Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Melissa Williams. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Melissa, appreciate you joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

During the pandemic I spent more time exploring my personal beliefs and interests which led me to revisit my life long love of astrology and study it more deeply. I honestly was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude! What I was learning in my studies and receiving in consultations I signed up for, made me feel seen and validated in ways I had never experienced. I had never felt so imperfectly perfect and to say the process was deeply healing is an understatement. I felt liberated and empowered and I wanted other people to experience those feelings too. The more I learned and experienced my mindset expanded and I was able to see patterns in what I was learning in a way that made me realize that astrology paired quite well with learning how to work towards what many people desire: self-mastery, holistic wellness, improved relationships, or simply feeling like they have the cheat code to know what is right for them. I have worked in the mental health field for over 13 years and I was able to picture my clients and their situations and think about how even though evidence-based therapeutic practices are helpful there is still so much more that could be done to help more quickly identify root issues or move towards solutions that are tailor made. I immediately had a vision of a business were I was a wellness one stop shop and was using astrology, spirituality, herbalism, and other practices to to inform the way I approach guiding my clients towards holistic wellness or providing guidance in any area of life they sought my insight. When I looked at my personal and professional circles I didn’t see anyone doing what I was thinking of doing. I felt confident that my business idea was great because it lit my soul on fire. In addition I was able to see from my social media connections that others in the field of astrology were practicing different types of astrology and had successful practices. My only concern was that being born and raised a preacher’s kid in the Bible Belt and still living in Oklahoma I knew I would have push back from some people or have to work a bit harder to make my work palatable enough to gain interest. Nonetheless I knew it was a worthwhile endeavor because while therapy has become less stigmatized in black communities there are so many people, for a number of potential reasons, who will never go to therapy but still need some type of clarity or support. While I did not plan to offer therapy through my business I knew that I still had an opportunity to make a positive impact by helping people uncover their negative and positive patterns, show people how to heal or strengthen their relationships, clarify their purpose, look at family dynamics, and provide them resources and referrals for deeper work. Not only was I excited to be of service is a new way, but to also have more flexibility and creativity in my approaches.

Melissa, 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 a mental health therapist and preacher’s kid gone rouge. I have been interested in astrology since I was a little girl, and have always gravitated towards being helpful or creating solutions which is how I ended up being a therapist. Life happened and I went through stressful and traumatic situations that had me questioning everything including my purpose. When the pandemic happened I started deconstructing my religious beliefs, seeing myself differently, and desiring a more authentic life. For me this meant I needed to be true to and embrace my interests in spirituality, astrology, and everything else taboo. This also meant that it was time to find a way to help others outside of therapy so that I could have more freedom in my approaches. I dove right on into studying then I started having vivid dreams that always seems like they were showing which steps were next on my spiritual journey. Because of the dreams I started giving free astrology and intuitive readings to friends. I joined a spirituality group on social media and a friend recommended I sign up to became one of the approved card readers in the group. I was really nervous but went through the process and the person that I read for was in tears about my reading because of the accuracy and it being exactly what she needed to hear. She gave the thumbs up, I became approved, and started doing readings in the group.

People were impressed with their readings and told me I had a gift that I shouldn’t hide or be ashamed of because I was helping people and making a difference. Some of my friends even started telling others I was their Spiritual Advisor. Eventually I set up a free website and booking links so people could work with me, but I was keeping this work separate and focused on my lifestyle brand which was called Favored & Free. I was selling t-shirts and other items to try to gain momentum as I built up my knowledge, experience, and confidence to integrate all of me and my interests in a way that felt right and that I could be confident and bold about. I knew that I had more studying to do and wanted to really learn more holistic things like herbalism and medical astrology. Eventually I got over all of that and rebranded to Phoenix Soulife with the understanding that me and my practice would grow and evolve together.

Phoenix Soulife is a representation of what it means to accept and embrace the many changes of life and transformation of self. My goal is to support others on their journeys of transformation by giving them tools, insight, guidance, and being an example of what it looks like to embrace authenticity through it all. Currently my service offerings include: workshops, a private community (where I teach astrology and share other insights), intuitive and astrological consultations, and an upcoming astrology course. With astrology my current areas of practice are parenting, career/vocation/purpose, wellness, relationships, business, relocation/travel, self-discovery, and shadow work. For the astrology consultations I interpret someones birth chart based on their area of interest and during our time together I help lead them to clarity and find the solutions and answers that are a perfect fit for them. You will find a lot of advice about relationships, career, and etc…, in media, but we are all uniquely made so one size fits all advice is not helpful in many cases. Astrology consultations allow me to provide feedback that is just for the person(s) in front of me. I have helped clients with some of the following: making more informed relocation choices that meet their desired goal, helping frustrated moms find new techniques to try with their cranky toddlers, business owners find new social media strategies or breakthrough their creative blocks. I have also helped people uncover the root of their relationship dysfunctions and ways to work towards healing and improvement in that area.

