Prepare to be captivated by Reverend Tamekia Milton's extraordinary journey from the rural South to the bustling city of New York, and her triumphant return back home. With her incredible voice as her guide, you'll hear about her studies in music at Clark Atlanta University and her divine calling to ministry, which she pursued at Emory University. Graced with unshakable faith, Tamekia's mission is to bring hope, encouragement, and healing to the world, all while using her voice in her innovative approach to marketplace ministry.
As we move to the latter half of our conversation, Tamekia switches hats from spiritual counselor to savvy entrepreneur, offering priceless advice for building a thriving business. From the necessity of crafting a solid plan and consulting with trusted advisors to mastering the art of juggling a job and entrepreneurship, her insights are invaluable. She places emphasis on authenticity, discovering your unique 'flow', and the importance of self-compassion during the journey. For those eager to harness the power of social media for business success, Tamekia shares her strategies. Whether you are on a spiritual quest or seeking practical business guidance, this episode with Reverend Tamekia Milton is indeed a treasure trove of wisdom.
https://www.tamekiamilton.com/
This program is brought to you by:
Balanced Virtually
Be sure to visit BizRadio.US to discover hundreds more engaging conversations, local events and more.
Prepare to be captivated by Reverend Tamekia Milton's extraordinary journey from the rural South to the bustling city of New York, and her triumphant return back home. With her incredible voice as her guide, you'll hear about her studies in music at Clark Atlanta University and her divine calling to ministry, which she pursued at Emory University. Graced with unshakable faith, Tamekia's mission is to bring hope, encouragement, and healing to the world, all while using her voice in her innovative approach to marketplace ministry.
As we move to the latter half of our conversation, Tamekia switches hats from spiritual counselor to savvy entrepreneur, offering priceless advice for building a thriving business. From the necessity of crafting a solid plan and consulting with trusted advisors to mastering the art of juggling a job and entrepreneurship, her insights are invaluable. She places emphasis on authenticity, discovering your unique 'flow', and the importance of self-compassion during the journey. For those eager to harness the power of social media for business success, Tamekia shares her strategies. Whether you are on a spiritual quest or seeking practical business guidance, this episode with Reverend Tamekia Milton is indeed a treasure trove of wisdom.
https://www.tamekiamilton.com/
This program is brought to you by:
Balanced Virtually
Be sure to visit BizRadio.US to discover hundreds more engaging conversations, local events and more.
Welcome to the Veronica Edwards Show, where we have fun financial conversations that everyone listening can apply to their personal and professional life. I'm your host, veronica Edwards, and I'm so excited to be back here, season three on bizradious. I want to thank all the listeners, aka the V team, for downloading the podcast. We have exceeded 3,000 downloads, which was the goal for season three, so we're trying to get four before four. We want to get 4,000 downloads before season four in 2024 and I think this episode will get us there. I think we're going to go viral.
Veronica:And today is a family edition, which is one of the most favorite segments that I have here on the Veronica Edwards Show. And today's guest, this beautiful young lady, is my cousin that I grew up with, originally in New York and then I migrated to South Carolina. She's been multiple places Atlanta, alabama, all over and our birthdays are just a few weeks apart, so it's just been an honor to see the growth and the achievements of my cousin. So let's get into all the stuff that she's. Let me get into this intro. She's a serial entrepreneur, she's an author, a social media extraordinaire darling, as well as a Christian inspirational leader with well over a decade of clinical pastoral, little clinical pastoral ministry and spiritual support experience. Not to mention she is an amazing trained singer with a bachelor's of arts and music performance and a minor in education from Clark Atlanta University and earned a master of divinity degree with a certificate. I can't say all the stuff. She's so smart in religious education from Emory University. I can go on all day with all the accolades of my beautiful cousin.
Veronica:So, without further ado, I would like to introduce the beautiful, the fashionable, the sexiest woman of God that I know, my cousin, reverend Sebecia, mika and Swannette Milton. Let's come on.
Christian:Hello, good morning, good afternoon. Wherever the viewers are tuning in from, where listeners are tuning in from how are you, cousin? I am so excited.
Veronica:I'm so happy to have you on. Thank you for making the time. Certainly, thank you for having me. Yes, well, we're gonna jump right into it, because we have so much to talk about and I always start the show, reverend Tamecia, with asking the guests to tell us about you, where you're from your story that led you to become a Reverend and to be a successful entrepreneur.
