We recently connected with Jowan Smith and have shared our conversation below.

Jowan , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?

I got my first client when I pitched in a business pitch competition with the Cleveland Leadership Center called Accelerate in 2017. I pitched my idea and one of the judges was the CEO of the local school district. Within weeks I had a meeting with him and his team. This resulted in my first major contract.

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 started my work in 2017 after being in a business pitch competition. I was helping families with the college prep process as a hobby after I worked with my own child. As a single mom I knew I couldn’t afford to pay for her to go to school, so I needed to know how to get her there as close to free as possible. After competing in the competition, I secured my first school contract. At that time, I didn’t officially have a business, so I had to create a business based on the need in my community. I created curriculum to assist parents with the process. So, the schools would book me, and I would facilitate workshops on different topics from FAFSA, NACAA, scholarships, budgeting, passions, careers, post-secondary options. What we offered was a parents view of the process. What made us different from other organizations is that our curriculum is facilitated by parents and students that went through the process. This allows for not only the curriculum to be taught but also personal experience to be added in. From there I started a nonprofit for young men to eliminate barriers to stop the generational cycle of poverty starting with something as simple as a tie. The nonprofit started a way to help our young men but has grown into a life skills program for all youth and young adults. Over the last three years I have also published three children’s books and I’m about to release the fourth. All of my books feature characters of color in real life situations. They also have a lesson or resource in the back of each book. I’m most proud of the number of families we have been able to provide service to. I’m also proud of the things that don’t get posted on social media. Every year we adopt five families in different circumstances and give them a Christmas dinner with gifts and characters. We have given out over 10,000 hygiene kits since the pandemic started to youth in Cuyahoga County. I have donated over 400 books to organizations to give out to children. What people should know is that I do this work because it is my purpose. My pain point became my mission but was always my purpose. Its more than a business, its a movement.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

In October of 2021 I was diagnosed with cancer after losing my best friend and grandmother a few months prior. For me it was like being hit in the stomach. I felt like I was doing everything right as far as being a good person and being a giver to my family and community. So, to have so many emotionally taxing things happen to me was overwhelming I was running two businesses and had just released my third title (book). Business was going great I was working more than I was sleeping but wasn’t complaining. I decided that cancer would not be the last chapter in my book. I had my first surgery in December of 2021 and continued to do my workshops. I could barely walk or drive, but I pushed through. On the day that we had our Christmas dinner where we adopted five families, I found out the cancer spread, and I needed a second surgery. I left the doctor’s office in a fog but went and did the dinner as if nothing was wrong. Second surgery was in January of 2022 and this one was even worse. The day after surgery I had to come out for an appearance. Once again not really being able to walk and definitely couldn’t drive this time. I continued to work and be of service to my community through my recovery. I didn’t even tell anyone because I just wanted to get through it and not mess with the flow of business. My ability to continue to work during such an emotional and painful times shows my resilience.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The pandemic taught me that learning how to pivot is the only way to survive. With my sessions I was always in the schools and in person, so we had to pivot to virtual. Then when the schools closed down, I started pushing the books out. I also saw a change in college admissions during and after the pandemic, so we pushed harder on our life skills curriculum over the college prep. The world has changed, and people are finding many other ways to have a career.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.1000ties.net
• Instagram: Author Jowan Smith
• Linkedin: Jowan Smith
• Twitter: @gobtc101
• Other: www.gobtc101.com www.jowansmith.com

Image Credits
Trayvon Porter Lewis Burrell