We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ramesha Nicole. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ramesha below.
Ramesha , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
The idea of The Forgiveness Academy™ came during a 38-day sabbatical while in Mexico. Before leaving to go on my sabbatical (which is a time of intentional rest and detachment), I was feeling overwhelmed and burned out in the business and brand that I was operating at the time. As a believer of the Christian faith, one of the ways that I communicate with God is through journal writing. I’d written in my journal all of those thoughts and emotions, as well as how I was feeling as if I was failing at this thing called entrepreneurship. The response I was given was to shut down the business and take time off.
It was time for me to rest and start all the way over and was told to go to Mexico.
On June 5, 2022, I boarded a plane alone to go be with God and myself to take a break. I was well overdue for some much needed rest. One day, as I was lying in a hotel style bathrobe in my Airbnb, the idea was deposited into my spirit. The seed was planted. From that moment forward, ideas and clarity began to come to me and soon after, The Forgiveness Academy™ was birthed.
The mission of The Forgiveness Academy™, is to to help high school and college students increase their confidence and improve academic achievement using our proprietary methods F.L.O.W.™ in conjunction with The Layers of Forgiveness™.
Ramesha , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Before titles, I like to introduce myself as a child of God, as I’ve learned that WHO I am is more important than WHAT I do. In terms of purpose and business, I’m an Author, Transformational Speaker, Host of Coffee and Conversations with Ramesha Nicole on YouTube and Prophetic Voice for the Kingdom of God. In addition to being the Founder of The Forgiveness Academy™, which is the consulting side of my business, I’m also known as The Forgiveness Specialist™in the marketplace, where I work with clients 1:1 via inner healing sessions. Currently, I help Christian millennial women heal the side effects of unresolved trauma through the power of forgiveness.
What I’m most proud of is the transformation, clarity and breakthroughs that my current and former clients have received. During our 1:1 sessions on The Forgiveness Specialist™ side of the business, we partner with God/Holy Spirit to assist them in finding freedom in an area where there may be a hindrance. What we discover as we go through the process, is that somewhere the deeply rooted unforgiveness towards a parent who’s either made them feel abandoned or rejected was at play. From there, we go through the process of forgiving, releasing and combating the lies with the truth, which for Christians is found in the Bible. When we have our follow up calls or I’ve received emails of testimonials of prayers being answered, it reminds me that this calling on my life is needed and that no matter what things may look like, that I must keep going.
For The Forgiveness Academy™, I’m looking forward to using the culmination of my skills as a former school counselor, life coach and inner healing to help the next generation learn to live confidently in every area of their lives including their academics.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
One of the things that I’ve learned during this journey of entrepreneurship, is that a “NO” isn’t always final. Coming out of my career as a 13-year educator, I had very little experience with sales. As a result, when I would pitch whether it be to media, collaborations, partnerships and sponsorships, getting a “NO.” was very hard for me. I felt as if I were being rejected. It impacted my confidence and self-worth. I even began to think that entrepreneurship wasn’t for me. Well, that was until I was listening in on a Masterclass hosted by a speaking coach, where she stated “It’s not you that they are rejecting. It’s what you are offering that they are rejecting.” That shifted my perspective. Often we think that someone is rejecting us when we pitch our businesses for opportunities, but it’s not us as the person, it’s what we have to offer. After hearing that, I began to look at pitching in a different light and began to make changes as necessary.
In May 2022, I hosted a Trauma and Money workshop for my former business. There were many businesses that I reached out to for sponsorships. Many emails were not read, some were opened but with no response, and others responded “No. Not at this time.” Yet again, I didn’t let that derail me from landing sponsorships and continued to follow up and reach out. For every “yes” that I was given, I celebrated. For every rejection, I responded with “well, I’m closer to the next one.” After it was all said and done, we received 4 sponsorships from well known businesses from a list of 20-25, including a weekend staycation at a well known hotel chain.
What I learned is that there is power in the follow through and that you have to keep going despite the rejection.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
The most effective strategy for growing my clientele is being relatable and authentic. In the work that I do, I never present myself as someone who is above what my 1:1 clients face. I also have a way of connecting with people. People want to know that you care and that you understand the problem they are facing. We are all called to be a solution in the earth, not to look down on others. That’s the common theme in the feedback that many clients have shared, even former students when I was a school counselor.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theforgivenessacademy.com
Image Credits
Photo credit: Dangerfield Media,LLC.