We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Bria Spivey-Lockley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Bria, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with education – we’d love to hear your thoughts about how we can better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career

I think this is a great question!

To be completely honest— there are many things I would change about the education system, but what I feel is a priority (especially among minority majority institutions) are financial literacy and career readiness classes/workshops. These are topics that I wish had been introduced to me as early as elementary school. It would have saved me a great deal of hard lessons as a young adult.

Being a first-generation college student meant that I was self-taught on many topics. I struggled a bit to find my footing and figure out how to successfully save money, organize bills, and do other basic financial tasks. I actually participated in a few free courses and did a lot of research to find methods that worked best for me. As far as career readiness I often sought out the advice of guidance counselors and enrolled in free programs across my city that offered mentorship or coaching on how to get ahead professionally.

As an adult, I realize how blessed I was to have the determination and forethought to fill the gaps our educational system left me with, but I understand that not everyone has that opportunity. For this reason, I think these two topics should be built into the education system as a requirement as early as elementary school.

Bria, 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?

Bria Spivey Consulting was born during one of the most devastating times in our history—the COVID-19 pandemic. This was when most people were unsure if they could maintain their jobs or find alternative means of employment. I was blessed to be working during that period but experienced some serious medical challenges that caused me to take time off, which was nerve-wracking when people were getting laid off left and right. My thoughts on entrepreneurship became even more strong because I wanted to ensure that I had something I owned to fall back on no matter what happened.

I initially positioned my business as one that offered social media management and strategic communications consulting. However, as of this year, I have focused more on my digital literacy services—the most requested service being my LinkedIn workshops! This workshop is customized based on the needs of my client and ranges from personal professional development and optimization of your profile to business page development and content curating on the platform. I still offer my strategic communications services through consulting/advising on social media best practices and digital planning for businesses. However, I feel that it’s paramount that I provide resources to those who desire to build their professional digital presence.

I’ve conducted various forms of LinkedIn, social media, and professional development training for municipal government and non-profits across Philadelphia for over 6 years. I’ve found that it’s fulfilling to help people reach their professional goals. My personal entrepreneurial goal is to host large trainings with companies that want to invest in the professional development of their employees. I aim to continue offering my digital literacy services free of charge to specific community organizations and programs without a budget because I also believe strongly in volunteer service. I truly enjoy what I do and plan to expand my client list as time progresses.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

You asked for one, but I’ll give you three!

The first lesson I had to unlearn was that perfectionism is a healthy trait—quite the contrary perfectionism can become extremely unhealthy and stress-inducing if you believe that falling short of it is failure. It’s ok to strive to do your best but understanding that mistakes make you human and that falling short is a part of everyone’s growth experience is a healthier way to think.

The second lesson is that as a business owner, though “the customer is always right”— you have the autonomy and the final say on who you take on as a client. If a client or business deal doesn’t feel right, you can always say no. All money isn’t good money.

The third lesson I had to put into better context was, “Work hard now, play later”— granted you should definitely work hard to build your business and produce a good product, but keep in mind that life is short. Taking breaks, and caring for both your mind and body are paramount. Go on vacation or do that staycation. Take mental health breaks doing things that bring you joy— your overall attitude toward work will be elevated!

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

I think what has helped me the most in building my reputation is how well I treat my clients and the amount of thought I put into my work/services. I care very deeply about the success of my clients, and I think this resonates with them which is why many come from referrals.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://msha.ke/briaspiveyconsulting/#about
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/briaspiveyconsulting/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briarspivey/
• Email: [email protected]