Meet Zollyann Howell

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Zollyann Howell. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Zollyann below.

Hi Zollyann , we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?
It was not always easy to be confident in myself, particularly because I’m naturally self-critical and always extremely hard on myself. Becoming a mom and also being an entrepreneur has allowed me the space to start trusting in my own judgement, capabilities and abilities. I think being confident is about valuing yourself and feeling worthy, regardless of any flaws or imperfections you may have or what others may think or believe about you. Becoming a self-published Author has allowed me the opportunity to build my confidence and self-esteem in a major way. When I first published “Your Mindset is LIT AF” I started practicing positive self-talk to help me train my mindset to be more positive and stronger. The first thing I did was stop staying in my comfort zone because I feared failure. I started taking risks and going the extra mile to achieve better things. I started doing what I believe to be right, even if I didn’t have the support and I also stopped waiting for others to congratulate me on accomplishments and I started to celebrate myself and my own efforts and wins even if it was small. All of those small habits had a major impact on me developing self-confidence and self-esteem.

In “Your Mindset is Lit AF” I spoke about overcoming fear and building confidence to go after your dreams. I have been sharing snippets of my journey as an entrepreneur on social media since the beginning of my journey, so my supporters went through it all with me, The ups, the downs, the triumphs, the wins, the lessons, everything. When I first started this journey I was just challenging myself to accomplish some goals and that eventually lead me to be able thrive doing what I am truly passionate about. Women will inbox me on social media and tell me all the time how they were able to connect with not just my experience but the amount of content and advice that the book featured. My goal is to make every woman feel confident and beautiful and help them develop a bulletproof mindset and courage to accomplish their goals whether I do it through hosting events to create spaces where women can connect and collaborate with each other, or whether I’m selling luxury gowns through my brand BAE & CO or I’m on a stage speaking at a conference. I’m just truly grateful that I was able to publish “Your Mindset is LIT AF” because it has allowed me the opportunity to have an impact on hundreds of other women who’ve had the opportunity to read it.

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?

Since first becoming a Self-publish Author and Entrepreneur in 2020, I’ve had many sets backs but plenty of Success on my journey. My very first business I started selling candles as a side hustle during the pandemic and sold out completely after launching. People were really into supporting black-owned small businesses during that time. I used the funds from that business venture to help kick start my own fashion boutique and the cost to self-publish and promote my first three books. I still can’t believe the amount of success I’ve had as a serial entrepreneur. Being the first and youngest black female to open a retail storefront in a local mall, becoming an amazon best selling Author, having my children’s book on the shelf of my hometown Barnes & Noble and so many other accomplishments. Becoming an entrepreneur not only brings out the hustler in you but it also brings out all of your flaws. I was able to discover my personal strengths and weaknesses. I was able to discover what I was truly passionate about and that’s helping people whether I do it by selling books or through my philanthropic efforts. I am fortunate enough to find the space and time to balance my businesses while still working as a fulltime school educator. I just want to help make the world a better place in any way that I can and I use my businesses to help me do that. I still deal with life every day and everything is working out exactly the way it’s supposed to. I’m just trusting the process and embracing the journey and hope that it’s impactful and inspiring to others in some way.

2024 will definitely be a Big year for me and my businesses. I’m kicking off 1st quarter with the release of my newest urban fiction. Beneath Brooklyn’s Canvas: Unveiling love, Resilience, and Redemption. Which debut in the top 5 across 3 categories on the Amazon Bestseller list during the first week of release with no promotion. This short story combines elements of fiction, romance, LGBTQ+ literature, and family drama. It captures the essence of love and relationships, the exploration of identity, and the empowerment of marginalized communities. It reflects the realities and struggles of the LGBTQ+ black women warriors within a modern society. Overall, this story encompasses themes of love, resilience, self-discovery, and community, appealing to a wide range of readers interested in inclusive narratives and heartfelt storytelling.

You can purchase a copy directly on Amazon at

https://a.co/d/ap9XtgM

I’ll also be hosting my virtual Self-Publishing Workshop where I share my expertise, resources and tons of gems for anyone who wants to learn how to self-published a book and become an amazon bestseller. In this workshop I share tips and resources on on the following:

-How to create low content book templates using Canva
-How to design and create a book cover
-How to format and upload a book manuscript with Amazon KDP, Barnes & Noble and other publishing platforms.
-Gems on how to get your self-published book into major retailers and schools.
-Marketing tips to successfully launch a self-published book and tons more.

You can learn more about this workshop and other events by following me on Instagram @zoll_inreallife or visiting www.booksbyzee.com to get access.

There are also a few other events in the works for this year and I can’t wait to share them with my followers and supporters! It will be an amazing and collaborative year as an entrepreneur.

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?
The most important skills I believe you need as an entrepreneur is people skills. People skills are crucial for entrepreneurs because they are responsible for building and managing relationships with customers and potential business partners. Effective communication, active listening, empathy, and emotional intelligence, enables you as an entrepreneur to understand the needs and expectations of others, resolve conflicts, motivate and inspire others, and effectively sell your products or services. Having good people skills help you to establish trust, build a positive reputation, and eventually contribute to the success of your brand or business.

As far as advice I would say stay away from only using self promotion to help push your brand. Self promotion will only take you so far because there’s a cap on how many people you actually know regardless of word of mouth or how many people share or like your posts. If you created your business for longevity and not just to make a quick dollar then you need to plan your entire business around that. You need projections at least 2-3 years out. Having a legitimate business plan is crucial to the longevity of your brand! Starting a business is fairly easy to do. Running a business in a insanely over-saturated market for people with short attention spans in the middle of a pandemic is hard. We’re all trying to eat and become successful but don’t be so thirsty that you are not following the recipe. Create that business plan!

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?
So many books play a crucial role in my development as an entrepreneur. But Pinky Cole’s “I Hope You Fail” is my absolute favorite going into 2024. The title is what initially grabbed my attention, “I HOPE YOU FAIL”. I personally love self-help and motivational books which is why I wrote “Your Mindset is LIT AF” so I was elated to read Pinky Cole’s book. I know firsthand what it’s like being female, being a black female, being a black female running a business. It comes with an insane amount of trials so hats off to Pinky Cole for sharing her story and what worked for her. The book was easy enough to understand but also thought provoking and positive. It definitely gave me the boost and inspiration I needed to keep going as an entrepreneur. It really teaches you how to turn your failures into success.

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