What sets me apart from many other astrologers or holistic practitioners is that I have a background in psychology and therapy with years of experience in the mental health field. I bring those skill-sets and experience to the work I do and that includes the ethics of doing no harm, being trauma informed, and knowing when someone needs to be referred out for more service. Astrology and spirituality are not where is stops for me. I am a certified Reiki Practitioner and am currently taking a couple of other classes that will get me closer to my goal of being a one stop shop for wellness. I am also studying plant medicine with goals to dig more into medical astrology, somatic healing techniques and more.

Above all I want people to know that my brand and business is truly a labor of love and bred out of a desire to help empower & liberate others while being free myself. That does not negate that I am human too as I have my own ups and downs, but my clients can count on me to be authentic through it all. Authenticity for me also means I embrace all parts of me including creative expression and one of the ways I do that is through pole dance! It is actually very healing for me and in may ways my medicine. I like to mention this hobby so if people decide to follow me on social media they aren’t surprised when they see me spinning around and shaking my hips. (Laughing) It is interesting to see the mixed feedback I get about this or people’s perception of pole dancers. Even though pole dancing is for me, I love to use my platform to encourage others to heal through creative expression, movement, and to fall in love with their bodies while claiming sovereignty over their whole self. In terms of creativity I am also a poet, actress, I’ve dabbled in photography and modeling and love creative consultations! I assisted once as creative director for a photo shoot and loved every moment. I am multi-faceted and this tends to show up in my expression, brand, and work.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Wow this is fun to reflect on. My social media page presence has evolved so much over time. I built my audience across a few platforms initially with friends and family and over time it grew due to me just being my authentic self. I was sharing my random thoughts and funny stories about my day and people fell in love with my personality. I started interviewing others because at the time that’s what I was excited to do and my page continued to grow. Eventually I started starting being more intentional and making posts that were not just uplifting but informational and inspiring. I also try to use social media as a place to not just share information but to ask questions and engage with others. As I reflect the posts that got me followers or were very popular were never the ones I expected but they were authentic moments or messages that people resonated with or found helpful.

In terms of my Intsagram if I am being honest I feel like when I started listening to other people and trying to niche down and make my page very business like it felt harder for me to feel like I had a good flow. People were still responsive, but it just started feeling more like work for me and I don’t like feeling like social media is work (even though it is). The tips I received were great and I did feel people were well engaged with my content though! I do feel like I spread myself then trying to be active on multiple platforms.

My advice is be true to you and be consistent. Authenticity is more attractive than anything. People on social media can tell when something is forced or you just want to sell them something. Be intentional but be you. The algorithms are always changing so just keep finding ways to show up and maintain a presence. If you don’t have anything to post, go live and connect with your audience for 15 minutes weekly to stay on their minds. Its okay to try multiple platforms but I think it is wise to pay attention to where you get the most traction and stay there. Also know that social media can feel like work and if you don’t like that you may find it helpful to pay or barter with someone who can schedule your posts or manage your content and leave you to just connect and be social. I have had a couple of posts go viral but I am no social media expert at all. Social media is also not the end all be all. I am learning that it is important to get back out in the community and form face to face connections when safe and possible. The pandemic pushed a lot of us online, but using mailing lists, Eventbrite, physical flyers, and networking is still relevant. Use social media as leverage to connect people to you in other ways. Also make sure you have people that can take pictures of you while you are working events and doing other things so you will have for content. Remember to take photos of your work. I don’t always remember.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

One of the things my reputation in the market is built on is my personal and professional reputation that proceeds me. A lot of people that work with me may have been previously on the fence about astrology or non-religious spiritual topics, but because they have trusted me before to help or teach them about other things they continue to trust me. The other thing that has helped build my reputation is the way I communicate what I have learned and am doing. I explain things without all the fancy words so people have a better understanding and feel more informed. I have also been told that I connect well with people and help them feel safe. One of the biggest things that has helped my in my opinion is my ability and willingness to say, “I don’t know, but I can find out or find someone who does.” I am open to share what I am learning and what I don’t know. I believe this signals to people that I am honest and will not pretend to know more than I do and I am willing to ask for help or collaborate.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.phoenixsoulchild.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phoenixsoulchild
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/phoenixsoulchild
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@phoenixsoulife
• Other: https://www.patreon.com/PhoenixSoulchild

Image Credits

Photo Credits for yellow dress and striped background photo: The Color Factory