Christian:Sure, thank you so much. Well, I say this often, I have a Southern etiquette with the city swag. I was born in Sumters, carolina, raised in New York City. My family and I we migrated to the North when I was about one year old and with that I learned early on that I had this unique gift with my voice, whether it was through singing or speaking, encouraging folks. Veronica, I even remember you saying it wasn't a surprise when you found out that I was moving into ministry, because I always had this inner inclination to come alongside individuals and to offer some sense of hope and to demonstrate some a sincere level of care and concern for their well-being. And so I went to attend it, the Clark Atlanta University, celebrating our homecoming soon. And I just really began. And I studied voice while at Clark Atlanta was accepted to other music conservatories Berkeley School of Music, elmhurst Conservatory in Illinois but I had my heart Come on husband.
Christian:Talk your talk. Talk your talk, husband. All right, go ahead. I had my heart set on going to hot Atlanta at that time. Come on, I think it was still a thing. All of that, all the things that would attract people, yep, yep all the things that would attract people to Atlanta at that time, and it would, with it also being considerably the Black Mecca, so anything that was pulling out great in view of the Black community, it was being fostered really in, and still is being fostered in one of many places, that being Atlanta.
Christian:So, just through this journey of self-expiration and really trying to find out my purpose and what I was created to do, I realized that my voice was not only to utilize or given to me as a gift to sing, but to bring hope and encouragement to individuals. And so, after attending Clark Atlanta University, I began to sense a call, a call to ministry. But there was such a turning point I will never forget. Coming from, as you know, veronica, a faith-filled family, we know about prayer, prayer is significant and like a cornerstone for us, and so I remember one weekend visiting my grandmother, the late mother Margaret Taylor.
Veronica:You're about.
Christian:Margaret, yes, and who's just such a strong pillar in our family and a woman of faith. She was not feeling her best and she asked me to pray for me. And I was 18 at that time and she spoke then that I would be an evangelist. Yeah, at 18. But that word that she had rendered unto me really didn't start to come to pass until years later. I had to walk it out.
Christian:And that's the thing about life when we encounter the ethos of life and when we have a purpose, it doesn't always come together right in the heat of the moment, but it's through living life and going through trials and tribulations and those growing pains that really shape us to be the people and the person that we're called to be.
Christian:So I answered that call later on in life and went to Emory Hamlet School of Theology and earned my Masters of Divinity, and still exploring what was next for me, because I knew that I was not called to quote unquote traditional ministry, parish ministry, local, congregational ministry, but it really was reaching the masses and going to places where you would not no-transcript fine, literally a pastor or a reverend. And so I allowed God to lead me and shape me into what that would look like, and he led me into marketplace ministry. It's what I refer to it as that. Yes, I'm still able to serve and to bring inspiration and hope and healing to people, and I do it in corporate systems I put in the marketplace. I have served, as you mentioned, in very unique settings corporate with Johns Hopkins health system, currently serving with Emory health system and serving on the faculty there with the Department of Spiritual Health. But with all of that, my passion and my purpose is to see people thrive in the fullness of their creativeness.
Veronica:Tamika. You said so much good stuff and I just wanna add you know Tamika mentioned ever since a young age. We're the same age, you know. Tamika's a little older than me, just by a couple of weeks, but Tamika was always so mature, so calm, you just always had this wisdom about you, so and always so humble. And you guys can't see Tamika right now, but she's in a beautiful pink suit.
Veronica:You know, like I've never seen my cousin not look like she's ready to do a press conference for the White House and I want people listening to know that you can have a business and still be a Christian and you can still make money helping people but at the same time, still have your faith in God. So I wanna tap into what you said about that passion, because you know we have to shout out our beautiful mothers Linda, aka Betty Milton, my mother, friends of the show, dorothy Vaughn they're huge when it comes to family, huge when it comes to faith. So for those that are listening and they're trying to figure out their passion, they're trying to figure out their purpose, how do you recommend that they find this?
Christian:Be who you be. I talk about this in my book. I have this theoretical concept that it's a colloquial idiom or colloquialism that says who I be. I use that really to talk about how individuals come into the awareness of knowing who they are through the creator, that we were all created with a purpose. We were all created with gifts and taking the time to live into your uniqueness and your individuality. You know there were things that I was drawn to, that other people weren't drawn to, and there were things that you know ways in which I lived my life that probably didn't work for others, but I sought to be and continue to seek to be my most authentic self, and that's its courage. It takes a risk, but it takes you believing in the creator, the one who created you, and that you're worth investing in yourself. Yes, investing in and I love what you said, veronica. I really wanna lean into that this idea of being and purpose and how.
