We recently connected with Amanda Brown and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

My goal is to be known as someone who people feel safe around and can trust on a deep level, knowing that I’ll follow through with what I say I’m going to do. This relates to every aspect of my life, including business, family, friends and new people I develop relationships with .

As an advocate, I want to be known as someone who sees beyond what people do on the surface and allows others to see that their roots are fundamentally a part of why people behave in a particular way. Everyone deserves a fair chance to live a fulfilled life, regardless of what their past has been, as if you give people the tools, trust, patience and willingness to change, they can rise to the occasion.

Amanda, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

AB Livewell (ABL) exists as a criminal reform and credible messenger advocacy agency to enhance gang prevention and anti-human trafficking efforts in various cities and counties across the country. The agency exists solely based on the premise that human beings can restore themselves and in turn make a difference for their communities by utilizing their message of what they’ve gone through, which is the definition of the credible messenger movement. ABL intends to replicate the restorative nature that San Diego has built in this movement with top subject matter experts and implement it in other geographic areas.

ABL was developed through the founder, Amanda Brown’s, business experience when she graduated in 2009 and was an avid volunteer and community advocate. As her career unfolded and developed, it was clear that there was an underlying passion to make a difference for people and chose to go back to school and completed her Master’s Degree in Peace & Justice, from the University of San Diego’s Joan B Kroc School of Peace Studies. Bringing her unique background in community engagement, leading and developing individuals, strategic planning and policies, public relations, and professional coaching, she has a commitment to utilize all her skills for making a difference for humanity, specifically in gang prevention/intervention, youth development, and anti-human trafficking. Her grassroots/nonprofit and political experience makes her a diverse consultant for entities as she has a holistic and widespread view of how to approach projects.

The agency implements advocacy techniques and oversees the implementation of the credible messengers that will train, assist, and enhance programs and cities through developed curriculums, consulting and coaching. Additionally ABL works on policy reform and advocacy for restorative practices to be enhanced in different areas. ABL starts by evaluating, researching and planning the implementation plan before the other organizations from San Diego come in. Implementation would take place in 4 steps, utilizing the community and organizations input: Planning and research, strategy and outreach from lessons learned in planning/research, implementation, evaluation. All phases will be rotated on a quarterly basis to determine if elements need to be shifted and plans are on track.

Services included that will be delivered are trauma trainings with 1 free hour to build up to longer trainings, an anti-human trafficking curriculum offered in schools, a juvenile hall training, credible messenger training with a set program, gang gun violence prevention and intervention models to implement, coalition and community building, advocacy, and data collection/reporting for accuracy.

What sets me a part is the collective bridging of multiple entities to work together and provide enhancements in cities across the country; not to compete with other entities and truly build a community.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My first public relations business failed miserably! I knew I wanted to be an owner and create something from scratch; however, back then I didn’t have the vision, structure or patience to grow something over time OR the correct idea. I got into that from some baseline understanding of my undergraduate degree and life experiences; however, it was not my true passion, which was another reason why it failed.

I took a step back and went back to school to discover newly what my passion in life is and over several years, got to this moment of the second business. I’m also in the middle of re-branding it so that it’s constantly molded into the vision I see for it. I’ve pivoted dozens of times and that’s also an element that needs to remain flexible as I’m learning what different methods are going to be utilized best in communities I serve.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

My undeniable passion for what I do is the first component of how my reputation has been built over time and my love for humanity as a whole. I remained consistent, reliable and did some things for little to no cost and people eventually saw my value that grew into larger contracts over time.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://ablivewell.com/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-brown-a7402513/