We were lucky to catch up with Breana Ross recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Breana, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

Growing up, I remember how my mother told me what made me special and valuable before I even recognized those qualities in myself. “You’re beautiful.” “You’re brilliant.” “You can do anything you put your mind to.” I heard those words over and over and over again until, eventually, I believed them. My mom’s words, her affirmations shaped the way I saw myself and, thus, shaped my future. My mom and I wanted to create a book that does that for more children.

In our book, “I Am Affirmed from A to Z”, the main character goes on a journey to discover all of the positive qualities about herself. With her mom’s help, she learns how to affirm herself using words that start with every letter of the alphabet. The book is designed to help children learn how to affirm themselves and to encourage parents and educators to help kids build self-confidence. We believe it’s so important to affirm our kids, especially in a world that is not always so affirming.

My mom and I have both seen what happens when kids are not affirmed. My mom spent 32 years working in education and met many kids who were never told how valuable and special they really are. I’ve spent a lot of time working with kids through volunteer work and through my nonprofit and noticed the same. We hope the affirmations in our book help shape the way kids see themselves and, thus, shape their future just like my mom’s affirmations did for me.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I always knew storytelling would be an important part of my life, but I never guessed it would find its way into nearly every part of my life. I grew up in Prince George’s County Maryland watching DC news and realized I wanted storytelling to be my life’s work through journalism. I saw myself in the people on my TV screen and realized the power of storytelling to shape the world. Stories can illuminate truth, inform decisions, and amplify the voices of people who feel silenced. I realized I wanted to make that impact as a journalist.

I’ve also shared my love for writing and storytelling through my nonprofit, Written in My Soul. Written in My Soul is a program designed to teach youth how to use poetry as a healthy form of self-expression. We do this through writing workshops teaching kids how to tell their story through poetry, writing techniques, and performance skills. The program ends with a poetry slam where students can share their work. I started the program at the University of Miami after years of using poetry as an outlet for myself. The program still lives on at the University of Miami. I’ve also done the program in Fort Myers, Florida and Baltimore, Maryland.

Aside from writing poetry, I also used to write short stories as a child. I dreamed of one day being an author, but I never knew what kind of story I’d want to publish. It was something I hadn’t thought about much as an adult until my mom approached me with the idea to write an affirmations book for kids. I took note of her idea and went on with my day to day life. Then, one day out of nowhere, I could see the book clearly in my head. I started to see what the book would say word for word, line by line. I got what I like to call a “download” and I believe it was God giving me vision for the assignment He had for my mom and I. I wrote it all down, ran it by my mom, and then we started looking for an illustrator to bring our vision to life. That’s how our children’s book, “I Am Affirmed from A to Z” was born.

Our book has already made a big impact. We’ve sold around 1500 books in 8 months. We’ve held several book signing events and book readings at local stores, schools, and community organizations, but our book is only the first step. We don’t just want kids to read the affirmations. We want them to embody those positive words and carry those positive words with them everywhere they go. That’s why we are also rolling out an affirmations clothing collection for kids so they can remember who they are and positive qualities about themselves just by looking down at a sweatshirt or hoodie. We want to find as many ways as possible to affirm kids.

We are really proud of the fact that we did this as a mother-daughter duo. I think that’s what sets us apart. Our book is based on our real journey and real impact. I am a product of the affirmations my mother and father spoke over me. It shaped the way I saw myself and the way I chased my dreams. We hope our book and merchandise help shape the way other kids see themselves and how they chase their dreams.

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

Since my mom and I released our book, we’ve left no stone unturned in terms of partnerships. We’ve reached out to schools, community organizations, churches, stores, and anyone else we could think of who may want to buy or sell our book. We’ve had a lot of success from this! When you start selling a product, it’s a great time to tap into every social circle and connection you have to get the word out. Since my mom worked in the school system for so long, she has a lot of contacts in the education world. Our book falls perfectly within the social emotional learning category that a lot of schools are working on. We’ve gotten a lot of clients through schools who want the book in their library. We’ve even had schools purchase a copy for every kid in certain grade levels! We’ve also tried to position ourselves in spaces where we meet a lot of parents. Then, we brand the book as a “mommy and me” affirmation experience!

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I think the lived experience my mom and I have has helped us build our reputation. My mom spent 32 years in education. She is an expert on what kids need to grow and thrive! Through my nonprofit and volunteer work, I’ve spent a lot of time with young people too, some of whom needed a self-confidence boost. I think our product addresses a need that we’ve both observed first hand, which makes it easy to build our credibility and brand ourselves as a mother-daughter duo that is passionate about inspiring the next generation!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dbross.com
• Instagram: Personal: @breanarosstv ; Book: @iamaffirmedbook
• Facebook: Personal: Breana Ross ; Book: I Am Affirmed from A to Z
• Linkedin: Breana Ross