Meet Jerri Johnson

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jerri Johnson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jerri, thank you so much for joining us today and appreciate you talking about a sensitive topic. It’s unfortunately relevant to so many in the community as layoffs have been on the rise recently, and so we’d appreciate hearing your story and how you overcame being let go?

I have had 9 layoffs in the course of my career. Six of those layoffs occurred during the 9 years I was working on my Ph.D. I was divorced and a single mother, working in Education and trying to complete my Ph.D. By the time the 3rd layoff came, I started asking God, “What now?” instead of “Why me?” Each time, except for the last three times, I had been able to find a job that paid more and provided me with more experience. The last 3 times, in the past five years, I have had to wait or pivot in my career. OUT of K-12 education and step outside of my comfort zone to consult, try to grow my small business, and live more frugally. During this process, my attitude/disposition has been key, my relationship with God has strengthened, and I have met people/gone places that I had no desire to go. lol My educational, nonprofit, and business network has expanded. And now I may be working in another country next year. Having an open mind, being curious, and utilizing ALL of the resources that I have has been key. Being scared was something that I was thrown into, and other times I threw myself in because being uncomfortable brings out a different side of people. It definitely has in me!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I have several irons in the fire these days. I am an Educational Consultant working for three different companies at this time. My work focuses on the implementation of curriculum in schools, ed tech platforms, and safety products. My side hustle is Coparenting Coaching. I have a podcast titled Common Sense Coparenting, and I provide resources to people who are coparenting a child/children. My purpose is to empower parents to navigate the complexities of co-parenting with clarity, compassion, and collaboration, ensuring a nurturing environment that centers the well-being of the child above all. My vision is to create a world where co-parenting is synonymous with healthy communication, mutual respect, and child-centered decision-making, fostering resilient families and thriving children.

I love the things that I do! Growing people and creating environments where people thrive and not just survive is my jam!! I am currently working on some coaching packages and workshop opportunities for coparents and exploring professional opportunities outside of the US.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

-Curiosity
-Empathy
-Willingness to Learn

To develop these skills, you need to have an open mind to ALL possibilities and NOT just your own. You will definitely need to have boundaries and non-negotiables that you STAND ON as well. There will be times that you have to take an L (loss), because of your morals/standards, and that is ok! LIFE itself will bring you situations and moments where you will be able to develop these things OR stay right where you are and not grow. The choice will be yours, GROWTH is always the choice for me! Get comfortable with the uncomfortable for periods of time. And the next time it comes around, it will be you working from experience, not from ignorance.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

The number one obstacle or challenge I am currently facing is growing my coparenting business. I am working with a team of people to increase the subscribers on my podcast, monetize it, and begin to create workshops/programming. I find that putting money into ME is my best investment. However, you have to have the money to do it lol. Soooo, I’m taking it slowly as I have the investment to make. That is the hardest part when you are ready to do something, slowing down.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://commonsensecoparenting.org/
• Instagram: @commonsensecoparenting
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerri-johnson-ph-d-7ba7552a
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@commonsensecoparenting
• Other: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/commonsensecoparenting