We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dr. Bobbie Mills a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Dr. Bobbie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

When I was a middle school director, a principal asked would I coach some of his new and veteran teachers. I was always the kind of leader that was never afraid to get down in the trenches with teachers because I believed that if teachers saw you working alongside them, they would have more respect for you and you would earn what I called street credibility. Each week I carved time out of my day, went to their school, and spent time coaching and mentoring my teachers.

For a couple of weeks things got busy at the office and I was not able to see them. Once I returned back to the school to see them, they made me feel like I was the Beyonce’ of coaching and mentoring! I knew their schedules at the time and knew they would be taking their students to lunch in the cafeteria. As they brought their kids to lunch, they saw me and immediately came to me and gave me the biggest hug along with an interrogation inquiring about my sudden disappearance over the last couple of weeks!

Ironically, that same evening I met with my business coach and we were going to brainstorm names for my company. I told her what I experienced and how it made me feel as though I was really making a difference in the lives of those teachers. I said to my coach, “Maybe we can call my company Elevation.” She told me I was on the right track, but I needed to somehow capture what I had experienced with those teachers. We continued to brainstorm and throw out different names after elevated and finally I said, “Elevated Vision!” She clapped her hands and said, “Bobbie, that’s it!”

Elevated Vision was the perfect name for my company because what I did for those teachers was elevate their visions of what they could accomplish to higher heights. I helped them raise their professional, social, and emotional leadership capacity in their classrooms. I helped them elevate their self-efficacy and instilled a belief system that they could teach and reach all of their students while maintaining classroom management.

Dr. Bobbie , 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?

I am the CEO of Elevated Vision Educational Consulting, LLC, a company that helps school an district leaders elevate their visions to higher heights so they can increase academic results. I hold an Ed. D. in Educational Leadership and I am a Transformation Coach and K-12 educator and administrator. I have over 20 years of experience and I have served as a teacher, administrator, and district elementary and middle school director. I understand the importance of helping leaders elevate their visions by nurturing a progressive mindset and building professional leadership capacity. I have led and coached I hundreds of teachers and impacted many administrators by using best practices to transform their schools and lives.

In the aftermath of the pandemic, leaders in both public and charter schools are contending with a myriad of challenges
and responsibilities that hinder their capacity to prioritize instructional leadership. Consequently, they may not excel in guiding and training teachers to deliver the level of instruction needed for achieving academic success. Failure of school leaders to prioritize both instructional leadership and managerial aspects of their roles will hinder the improvement of teachers’ leadership capacity and will negatively impact student achievement.

Elevated Vision Educational Consulting, LLC helps school leaders with prioritizing instructional leadership and enhancing the
leadership capacity of teachers and school leaders. What sets Elevated Vision Educational Consulting, LLC apart from others is that our services are tailored to meet the specific needs of each school leader, teacher, and institution. We provide customized professional development, personalized coaching, and mentoring for school leaders and teachers.

The one thing I am most proud of is establishing a company that instills a belief system in school and teacher leaders that they can elevate any vision they have to higher heights. It is not easy being an educator and I am proud that I have created a company that pours into educators and feeds their souls on a professional, social, and emotional level.

I have led and coached hundreds of teachers and impacted many administrators by using best practices to transform their schools and lives.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

When I first launched my business, my coach talked about how I needed to market my business. She said, “Bobbie, you are going to have to get on social media.” She asked me what was my level of comfortability with social media. I replied, “Hmmm, on a scale of 1-10 that would be a zero!” I had no desire to get on any social media platforms. Being the great coach that she was, she talked me into setting up a LinkedIn profile. She coached me on how to start building my brand through my social media presence. I have to admit I was nervous because I have always been a private person, but I had to come to the realization that although I was a private person, my business could not be.

I introduced myself to the world of LinkedIn and within the first two months I had over 500 followers. I posted various type of content about my business weekly and then began posting 2-3 times a week. Fast forward to today and I now have over 6000 followers and my business isn’t even 2 years old. My business coach reviewed my stats and said, “Girl, I had to pray because I didn’t think you were going to get on social media!”

My advice for anyone starting to build their social media presence is to stay visible. Post content on your social media platform at least 2-3 times a week. This can include content such as videos of you speaking, quotes, or pictures of you in action. People have to see you and know who you are in order for them to know what you are able to offer them.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

One book that has significantly impacted my entrepreneurial thinking is called The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be by Jack Canfield. The one thing I have learned in my journey of being an entrepreneur is that mindset is everything. This book is great for entrepreneurs because it focuses on the fundamentals of what it takes to be successful, being in community with other like-minded individuals, and taking action.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.getelevatedvisionllc.com
• Instagram: get_elevated_vision
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbie-mills-ed-d-77bab112b/
• Twitter: @ElevatedMills
• Other: email: [email protected]