; I was also allowed to take the six sigma greenbelt certification. I took full advantage and helped create a process that the admin team had struggled with for years. Now here I am, A business owner because God strategically planned it out, so I could start my own business. After spending over 20+ years at my full-time job, I knew there were more. This quiet introvert had come out of her shell and was hungry for more; I asked God, where do I go from here? I know that this is not it. I love my job because it allowed me to grow into the wonderful woman I am today. It opened the doors to what God wanted me to walk in, which was my purpose, and I didn’t know what that purpose was. I dreamt of having a celebrity event planning, and I started my event planning business with my brother, and we partnered. We started our event planning business called Sophisticated Touch. However, that did not work out because that wasn’t in God’s plan. I had to continue learning that my plans were not God’s. The plan was for me to start this virtual assistant business. Now God, what are you getting me into now? I started my research and learning about this virtual assistant industry and quickly understood the assignment. Now looking back on my life experience struggles as a single mom, my career journey as an admin, supervisor, mentor, training, learning how to put processes in place, and going back to school learning technology all started to make sense.

My purpose in business is administration, systems, and assisting in processes. I was called to serve in this area, and I know he has more in store for me.

Matthew 5: 14-16: “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

The name of my company PowerPro Assistant came from a group of colleagues, a few of the executive admin assistant team at my workplace; they are more than just colleagues; we are long-lasting friends. We got together one afternoon on our lunch break in a conference room and spent the whole hour brainstorming a name for my business. The name is so fitting, and praise be to God. We are Power Professionals who assist others in their business. This is whether you work for a company or own your own.

PowerPro Assistants is a faith-based organization that aids in providing a service to business owners through our signature executive virtual assistant, system buildout, and social media & marketing planning. We have been evolving into helping other businesses in the heart of the business, which is the operations. We have been working hard to become certified in online business management, dashboard design (coming soon areas such as online business management, dashboard design (coming soon later in 2023), and system buildouts to continue to serve more businesses to scale and grow their business. It is a business that is operated by all women who have specific gifts and talents that complements the company. Each of my team members, who God has blessed me with, is Casey Almeida, Director of Operations; Jasmine Stradford, Community Manager (speaker of PowerPro); Cora Williams, Online Business Manager & Bri Murray, Social Media Management. They all are Christian women who God has blessed me with.

My team is passionate about what they do. My team is an extension of me. They want to be a part of PowerPro Assistants, and I make them feel like this is their company as much as mine. Their opinion matters to me. Their suggestions matter to me. They appreciate that I push them beyond their limits and that I have their back. We pray every Monday to set our week up for success. We have a prayer call every Monday at 10 A M in our Slack channels. We each take turns providing a scripture & pray. Everything is God’s focus. God is first in my life. He is my everything. So that is what sets my business apart is that I make him first no decision is made without him.

I want people to know that when they schedule a consultation with us that they are in the hands of women who care about you, not just your business, but about you and your business. We’re not about just getting the business, yes we are in the business to have a business so that we can make money. However, I genuinely love helping others. I love solving problems and getting the reaction from our clients that said, ” Oh my god, you made my life so much easier”. “Oh my god. Thank you for that suggestion”. “That worked! “. “Thank you for catching that!” “Thanks for thinking ahead and taking care of this”. We look for a long-term relationship or partnership. This means a lot to us. We continue to go above and beyond for our clients.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The best source of new clients for me is referrals. This is how I started in my business from referrals. I was never the one that wanted to be on social media because I was an introvert. I didn’t have any desire to be on social media, sharing my story and putting my business out there. However, I had no choice but to set up every account on social media platforms because my college major was technology, and one of my classes had a lot to do with coding and learning about social media. I had to learn about the behaviors, how each platform differs with demographics, etc. I had this one professor and remembered… Jesus! God is funny and knows everything. He places pl people in your life strategically. Well, this is one person that was pushing me out of my comfort zone. He was the IT professional professor, and he saw something in me, but I was so quiet. I will sit in the back of his classroom, away from everyone, and would duck and weave so he would not call on me. Well, this professor called on me ALL the time. If we had to do a team project, I would get called to be the lead on the project, knowing that I was the oldest and sounded by all these youngins who were tech savvy (laughing). Okay, you may ask what this got to do with the best source of new clients. I have to give you a glimpse of my back story leading up to it. Ok, If my professor asked for someone to explain the homework on social media, and EVEN if others raised their hands, he would call on me! I had to get in front of the class to talk about social media and platforms blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

I was so nervous, stomach-turning, and shaking until I heard the vibrations of my body. Yes, it was bad (laughing), but again, remember I said God strategically places people in your life. My professor was preparing me for the referral. Because the statistics show women in technology in the workforce was so low, the referral he was preparing me for was out of State. Unfortunately, it was to prepare and set me up to thrive in the technology industry. However, he did not know that I was a single mom, working full-time, working towards my degree, and sacrificing to go back to live with my parents to get my degree. I could not leave my son or uproot somewhere I did not have a family for support. That is when I learned the power of referrals.

