Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alfreda Jones-Roby. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Alfreda, thanks for joining us today. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

The best boss I ever had was an African-American female by the name of Cee Cee (for purposes of confidentiality). She taught me in the few years under her leadership, how to be a supervisor and how to prepare for circumstances beyond my control. As a matter of fact, she taught me more in those few years than what I ever would have learned in a college setting! She taught me real-life practical strategies and on-the-job examples of how to be successful. As a matter of fact, she taught me not to worry about the small things and to look beyond what is in front of me. She believed in me so much that after one year as an office employee, she encouraged me to take the supervisory exam which I passed and became a Departmental Supervisor for the Michigan Department of Corrections, where I supervised over several hundred office tech employees during my 20-year tenure as a supervisor. The one thing that stuck with me, upon her retirement, she gave me a book on leadership. She wrote a personal note inside that stated, “You can Have it All!” I asked her what she meant by those words, she simply responded, that although she knew that she was a great supervisor, she believed that I had the potential to be even greater, not just because of my skillset and ability to lead, but that I had a heart that truly wanted to help others succeed!

Those words meant so much to me and still do!

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.

Confidence Coach, Speaker, Trainer, Publisher.

How I got to where I am today, I joined the corporate workforce immediately after graduating high school. I began my author journey approximately 11 years ago when I wrote my very first book on dating & relationships. As a single mother at the time, I wanted to bless my two daughters by putting into words my feelings about dating & relationships, and now fast forward, God has not only allowed the book and workbook to be a blessing to my own daughters, but to all daughters, singles, and women. During the debut of this book, I began to simultaneously speak and coach singles how to live successfully as a single.

After several years of coaching and ministry, the opportunity was introduced to me almost 4 years ago to take a leap of faith to become a book publisher. As a result, I am now able to help aspiring authors write books and share their stories with the world. This includes helping leaders and speakers write their very first book in their area of expertise, or a personal memoir, as well as those in ministry.

As a part of my coaching and ministry to women, I also host Women’s Empowerment Events. This helps women build their confidence, their businesses, and their brands!

My impact statement:

As a Confidence coach, I help women overcome self-doubt and imposter syndrome, which enables them to confidently pursue higher earnings, freedom, and personal success!

As a corporate trainer & consultant, I show Managers, CEO’s and decision makers how to reduce high-turnover rates, mitigate risks, and save money by retaining high-value staff. This is accomplished through critical priority of wellness initiatives, need for change, and as a result of employee pre & post exit interviews.

Ultimately helping to identify blind-spots and helping to increase confidence and competence in their work.

-AJR

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

You have to determine what type of supervisor you want to be and what values you stand on.

Speaking from personal experience, I was promoted from within my peers, so I had to quickly establish boundaries as it relates to supervisor and employees. Oftentimes it can be challenging for an employee to transition from staff to management.

One way to maintain employee high morale is to allow staff to provide input especially if it relates to changes within work production and or processes. Even if there are times where changes have already been decided amongst upper management, at least explain to staff why the changes are happening and how the changes will impact the employees and the company.

My secret sauce to managing a team and attempting to keep morale high, is simply being fair, honest, keeping an open-door policy, and always operating with flexibility and integrity!

-AJR

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative is the fact that I can explore several different interests.

For the most part, we were taught to go to school, find a great job or career and stick with it until retirement.

Although I worked a 9-5, I always had other aspirations and interests including real estate, fashion, beauty, and ministry. I found a way to turn my outside interest in the marketplace into a way to enjoy life and build wealth while simultaneously helping others.

-AJR.

Contact Info:

• Facebook: (htttps://www.facebook.com/alfreda.jones.5
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mizzroby
• LinkedIn: Alfreda Jones-Roby
• Email: [email protected]