Trust Your Gut
Pol and Pals is a podcast where I, Ponyboy Pol, interview my creative Pals to learn how they became who they are TODAY... to inspire you for TOMORROW.
Tune in Live | Every Other Thursday | 8 PM EST
Morning Pals🐴
Alas, it is Monday again 🥲. I wish you all a happy and strong start to the week, but if you’re still in bed with your computer mouse next to you to keep your Status: “Available”, I completely understand. To assist, I’ll give you
[MOVE YOUR MOUSE]
reminders throughout this newsletter.
Youtube Live Feedback
We had our first Youtube Live episode this past Thursday in addition to a new Raffle Giveaway Format. From my perspective, it went pretty well, but I definitely have some ideas for improvement. I would love to hear feedback from those of you that experienced it firsthand so let me know by replying to this email.
Final Donation Numbers
I realized that I never gave a newsletter update on the Houston Food Bank donation stats after the first-week sales of the merch:
Total Sales: $1150
20% Donation + Pol Match + Ambie Match: $700 (I threw in $10 extra to make it even)
Total Meals: 2100
After I completed the donation, I found out that my company was able to match 100% on my behalf, so I was able to contribute an additional $700 for a total donation of $1400 and 4200 Meals!
Thank you to all those that participated, and for those that missed it, you can donate to the Houston Food Bank at any time (or find your own local non-profit/charity).
And the Pol and Pals Merch Store is always open fo’ bidness😎.
Preview:
Watch/Listen Now
Who Is: Morrisa Jenkins?
Freedom Apothecary
Pal Quote
My Takeaways
Raffle Winner
Coming Soon…
Watch/Listen Now
On Episode 19, I have a #CreativeConversation with my Pal, Morrisa Jenkins, the owner/co-founder of Freedom Apothecary: a holistic wellness, self-care, and community-building company "for people who have skin".
We talk about what inspired her to create Freedom Apothecary, how she overcame her internal fear, and what FREEDOM means to her.
WHO IS: Morrisa Jenkins?
Morrisa Jenkins is an entrepreneur from a small town in Mississippi (thank you autocorrect😭), a holistic-lifestyle advocate, and a mother of 2 beautiful young girls.
From a young age, Morrisa always dreamt of being an entrepreneur and avoiding the traditional 9-5.
[MOVE YOUR MOUSE]
In fact, when she was just six years old, she told her mom that one day, she’s going to make a lot of money, her name would be in lights, and she would make enough money to put her mom in a ñíçë nursing home😅.
What makes this all so interesting is that despite her passion for entrepreneurship at a young age, Morrisa did not really have any close influences that were entrepreneurs. Her mom was a school teacher and her dad worked at a factory, but she just always knew that working for somebody was not enticing to her.
Who can relate?
Freedom Apothecary
Prior to creating Freedom Apothecary, Morrisa’s first real attempt at starting her own business was “Meaux Moisture”.
As she prepared for the birth of her first daughter, Morrisa started seriously looking into baby products. After research into the harmful ingredients that were in a lot of popular brands, Morrisa decided to do her own thing and make her own products. She looked into different essential oils and plant butters and just started cooking up literally in her own kitchen.
Yet despite creating these new products, Morrisa had no intentions to sell them. It wasn’t till her now ex-husband made her a website and gave her a launch date that Morrisa realized she had a whole business on her hands.
She ran Meaux Moisture for about 3 years until the stress of running the business as a one-woman show while simultaneously preparing for the birth of her second daughter led to burnout. This led her to take a break until one night… she received a download.
[MOVE YOUR MOUSE]
Believe it or not, the idea of Freedom Apothecary actually came to her in a dream which Morrisa refers to as a “download”. The dream led her to reenvision her business as a storefront, a space to empower women of color, and an outlet to enlighten others on the benefits of holistic living.
Pal Quote
My Takeaways
Because my interviews are focused on my guests telling their story, I try to give them as much Talking Time as possible. “My Takeaways” is a space for me to share my thoughts on the interview:
Overcoming Internal Fear
One thing that stood out to me during the interview is when Morrisa mentioned that it wasn’t till her ex-husband pressured her into selling her products that she realized that she had a profitable business right in front of her. This stood out to me because Morrisa said she’s wanted to be an entrepreneur since she was young.
You would think that somebody that’s always had entrepreneurial passions wouldn’t need any motivation to start their own business, but the reason for the hesitation was explained later in the interview.
Being a southern girl from Mississipi, I’ve always felt this fear… I wasn’t confident in my speech, my voice, or what I had to offer to the world.
I needed that extra push.
I think this is something that we all can relate to especially as some of us have been isolated and/or working from home and occasionally find ourselves contemplating: what the hell is this Life thing all about?
[MOVE YOUR MOUSE]
Despite having some ideas and potential moves that might help us figure it out, we tend to be stricken by this fear of worthlessness or pre-determined failure that keeps us flatfooted and unmotivated to make the slightest of change.
I used to deal with this feeling often, and even though I still deal with it now on a much lesser scale, I attribute the reduced frequency of this fear to a mix of two things:
Taking that first step
External validation/gratification/motivation
Taking that first step
No matter what you want to accomplish, pursue, or obtain, NOTHING will happen unless YOU decide to make that first step. In Morrisa’s example, although her ex went out of his way to make a website for her and tell her a launch date, she still had to take that first step by actually utilizing the website and attempting to run the business.
You can lead a pony to water, but you can’t make it drink… or whatever that quote is.
External validation/gratification/motivation
Take the time to acknowledge that push from the people around you that actually care about you, and make a move on it.
On the flip side, if you’re aware of people in your life that are diminishing their potential or are not fully utilizing their skills, LET👏🏿THEM👏🏿KNOW. #Respectfully.
Raffle Winner
Congrats to Tianna H. for winning the Episode 19 Raffle Prize! I’ll be in contact soon to get you your Freedom Apothecary products.
Coming Soon…
NEXT EPISODE… On the next episode of Pol and Pals (Mar 18th @ 8 PM EST), my guest and I will be discussing their journey as a comedian, the power of social media, and the importance of collaboration. Click here to receive a reminder for when the episode is about to go LIVE!
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