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

Alright, Dacia thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

My business was birthed out of a time in my life where I felt like everything that could go wrong did. 2016-2017 was a span of time that really shook up my world. Born and raised in Chicago, after recently losing both grandparents within a six months, experiencing major friend-breakups, a romantic pursuit failing, and being laid off from a job – I took a leap of faith and moved to Atlanta in the fall of 2017. I bought a one-way ticket to visit my new friend at the time and as life would play out I just never left. I flew Spirit with one Louis Vuitton Neverfull GM bag — the irony. I had no car, no apartment, no clothes, and had exhausted my savings. But I went.

I’ve never wanted to work for anyone else despite spending over in decade in the corporate. I needed the money so, I picked up a corporate job. I knew this job would be temporary and working in this role reminded me every day that I needed to transition as soon as possible. I officially started GloGirl World, LLC in 2018 and launched a faith-based t-shirt line. Word traveled and I found myself managing my new shirt business while working full-time. Approximately one year later, I remember leaving the office for an early lunch break because I had to pick up a shirt order. I was extremely unhappy and emotionally drained. As I drove, tears began to fall and I was crying out to God saying, “I know there’s more to my life than this! God, I don’t want to just work a 9-5 like this anymore.” And God heard me. What I didn’t realize is that as soon as I returned from that lunch break, I was going to be laid-off, again.

Life is all about getting creative and being flexible. So, I relied on my ability to provide great business advice and marketing strategies. In my 15 plus years of corporate work, and in my personal life, I was always creating sharing business solutions. So, I started offering my services of consulting and coaching under the banner of GloGirl World.

When I moved to Atlanta, I really craved community. I felt like a fish out of water and just didn’t know how to connect in a new city. I kept searching for a tribe but couldn’t find a women’s circle that fit me and aligned with my values. Everywhere I turned, I felt like I was surrounded by vanity and lots of movers and shakers trying to demonstrate their wealth or prove their status. I appreciated nice clothes and luxury experiences but I did not want to join circles that only focused on monetary gain and outward appearances. I needed more to fuel me.

In 2018, I started hosting online events to talk, connect, and create safe spaces for healing and empowerment so that women could live boldly in purpose. Then 2020 hit, and unbeknownst to me, I began to grow a community of my own. A circle of interdependent and fierce, faithful women who were willing to show up and just BE. So often people are afraid of being judged, misunderstood, or misaligned; so we hide. In my circles of intergenerational mentorship, thought-provoking conversations began to free us to move about with intention and impact. GloGirlWorld had expanded beyond simply a t-shirt brand. I began coaching business women and curating safe-spaces for women to show up authentically.

What seemed as if it would be a set back turned out to be the setup for. the life I prayed to have. My losses were just opportunities to redirect me to greater. And that new friend I visited in Atlanta became my husband. If you’re reading this and see yourself in my story, know that it all works out in the end. Just keep moving forward.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

For all of my Shonda Rhimes fans, I am like the Olivia Pope for business owners. I help small-business owners get out of their own way by identifying problems they did not even realize existed and develop revenue-producing strategies.

I started GloGirl World, LLC to provide faith-based business consulting and coaching for corporations and purpose-driven business owners. We cultivate community and host events to empower Black women to walk boldly in purpose and shine unapologetically in Christ.

As the owner of GloGirl World LLC, I lead as a business strategist working with small business owners to enhance their existing brand and marketing. I offer one-on-one coaching, brand bootcamps, and an entrepreneur accountability circle for business owners that need support.

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

I just show up and I show up authentically. I continue to offer my audiences opportunities to connect, learn, grow and build within community. I am an introvert so I prefer deep and meaningful connections over surface bonds. I believe my values show up through the events my company hosts throughout the year and annually. In 2024, I will host my 3rd annual Restore Her Retreat in Atlanta, GA. The Restore Her Retreat is an all women’s getaway weekend to take a pause from doing and simply focus on ourselves.

Particularly, Black women have the highest morbidity rates in most health verticals. And most illness is rooted in stress. We are stressed beyond measure and trained to overwork and avoid doing the inner-work. However, through the Restore Her Retreat we prioritize our own needs. The breakthroughs, I get to witness in these safe spaces, are what fuel the connections and establish my reputation. I’ve jokingly shared that I will acquire a 2024 tissue sponsor because there are so many tears that flow throughout the weekend. And we literally ran out of tissue boxes this past fall. I celebrate those tears. It signifies healing. In community, we truly get a chance to release and renew.

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

When you first start out as a business owner you are doing everything yourself. You automatically start wearing all of the hats and doing all of the things. Well listen, that gets old REAL quick. And I had to unlearn that doing it all myself was the best way to go. Yes, solopreneurship is typically the starting point. However, as you grow it becomes necessary to grow your team. You actually don’t save money by doing everything yourself. Studies show the more team members you have the more revenue you can potentially earn. Learning to build and rely on a team has been critical to my success.

Contact Info:

• Website: GloGirlWorld.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daciaruth/?utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GGWConsulting
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/glogirlworld/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaciaRuth_
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@glogirlworld

Image Credits
Kayla Wilson Photography https://kaylawilsonphotography.client-gallery.com/ https://www.facebook.com/KaylaWilsonPhotography https://www.instagram.com/kaylawilson_photography/