We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Adela Hittell. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Adela below.

Alright, Adela thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you share a story about the kindest thing someone has done for you and why it mattered so much or was so meaningful to you?

The kindest thing anyone has every done for me is to spare my life. I was born into a beautiful life that turned to destruction, death and no hope. In 1993, my home was attacked and I was taken prisoner along with my family. This was during the Bosnian War, similar to Ukraine today. I do not remember much of my life during that time, but I do know that the same people who captured and tortured my family and friends also had humanity amongst them to save us when it mattered the most.I am still in the process of learning about my own story, and some of the knowledge has been hard to process and potentially lost forever, but what I have learned in this search is that no matter what, we must have hope in the humanity within people. Because of that experience in my life, I was molded to only search for and reach the human within our society to truly make any lasting change. Because of peoples humanity towards me, I have found and claimed my hope for our existence and ability to change. Hope the greatest power we have and it is never lost. It is always with us inside, we have to be brave, bold, accountable and responsible with it.

Adela, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Project Human Inc., PHInc., is my voice and it is my essence of who I am. It is a nonprofit organization I started in 2017 to change the way we view and think about mental health. Mental health is a state of being that develops into much more sever health condition and I believe, we can learn to help our states of being to live the best life we can. It is a platform and space for expressing the human state of being and navigating the process of existing and living our best life.

We offer coaching sessions through community mental health days, productivity coaching, and opportunities to create a projects through our CPI – Creative Project Initiative, experiencing and healing through art. Our website offers free downloads with educational information on how to start navigating your state of being today.

We have completed two CPI’s and are in the works for a couple of more in the next two years. We have a documentary in the works called Define the Narrative: What is mental health? and it is our way of working to bridge the gap between mental and emotional health within the human and society by defining mental health on an individual level.

We teach humans how to find hope within, create a tangible plan of success, and provide them with the resources available for the best probability of success in changing their lives.

Our narrative matters and the stigmas we place in our society can only change when we change our
narratives. I believe in humanity. I believe in YOU. All of my faith is in you, the HUMAN, and in
your power to create life, including the life you seek for your own self. I want you to never fear your
Greatness. When you allow the True Self to speak, it is a beautiful, powerful and magical essence
that will guide you and protect you.

My mission in life is to inspire humans to believe in themself so much that they make a conscious decision to be a better human being with every breath they take. Everything I do is to ensure that the footprints I leave behind are not destructive but creative, empowering and evolving in every action. I believe through honest conversation we can understand and find common ground in our differences. I believe through creative education we can teach ourselves and our community on how to find the best solutions to most problems. More importantly, I believe in a positive tangible expression, where we create with our own hands something powerful, impactful and evolutionary in our own lives.. Something as simple as learning to create a tangible meal for a self is life changing.

Creation of and for oneself is key in the evolution of society.

I am on this path of discovering what it means to be a human in this day and age. I suffer from my own demons just like everyone. I have ignored them for as long as I could and I have allowed them to drown me as often as possible without the belief that I deserved better. Now, I face myself first every single day and make sure I am kinder and better to the self who is still learning to find her way. I had to teach myself that belief in me. Today, I believe in myself. I believe I am capable of living in this world and creating a place for myself. I do not need to find something that I know I have the power to create from within. I am strong enough to conquer anything I set my mind to with determination, consistency and action. I
am wise enough to know I know nothing, and yet through experience, I know more than I care to admit.

I know how hard it is not to have a voice, even though you are the loudest person in the room. It is
ok, that the room does not hear you. They cannot handle the power of your voice and the truth of
your existence. You must be responsible and accountable for your own self and SEEK out those
whom you wish to share your VALUE with. Remember that value is based upon your own standards
and requirements of your want you set forth.

I have found my voice and have declared it to be the most valuable part of my existence because it
requires the very breath I breathe to be exhaled. My breath is so valuable that I will not waste it on
circumstances, events, situations and people who do not value and respect their own voice. Your
breath is your voice, which becomes your action that turns into your legacy.
I breathe for the opportunity to fuel other humans’ essence with so much color, love, and
compassion. To motivate them into action no matter how small the action is because the truth is, the
smallest steps lead to the greatest victories.

You are a project and deserve the resources to create the best version of the self you can with what you have. I hunted for those resources that fed my soul and my mind just as you hunt now. I hunted for the peace that the earth and her beauty bring to others and I have found it through MY REBIRTH. Our first CPI, a music video holding the conversation of life and death. It was my way of talking about my suicide attempts and hope for humans to see the value in themselves through that. It is the birth of Adela today and the shedding of Adela, the past, where I have found clarity and peace with my existence. You can too.

Every moment counts as an opportunity to make a positive change by taking one action towards your
wants. By building yourself you become a bridge to someone else who needs your guidance and your
perspective to cross over into a better state of existence.

We are not medical professionals, we encourage everyone to seek appropriate help and call 988 or 911 in case of an emergency.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In 2018, I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and Rheumatoid Arthritis which forced me to change the career I had been working so hard to build. I was in the middle of planning our second event for PHInc. and running a successful cosmetology career, to collapsing and inability to move forward. I had always suffered with chronic pain, however was always told it was in my head, and in some ways it is because it is a nervous system problem. Once I had a diagnosis, over the course of a year, I had to stop doing what I had been for over 15 years in the cosmetology industry and navigate my way into something else. I spent the next 2 years learning and discovering a new way to look at my life and reminding myself everyday that I have survived worse and this is nothing but a moment to pivot, pivot, pivot (as Ross would say) and sometimes I’d say shut up shut up shut up, but adapting and changing the narrative in my setbacks opened up bigger doors than they would have had I followed through back then and pushed beyond my health.

That became a blessing in disguise because I am now producing, directing, coaching, traveling, speaking and creating experiences that I never thought I had the ability to do. I took time in the pivot stage of my existence to learn what success looked like from those who did it on a personal and professional level.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

Here is a few books that have truly changed the way I approach my life personally and professionally.

Life in a Half a Second by Matthew Michalewicz changed my perspective on time and how I calculate the time I have left on this earth. It pushed me to become strategic and intentional with my life.

The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolls forced me to start seeing life in the now and becoming consciously aware of my own physical being, intention and manifestations.

12 Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson are so simple but truly powerful. Do not lie or stand taller, all seem so simple and nuanced but when applied they change the way you live life. I have taken a few courses to understand human behaviors and psychology through Dr. Peterson, to expand my knowledge and understanding of forming better relationships.

Extreme Ownership How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win is and will forever be the book that allowed me to use my trauma to my advantage. I began to develop my disciplines and follow through because in order to succeed at any goal you have to have discipline and follow through. They reminded me what I needed to do to survive and how to use that to plan strategies and logistics for my success on the new battlefield.

Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins is the book of the best extreme of human potential that I have fallen in love with to strive for. This human is beyond belief in what he has achieved, set back after set back, he pushed through broken bones and all. When I think I can’t I think of his push past the mind attitude and I win.

Effective Communication by Peter Andrei is a great book on methods and techniques to apply to presentations and speeches. It is a great way to build a communications strategies for the self and brand.

I listen to podcasts and many more audio books on many different subjects. I use YouTube for many instructional and research needs I may personally have that I need to work through.

Contact Info:

• Website: phonic-ing.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phinc_newwaytothink/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/projecthumaninc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adela-hittell-96995919b/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ProjectHumanIncPHInc
• Other: [email protected] Adelahittell.com (artist website)

Image Credits
Project Human Inc. Jacksonville Buzz TV