Meet Erinna M. Hinds

We recently connected with Erinna M. Hinds and have shared our conversation below.

Erinna M. , so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

In my experience, finding one’s purpose in life is more like shooting at a moving target than following a straight line. It’s not easy or quick and sometimes it’s incredibly inconvenient, but if you relentlessly seek out clarity on why you exist until you find the answer, the result is a genuinely fulfilled life. As a woman of faith, I believe that we all have a unique divine reason why we were created, which is why it is imperative that we don’t become consumed with comparing ourselves to others and miss the invaluable gift of discovering who we really are. The truth is that I am the only version of me that ever has or ever will exist. I can’t be replaced. I can’t be duplicated. If I choose to live my life not being fully present in this world while I am here, there is no understudy. No one else can play my part. Not only do I miss out on something great, but the world misses out as well. That’s how special God made each of us. That’s why knowing my purpose has always been so important to me and finding it was a combination of what I have coined “The Destiny Formula”. It is literally how God helped me repurpose my biggest heartbreak to create a platform that is allowing me to help people across the world discover freedom and peace. That formula is “Passion + Pain = Purpose”.

I was raised in a family where our faith in God was the foundation of everything we did, so I have always had my relationship with God as my true north. My parents were very intentional about affirming me during the early years of my life and helping me identify skills and talents that made me special. My mother particularly encouraged me to explore my varied interests and to learn about different career paths so that I could make informed decisions about what worked well for me and what wasn’t a good fit as I matriculated through school. That freedom to be curious early on helped me to become a more well-rounded confident individual.

Growing up I wanted to be a lawyer, then a chef, then an entrepreneur. I am a creative, so I also wanted to pursue writing and theater. I’ve been told that I have a great radio voice, and I enjoy teaching so I knew that I wanted to do something in life that incorporated those things as well. I have so many interests, gifts and talents that I was actually confused about my purpose for a while. I didn’t know how to choose the right path from all of the options because I didn’t know which profession would allow me to do all the things I loved most. As I matured, I learned that purpose and assignment are two different things. Your assignment is simply how and what you use your gifts for (always changing), but your purpose is why you exist (unchanging, always exist). I have had a plethora of assignments over the years including substitute teacher, youth pastor, church administrator, event planner, leadership trainer, executive director of a nonprofit, and stay-at-home mom. At times, it was difficult to see the method in the madness or how all of the dots connected to my purpose. But over time, I discovered that with every new assignment, my motivation or my “why” had remained consistent, I love helping others. That’s my passion.

Now my pain-point came about later in life. Through an emotionally abusive marriage, traumatic divorce, and balancing the whirlwind of starting over, building a business and single motherhood, I realized that family is the place where I have experienced the greatest pain in my life. It’s actually the combination of my passion for helping people and my pain-point of family that has led me to discovering my purpose which is helping individuals and families overcome challenges, effectively navigate change and rebuild after crises. In the corporate world I do that as a leadership strategist. In the private sector, I do that as a mediator and co-parent facilitator. In the community, I do that as a minister and mentor. At home, I do that as a wife and a mom. Different assignments….one purpose.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

As the owner & CEO of EM Enterprises LLC, a global communications consulting firm, I provide clients with tactical and viable solutions to help them achieve their success goals. I am an experienced leadership strategist with 16+ years in coaching, supervision, and training for educational and non-profit organizations. As such, I help drive organizational effectiveness through high-level leadership coaching, training, and employee engagement. My areas of expertise are communication, conflict resolution, collaboration, and change management. I assist organizations in resolving internal workplace conflict, avoiding costly legal battles, and maintaining stability during times of crisis or transition.

