We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Velonda Anderson PhD a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Velonda, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
My work ethic is deeply rooted in my family’s legacy of hard work and perseverance. I come from a long line of individuals who began working in their teens, including my mother, grandmother, siblings, uncle, and cousins. Their dedication instilled in me the importance of responsibility and resilience from an early age.
At 14, I became a runaway and found myself living with relatives. Despite my young age, I took on the responsibility of financially contributing to the households I lived in. This experience shaped my understanding of the value of hard work and the importance of pulling my weight in any situation.
By the time I graduated high school at 17, I had big dreams of earning a college degree. However, I quickly realized that success requires effort, sacrifice, and determination. These early lessons have stayed with me, driving my unwavering commitment to work hard for what I want and to honor the legacy of resilience passed down through my family.
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 believe everyone has a GOD assignment from birth, their gift & passion, what we are born to do in the world. I strongly believe that gift & passion is given to us to give to the world (we just get to enjoy the ride!). I’ve always found myself engaged in activities that had something to do with food and/or physical activity; from running track in high school to nursing school to teaching exercise for military wives and my first business – Be-fit, Inc (corporate wellness) followed by creating a non-profit organization for youth fitness (Mo Better Health) and years as a nutrition professor and public health professional. I served as Program Manager for the Women’s Infant & Children (WIC) program for the Detroit Health Department until 2019, when I retired to become fulltime CEO of Sweet Potato Delights. I wear many hats in this growing enterprise and I feel there is a lot to be excited about when you are creating yummy recipes for public consumption that is made with the healthiest ingredients (and no preservatives); when you get to impart nutrition knowledge to young and old (as a workshop presenter or keynote speaker); when your company gets to offer summer employment for young adults that may one day be future chefs and food entrepreneurs.
What makes our brand special is the use of the sweet potato, a super food that pairs well with so many ingredients and other foods. It’s a food that can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and anytime snacking.
We live in a world where food is intertwined in all we do: mourning, celebrating and everything in between. Food like music brings people together joyfully more times than not!
We are excited about the recent launch of our cookie box subscriptions on the sweetpotatodelights.com website. Website visitors can subscribe for 3 or 6 months to receive a baker’s dozen (13) of cookies each month. If they are not sure which cookie to order, a sampler box is available to try. The most joyful part is that the proceeds from the “Sampler Box” sales support our annual “Cookies for the Holidays” initiative and annual donations to non-profit organizations serving youth, seniors and veterans.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Adaptability, persistence & hard work have been most impactful throughout my journey. Time management and a growth mindset are important entrepreneurial skills. As a public health professional, I found communication & advocacy, leadership and systems thinking to be important.
I think the best way to develop or improve on these involves being a lifelong student (always coachable and open to embracing new). If you are the smartest person in your circle (social or professional), get a new circle!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sweetpotatodelights.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweetpotatodelights/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sweetpotatodelights/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drvelonda/