Christian:Yes, it started out with music. It started out with answering my call and then moving into entrepreneurship. I left Johns Hopkins at the early part of this year to start my business. I realized that I couldn't allow my dream and destiny and my passion to die behind a desk. And so I want some leap of faith, and that is the cornerstone, that is what helps me to spring forth, which is the brand and the mission and the movement that God has given me, that we are each respectively called to grow and to spring forth to greater and to bigger. But we have to believe that we can, and my faith informs me, in that belief and that determination, that I truly can do All things through Christ, who strengthens me.
Christian:And so my first book, which was released last year, is entitled just that you can, you shall, you will, you must. The art of pursuing purpose, promise and destiny. You don't get there overnight, it's through trial and error, it's through hardships, it's through loss, it's through grief, it's through pain, it's through tears, but when you know you have a purpose and you believe in that purpose, there's nothing you can't do. Wow, it's not what you can accomplish, and I love that.
Veronica:And I oh no, please go ahead.
Christian:And I want to, I don't want to miss the opportunity to stress even, like you said, the family, the love of family, the strength of family, and you may be estranged from your family, but having a sense of community, a place where you can land softly, a place where you can grow in, a place where you can be nurtured, is so important, where people see you for you, not for the you that they want you to be.
Veronica:Oh, that the you, that they want you to be. And that's so true, cousin, because I feel like if you're just surrounding yourself with a lot of people that's telling you what's am I going to do that? Why would you leave this job, making all this money and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But they don't know your purpose. You know and and you know what your purpose is, and I know for a lot of people they're just at work and they're just clocking in and clocking out and and there's no judgment there. But if you truly want to live your life to the fullest, just take some time, like you said, having the trials and tribulations, what people might call failure, which I see as success. You know, like we have to figure out what we're passionate about, because once you find that passion, the money will come. But if you're just working for somebody else, doing their passion, you're going to be miserable or you'll just settle, and I'm just so thankful that you didn't settle.
Christian:Thank you, veronica, and as you were speaking, what I thought about was an assessment. I teach this to you, know spiritual clinicians and leaders in different fields that it's important that we pause, we pace and we make assessments continually. We assess if this is working for me, if this is God's best for me. Is this the Creator? And you may not believe in God, though the Holy, the divine, whatever it is that you connect with or whomever it is that you connect with that gives you meaning and purpose about living, making that assessment and qualifying and seeing whether this is the best for you. Am I fulfilled? And I believe that in our longing oftentimes is an indication that there is more beyond where we are. You may have landed the dream job, you're making that seven figure salary, you have the relationship that you've longed for, but still there's something in you that says but this is not even it. That's purpose and passion calling you higher.
Veronica:Yeah, and you know, I'm going through it right now, where, even though I've started my business back in 2018, I also took what I call a W2 job, where I'm an employee and I'm basically working remote, doing my own schedule, and it's become this safety blanket. Oh well it's. I'm getting paid every other week COVID happened, you know, or I had a surgery that I need to keep this a job because of benefits, but to your point, I'm just feeling like I miss. Even though I'm doing a lot of my passion, it's still blocking me in other areas. So at the end of this year, I'm going to be leaving from that company and I just encourage others that are listening to your story and my story that if you believe now we're not telling you to just go out there and then they're going to call us like All right, now you told me this claimer, you know you have to have a plan, but you really believe that, okay, this is not what I'm supposed to be doing and I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing, but just get a plan. Like, just start trying any and everything.
Veronica:When I started my business, I did taxes. I don't do taxes anymore. I tried working with these type of clients that said I wouldn't work with this. You know industry and I ended up coming full circle and figuring out. But it's year five. So I think sometimes we have to be a little bit more kind to ourselves, give ourselves a little bit more grace and just keep pushing through, but know that the end goal is to get to where we're being as fulfilled as possible, focusing in on our passion and our purpose.
Christian:And I really love it. I really acknowledge the importance of having a plan. I left my job in January but I took about two, three months to consult with individual, seek wise counsel, really, as I said, and make sure not that I had everything in place, because I'll just tell you business owners, entrepreneurs, you will always talk yourself out of it because you will say I don't have this and I don't have that. You, I'm a firm believer, as as a believer that God not only gives us starting grace, but he gives us grace along the way.
Christian:So you won't have it all at the beginning, but as you take that step, then you'll see things start to fall in place. I didn't know what was next for me After two weeks later, I received the call and and even my work. Even I'm in full-time, you know business and ministry for myself and I work part-time with Emory on the faculty there, which gives me the bandwidth as you were speaking about, veronica to have that sense of security until I can fully establish and land my business To the extent that it can function on its own.
