Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Raven Freeman-Sims. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Raven, we are so happy that our community is going to have a chance to learn more about you, your story and hopefully even take in some of the lessons you’ve learned along the way. Let’s start with self-care – what do you do for self-care and has it had any impact on your effectiveness?
My overall wellness is an important factor to me. Self-care is a portion of my wellness, which I make sure to evaluate often. I have a variety of ways I cater to my self-care to include, physical exercise, massage therapy, and enjoying one of my many hobbies.
I started my self care journey after experiencing burn out from my dream career. I yearned for ways to feel better daily, considering I was falling out of love with what I dreamed I’d be doing for a long time. I found myself being the catalyst for my co-workers and ensuring they too were taking care of themselves. I began initiating morale building and self care activities within our office space. The biggest question I had, how can we continue to support and aide our customer base when we are burned out? Who would’ve known that implementing these activities would lead me becoming the self titled, “self care queen”. I implemented a monthly calendar that aligned with birthdays, holidays, and even national observances to engage my colleagues.
Time has passed since that life changing event. Since then, I have left my dream job and started a new role which I’ve fallen in love with. I now instruct soft skill courses that emphasize self care techniques. My effectiveness was impacted tremendously! Since honing in on my self care routines, I have lost over 70 pounds, my stamina is much better, and overall I’m a new person.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m just a country relatable girl that spreads positivity wherever I go. I have a career in South Carolina government that I have been curating for about 8 years. I value my career and helping people within the state I reside. My role title is a training coordinator/instructor and I basically instruct soft skill classes to state government workers. The most exciting part about my job is witnessing other people develop based on the instruction I’ve provided.
In reference to branding, my brand is being relatable. When I introduce myself in my class offerings, I always state, I am relatable Raven. I love to show how many life experiences can be relatable and we can all help/learn from one another.
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?
Three qualities or skills that are imperative in my journey is having a strong work ethic, open mindfulness, and being helpful. My life motto is, “always help others, you never know when you’ll need help”. Growing up I was taught to work hard and do my best. As I progressed in life, becoming open minded helped me understand a lot of processes I was a part of. Finally being helpful allowed me to learn a lot more, I utilize the skill of have having transferable skills daily. The best advice I can give individuals just starting on their journeys is to be a sponge, never think you’re better than another, and if you don’t fail you won’t succeed.
What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?
My biggest area of growth in the past 12 months is definitely my communication. I’ve always been a talker but not a great listener. I learned how to enhance and utilize my emotional intelligence when interacting with other people. I really take a deep dive into conversations now ensuring that all parties are heard and respected. My self management within myself and others has improved tremendously.
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