We recently connected with Stephanie A. Jones and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Stephanie A., thanks for joining us today. What do you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry? Any stories or anecdotes that illustrate why this matters?
As a former corporate worker bee, turned serial entrepreneur I’ve found that corporate America continues to struggle with understanding and supporting the needs of the people that impact their bottom line. Although being a small business owner is not completely filled with glitz and glamour, the level of independence experienced is quite liberating. Under the corporate thumb, we still find ourselves having to ask for permission to take time away, struggle with finding a balance between work and home, and experience increased work demands with very few incentives. Unfortunately we work so hard for a promotion to simply receive MORE WORK! The biggest difference that I found between the two is autonomy. There’s just something special about having more free will to choose not only the level of stress you endure daily, but also how you go about maintaining a balance that supports your overall wellness.
Stephanie A., 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?
My journey into small business started in medicine as a mental health outpatient provider and quickly grew into a go-to resource for the Jacksonville woman’s work and wellness. I am not originally from the Jacksonville area. While establishing my private practice here, I quickly realized that I was lacking social relationships. I began hosting quarterly dinner parties called F.L.Y. (First Love Yourself) and it quickly grew into an empowerment conference to now a brick and mortar location. Recently we opened a woman centric coworking office called The CoWerk Space in our downtown area. This hub serves as a resource for women looking to find like-minded connections, as well as gain support while developing their own small business.
Our motto is “She who wants friends must first show herself friendly.”
Services we offer include access to our photography studio, conference room, or coworking lounge. Other benefits include free high speed Wi-Fi and complimentary coffee, tea and water. When visiting, be sure to ask about reserving our space as a venue for your own events. We offer that too!
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to master the difference between being busy and being productive. Both of my small businesses were conjointly successful and moving at a very rapid pace. Because of this overflow, I oftentimes found myself being pulled in multiple directions. Although I was able to maintain those commitments, it rendered me tardy for appointments, rushed to meet deadlines, and overwhelmed to the point of decision fatigue. I started to give more attention to the areas of complaint from those that love me and listening to my body. This created a pathway for implementing change to attend to my schedule better and I started having reduced segmented attention.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
We were grant winners of the NAACP + BeyGOOD award! Can you imagine winning award from Beyoncé herself?!?
That process was a great learning experience. It was a challenge to organize and compile so much data about the business, but a necessary step to grow.
The funny story is I didn’t even realize that I had won the grant award. I found the award in my junk mail. I almost missed the deadline to respond and accept. If that wasn’t a hard lesson to learn about being sure that you check your spam and your junk mail at least three times a week.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.womenatwerk.com
- Instagram: @womenatwerk
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/womenatwerk
Image Credits
Girl Boss Branded for the Headshot. Images of the office space are owned by Women at Werk.