Veronica:Yeah, absolutely. I tell people all the time even if you're an entrepreneur and you have another job or you're doing a part, you're still an entrepreneur, however it looks. But when it gets to the point where some of those other jobs is Impeding on what you're trying to do with your passion and purpose, then it's time to make a move and, like you said and you were able to pivot into another opportunity. So I want to ask you to make you, before we have to go, because you know we could go all day you need back again to talk about I know, to talk about all your businesses, but you're one of my favorite Social media influencers. That's what I'm calling you. Please check out all the information will be on my site and and to make it, will be plugging her facebook and her instagram.
Veronica:But because I know that you do this all yourself, cousin, so I want to know and on the show we always provide tips and different jewels to the listeners and for those that are listening that are just getting started with their business. We know how powerful social media can be and that presence. You know, what advice do you give to those listening? How do they kind of spruce up their social media or get started. What makes you so successful? Because when I tell you I'm like To make it, you got a whole crew, like you got a photographer comes to the house, you're like, no, I'm doing this on the phone. Or I'm like, well, what about these templates? So what advice can you give those that are really trying to get their business out there?
Christian:It goes back to be who you are, know your In Be. It's they true to you? There's so many Influencers or business owners. I don't consider myself an influencer. I'm an inspirer. You can find me on ig at to make you inspires, um, but I'm an inspirer and with that comes the creativity, the unique creativity and innovation. To really lean into being my most authentic self. So be you. Don't Side yourself up or side yourself down based on what others are doing around you. Find your lane and ride it. Find what it is that is your flow and go.
Veronica:That's so true and I had to find that flow by hiring somebody to make you. I could do it myself, but I knew that was not for me. I was like, okay, I can give you all the pictures, I can give you the information, but my brain is very much so an accountant and not into the artistic. And that's what I love about you is that you are the full package. You are doing your own marketing. You know your passion and purpose. You've created so many amazing businesses fitness, you're an author.
Veronica:You mentioned spring forth, an annual I hope I'm saying giving it justice an annual conference that you have of ministry and inspiration. I love that you say you're not an influencer, you're an inspire. So, before we go to make it, if you could just list all of your websites, your social media, any upcoming events, any way that we could support you any way possible and we definitely going to have you come back on whenever you have an event that's coming up, because I know you have so much amazing stuff that's going to be happening this year, but definitely in 2024 and beyond.
Christian:I appreciate it. Thank you so much. So, as I said, you can find me on IG, at Tameke inspires, on Facebook, at Revtameke and on Tamekea Miltoncom. We have our Inspire Sense, which is our candleline. I released my first book, which you can find at bars and nobles Amazon everywhere books are sold. And we have some other great. We have our Inspire Fit. We have our so many other things that we go to our website, TamekeaMiltoncom. You can find out more, but I am just grateful to connect with you and to see you thrive in the fullness of your purpose, promise and destiny.
Veronica:I'm so proud of you and I just want to say one thing. I'm one of the things I love about you the most is that me and Tamekea are probably the most opposite when it comes to fashion, personality, different. You know strengths and weaknesses that we have, but you've never judged me. You've always been so kind and you don't judge anybody. You know I'll be like to me. Yeah, I don't even want to be next to you.
Veronica:Look so rich, you look so nice and you like girl please you're so down to earth and it's such an inspiration that, in 2023, you're proving that God is real. You're not afraid to talk about God. You're a woman of God and you're doing it in such a classy way and such an inspirational way that, even if, like you said, if people don't believe in God or people might not necessarily, you know, be on the same path as you it's something about what you're saying that holds. Truth is just you could just tell that when you're saying the things that you're saying, you mean it, and that is the key if you're going to be an inspirer. So I just thank you for following your passion and your purpose and making the time to talk to the guest today, because I know someone is blessed just listening to this and will be blessed, and hopefully we can get you some business as well, because, even though we're Christian, the Lord wanted us to make money.
Christian:That's it, and we have to make inspires consulting, where we provide personal and professional consulting for all of our clients. So look that up as well.
Veronica:Thank you so much and I want to thank all the listeners for tuning into biz radio dot us. Please come back next week, same time, same place, 10am on Wednesdays for the Veronica Edward show, and if you miss the live airing, you can listen to all prior shows at Veronica Edwards dot buzzbrowcom. So, cousin, I need to autograph book real quick. I'll pay for it first. I'll see you next time, okay, bye.