We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tamara Mitchell-Davis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

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

I’ve always wanted to write a book since I was a teenager. I would write everything down: journaling, sharing in my diary, creating poetry, and writing stories for school projects. As I was getting older, I would see books on the library shelf and always wondered if it was something I could do. It was a dream and something I aspired to do but never really thought it was possible. It seemed so far fetched because growing up in my neighborhood, there weren’t any authors.

I tucked the dream to the back of my mind but that didn’t stop me from expressing my thoughts and feelings through writing. I would start writing, stop, rewrite the same chapter, stop and start again. It wasn’t until adulthood that I really started seeing people around me publishing books. I was under the impression you needed a publisher and then self-publishing became a thing.

I kept writing but I never ventured out because it still seemed impossible. I didn’t know what to do. Here I was with all these words on paper and no direction. Thinking about life, my purpose, impact and even legacy, I got more serious about my goals. Why not me? When my cousin passed away suddenly I often wondered if her dreams were fulfilled. So what’s my excuse? To be honest, I had none. As scary as it felt, I started to seriously consider self publishing my own work. Once I began, I was building the plane as I was flying it. Going off course, and making mistakes but I kept going. Eventually, I published my very first book in 2017 titled “GoalGetter”. All I wanted to do was get published, so I thought.

I went on a book tour and got more interested in marketing what I had created. I had women reaching out to me about assisting them with doing the same, publishing there storeis. And that’s how my business was born. My book started the business. Shortly thereafter, I started teaching other women the process of writing, publishing and launching their book. At the start of the pandemic 2020, I started my first book collaboration project: Blessed Not Broken. It was a success, and we hit best seller status in ten categories. I had provided the women with a ton of information. Plus, they were able to connect, build relationships and learn together. The ladies are still connected to this day and it became the start of a book sisterhood.

I went on to produce additional book series and run courses on the writing and publishing process. To expand my reach, I held virtual summits because at this time everything was facilitated online with virtual access only. No one was meeting in person.

My conference “Pen to Profit” was delayed in 2020 (due to the pandemic) so we held the first one in 2021. This was a way for me to bring together authors, speakers, and entrepreneurs in person for all things writing, publishing and business building. Over the course of 2.5 days, we focused on information sharing, networking, building a business brand and concluded with a culminating black tie gala to highlight success. Each year, we cover different subject matters and for 2023, we are heading to Puerto Rico for the conference. The theme is Mind, Body & Revenue.

I knew this was a worthwhile endeavor because I had the opportunity to watch women transform before my eyes. Like a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. From shy to outspoken. From hiding to being visible. From having no business to starting businesses, generating revenue and making an impact. I’ve witnessed confidence, support, and sisterhood, that was all birthed through the vision of creating book collaboration projects that was more than just telling stories. It was sharing space for truth, freedom, hope and dreams to be birthed. I got to witness it all with a front row seat and this is what gets me most excited. Watching dreams fulfilled, goals smashed, revenue being generated, connections being made, relationships being formed and changing the trajectory of one’s life and legacy, all with books and entrepreneurship.

Tamara, 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?

Absolutely. Tamara Mitchell-Davis, wife, mom, award winning, 8x best selling author and CEO of TM Davis Enterprise LLC. I am the host of Pen to Profit annual conference and founder of The CEO Wife Experience Podcast. I have a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) degree, State of Connecticut 085 Business Administrator Certification and Women’s Entrepreneurship Certificate from Cornell University. Few. years ago, I created our private online community on Facebook: Pen to Profit: Write, Publish and Build. Since starting the business, I have created online courses, published books, and hosted conferences and virtual summits, to name a few. I’ve been featured in magazines and radio platforms. It truly warms my heart to be a conduit to help women find their voice, own their truth, spread their wings, create books and passive income to make the impact they desire. I operate from 3 main core values: integrity, trust, and respect.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to learn was to overcome the illusion of perfection. I realized part of the reason why I didn’t pursue things that I wished for or dreamt about was operating with the illusion of perfection. I wanted everything to be perfect knowing that first impressions do matter. I would be like a hamster caught on a wheel spinning around and not going anywhere. All because I was afraid to make a mistake and feared being judged, especially when it came to book writing. Not sure where this stemmed from but over the last few years, I’ve definitely become more relaxed with it. I lean more into doing and being an action taker. I don’t strive for perfection, I aim for progression. Perfect or not, I want to fulfill my purpose, make an impact, change the trajectory of my own life (and my family). I could not do any of that if I was so caught up in perfection to the point where I became stagnant and didn’t move. You won’t go anywhere far if you are spinning your wheels or running in the same spot, as a figure of speech.

Now you hear more people openly talking about failing forward and learning from their mistakes. It definitely relieved some pressure from me. I had to unlearn, relearn a new way of working, and venture outside of my comfort zone in order to face my fears and move through some of that self doubt that surfaced.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

The majority of my clients are online. I found them and they found me through social media platforms. Especially with the book collaboration projects. Since starting the business, and creating a presence on social media, I’ve been able to work with women across the United States. Part of my marketing strategy was to increase my visibility and reach so I would be a guest on podcast shows, run ads to get in front of potential clients, speak at events, host events and that’s why I started my own podcast. It was a way to gain visibility for myself and my clients.

Another way to gain visibility is going LIVE on social media. Believe it not, this was an area of discomfort for me. I wasn’t good at going LIVE. I was nervous and always wanted to add value and have something meaningful to talk about. Sometimes ideas would escape me and I would talk myself out of it. Its only so long you can hide from. yourself. Realizing that my “people” couldn’t find me if I didn’t show up, I had to motivate and encourage myself to keep pushing through. Even when it was uncomfortable and unfamiliar, I had to keep showing up.

I am a life long learner. I love writing AND learning. I am always exploring old and new ways to connect with my community and create content to attract more women to me based on what I offer and what they need. I do believe that entrepreneurship is multi-faceted and you are “it” when starting out: visionary, problem solver, relationship builder, marketer, content creator and the list goes on. Its definitely not for the faint at heart. You must roll with the tide . There will always be ups and downs. Prayerfully, more ups than downs. You don’t know how to do something until you actually start AND do. That was another nugget that I had to learn.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theceowife.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/theceowife860
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/theceowife

Image Credits
Ellese & Co LMG Photography Linkz Media