We recently connected with Jessica Harrington and have shared our conversation below.
Jessica, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I started my career and education in the drug and alcohol field. While working with my patients I realized there was a common factor, my patients and my co-workers did not know how to handle stress. I wanted to be part of the prevention and education of stress. This sparked the idea to start my own business. If only the ending was, and now I have a beautiful successful business… nope. While starting my first business, I received my Master’s In Public Health ~ Integrative Medicine, continue working a full time job, and kept a shift or two as a bartender. Yes, I burnt myself out. I got diagnosed with “chronic mono”, after I got in a car accident from falling asleep at the wheel. It was at this moment I needed to see what I was doing “wrong” . On paper I was doing it ALL, and that was the catch, I was doing it all, except taking care of myself on a daily basis. After healing and more research, I started my successful business called Journey To Yourself.
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?
After I received my Masters In Public Health ( just a fancy word for health educator) passed a few bumps in the road I started my business called Journey To Yourself. I am a stress management coach, I help you created healthy habits that work for you on a daily basis to help reduce stress. I also provided coaching and workshops for business and corporations. I do not have a cookie cutter approach as I believe that what worked for me may not work for, I help on daily habits such as, communication, acceptance, mindfulness, self-love, and your environment,
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
Validation, especially as entrepreneurs, solopreneurs, business owners etc, we look for validation to see if our product is working and how we may have to change it. The thing is where are you looking for validation, do you need someone to say good job, and they are proud of you. You need to be the one to do that. Are you focused on the social media likes and follows, How much time is this consuming from making profit? I wanted validation from my family and friends, but these are not the people I am selling to. Yes, they want me to succeed, but this is not their business. This business is my blood, sweat and tears. I needed to learn, what I needed support on and then learn how to ask for that support and from who. Not everyone can come to every event, or share every post. I had to learn who could do what.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
The comment I get most in genuineness. I show up on social media just as I am, I am stress management coach, I talk about personal stressful encounters. Practice what your preach, people want to see things can relate to and also strive for. I would say help others make connections, I know networking can be a job within in itself, but if you feel two people would be great referral partners let them know. Lastly, but I feel is really important is just be nice, We all have life outside of the hustle and we all are just trying to do our best.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.journeytoyourself.net/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/journeytoyourself101/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JourneyToYourself101/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-harrington-journeytoyourself/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj977TKZZ5HLcVajCeQZqWg
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/journeytoyourself101/
Image Credits
Photographer: Marikate Venuto