I branded myself at my 9 to 5, and everyone knew who I was at work and what I was capable of. I even wowed the IT dept, where I was blessed to do my internship to finish my Bachelor’s degree. When I started my business and people I knew, whether colleagues, friends, or family, found out what I was doing, they were all supportive of my business and knew the potential, and always helped others when they needed me; this is when people started to referred people or businesses to me, I had people that I didn’t even know that was tagging my business on social media, through referrals, and that’s how I was building my business in the beginning. Referrals are not the only way to get clients; my business was built on referrals.

Continuing my journey as an entrepreneur, I joined the John Maxwell team to become certified as a speaker and coach. Someone reached out to me when I introduced myself in the JMT Facebook group about one of my services and hopped on a consultation call. She wanted to know more about my VA services, and at the end of our conversation, she asked me, do I want to scale and grow my business. And I said, Yes. I mean, like, who wouldn’t? She invited me to a meeting at 7 AM in the morning! I was hesitant but open to see what it was all about. When I joined that Wednesday morning, I did not know what to expect, but I was around happy, energetic people who love their businesses and care enough to learn about yours so they can REFER your business. Wow, you see how God works. I joined BNI (Business Network International) during the pandemic. It is an organization that helps BNI Members increase their business through a structured, positive, and professional referral marketing program that enables them to scale and grow their businesses. I knew on the first meeting that this was for me and my business. Before I even became a member, the person who invited me referred me to a nonprofit organization. On our first consultation, she signed up for my services and is still with us. It has been two years since. I continue to get referrals from members that care about my business as much as theirs. I have been growing ever since. My second source of where I get clients is the clubhouse. Everything we start a room to educate others on how to work with a virtual assistant, we gain a lead. You have to find what works for you, but at the end of the day, God is my source for everything in my business. He is the CEO of this business. To grow your business, visit one of our meetings by registering here. Let them know Teekwa invited you.

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

I love this question. What advice do I have on managing a team and high and maintaining high morale? All I can say is that I love what I do. I love that I have a team that is an extension of me. And how I maintain my team is open communication. I’m a very organized person. But because I am a single mom, full-time worker, business owner, and now a caregiver to my aunt who has lung disease, It is a lot, and it’s just me. People call me Superwoman because they see me make things happen. I thank God for making way for me, but I am not claiming to be a superwoman. I don’t want to be a superwoman; I just want to be in a place where I am continuing to step into my purpose to be able to bless others as I am blessed. So what’s important to me is that my team members are in alignment with the calling of my purpose. This business is not about having a job and just doing the job and leaving. Whether you are a contractor or an employee, I will treat you all the same. What I can offer as a suggestion or advice on managing a team is to write down what your goal is for your team. What does your team look like? What type of personalities to seek? What dream team do you want before you start looking for team members? I think that’s really important because if you’re not in alignment with what you have going on in your business or what you want in your business, then when you start inviting people in, you’re going to get people who do not care about your business. You will know if they are there for a paycheck or genuinely there to support you in your business. The team members I have, want to be a part of PowerPro Assistants. You know, because of the service they provide within the company and for our clients. When you set up the expectations upfront, you have already started on a good relationship with your team members. Always remember your WHY for starting this business. My WHY was to create a business that is 100% for women (helping specifically single mothers), showing how to make additional income using the gift and talents they have working remotely from home. Communication is key, and when I am open and honest with how I feel or the way I need us to be, they accept and welcome it.

What makes me happy is when I see them happy, and they are glowing with excitement because of my trust in them. The communication has to be, and they must understand what your mission is in your business and is in alignment with that. The most important thing to me is making God first. He’s first in everything. Then everything else follows that is in alignment with that. They are Christian women who understand how important it is to me and the business. As a mom, caregiver, and business owner, I know the importance of spending time with family or needing a mental break. If you organize your business, put your team first, and take care of them, they will take care of you, and the business will never lack. We have put things in place to ensure that backup is in place and everyone is abreast of what is going on so that when someone does need to take off, it will be taken care of. For example, when I took on the responsibility of preparing for my aunt to come live with me, my team stepped up and ensured the week I was off to put things in place, that I did not have to worry about anything. As a CEO, you cannot expect to get if you don’t give.

The second thing is investing in your team members and paying attention to their personal development, especially their strengths and weakness. I see where they are good and know where they are weak. I have 1-2-1 meetings with my team members to get to know them personally. It should not be just business; get to know your team members personally. For example, one of my contractors, Bri, is young and quiet but has a lot going on. She has her VA business, a nonprofit, helps her auntie in the daycare in the mornings, and now coaches cheerleaders. She loves to dance. I know a lot about my team members because they feel comfortable sharing. After all, I am genuinely interested. I will invest in team training so that we can be able to serve our clients best. Therefore, I highly suggest investing in your team. If they are invested in you in your business, then you should be that should be vice versa. So, for example, my Director of Operations, Casey, and I are taking the dashboard design certification to build upon her skill sets. Jasmine, our community manager, will develop her technical skills in spreadsheets to assist with the dashboard. Cora, our online business manager, will be our expert in Dubsado. In addition, I reached out to someone who does coaching for business development. We all will be participating in the DISC program workshop. So to kick off the New Year, the personality tests will help our team better understand one another. Last but not least, we have our weekly prayer call to kick off our week on Monday mornings. A family that prays together stays together.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10: Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.powerproassistants.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powerproassist/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/powerproassist
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/powerproassist
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@powerproassist