For over 20 years, I have worked with at-risk children and youth and helped empower families. I specialize in community engagement for primary and secondary educational institutions. I am the founder of EM Ministries, and the owner of The Divorce Preacher Family Mediation Services; a faith-based consulting service that specializes in domestic wellness by providing mediation, coaching programs, and support for separated and divorcing families. I have a passion for providing divorced and separated families with the resources needed to effectively navigate conflict, change, and trauma. As an advocate and survivor, I continue to help create awareness in the faith-based community about the generational effects of emotional spousal abuse and to support victims of domestic violence. In July 2018, I published my first book “Leaving Egypt: From Trauma to Triumph” and debuted my first short film titled “When Daughters Cry” to help spark candid conversations about the history of divorce, abuse and theology in the Black church.

I have spent the last two decades dedicated to living a life of servant-leadership and I believe in the importance of giving back to my community. I am a member of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Office of Child Support Advisory Council, a community mediator for Citizens Mediation in St. Joseph, MI, a member of the Michigan Health Improvement Alliance Financial Stability Committee, an affiliate of the State Bar of Michigan Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, and the Managing Partner and Lead for Global Partnership and Engagement for the Passionate Africa Leadership Institute in Ghana, West Africa.

As a certified professional mediator in both general civil and domestic relations mediation, I provide alternative dispute resolution services to corporations, educational institutions, non-profits and individuals.

I am currently working on my next book “Three-Cord Leadership” which is scheduled to be released in 2025.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The three qualities that were the most impactful to me on my journey were integrity, humility and consistency. While what you know is important, WHO you are is even more significant. To truly be successful in life, you have to be a person of integrity. That means that you have to be committed to doing the right thing even when no one is watching just because it is an essential core value of your character. I strive to be proud of the woman who looks back at me in the mirror every morning. I strive to be the type of woman who makes my husband and children proud. And ultimately, I strive every day to make God proud. Integrity is the key to accomplishing that. Practicing genuine humility in my life has brought me so many blessings. It has opened doors of opportunity for me and allowed me to gain access to rooms that I wasn’t qualified to step into. However, because I led with a servant’s heart and I am always willing to help or support, even if that means doing a task that other people think are beneath them to do, I have been able to connect with very successful people who noticed me humbly serving and favored me with mentorship opportunities. My advice to those who are early in their career journeys would be don’t despise humble beginnings. You never know when having the humility to start by sweeping the floor will lead you to an opportunity for you to take the floor just because you were in the room. Sometimes being in the right place at the right time doing the right thing is what gets you to the next level. Lastly, consistency must be a priority. You have to learn how to do small things in a big way. You may only be able to dedicate 10 minutes a day to growing your business at the end of the day when your family is asleep. Ok. Fine. Be consistent with that 10 minutes. Maybe you need to get a certification or take a class to help you advance your career, but you don’t think you can afford it. See how much money skipping takeout every week or Starbucks coffee every day will save you a week and take the class. A little really can go a long way. Be consistent. Consistently invest in yourself, consistency challenge yourself, and consistently believe in yourself. You are your greatest resource. As long as you believe in God and yourself, you can always bounce back. Trust me. I literally went through a season in my life where I lost everything I had, but my faith in God and myself. I stayed consistent and now I am living the harvest of my consistency. This is what it looks like to bounce back! Just remember, when you do bounce back to turn around and help someone else.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

Anytime you are a visionary and a dreamer, it is inevitable that you will have times when you feel overwhelmed. It’s because you dream so big and your ambitions are so vast that while you know it’s possible, you also can’t see how exactly you are going to get there. I am a planner, so I always begin with the end in mind and sometimes when I can’t see all the steps between my dream and my goal, I feel overwhelmed. However, one of the first things that I try to do is pause and pray. I take a deep breath and remember that I am dependent on God who is greater and bigger than me and who is partner in my destiny, so I don’t have to have all the answers. He got me! I also revisit my vision board. It serves a great reminder of all the dreams that have already come to past and that motivates me to keep going on my hard days. Lastly, I remember to give myself grace. Being a perfectionist is overwhelming. Thinking that you have to get it right all the time is exhausting. So while I always strive for excellence, when I miss the mark, I give myself grace and I ponder on the growth opportunity in front me. Then I choose to respond with optimism and recommit to doing small things in a big way until I reach my goal.

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