We had the good fortune of connecting with Erin Freeman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Erin, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
My favorite quote is a personal one, “What you speak becomes a reality, so watch what comes out of your mouth.”   It is not cliche to say there is power in the tongue. That is indeed a fact. And when it comes to saying things aloud, we must be careful with our words.  As I continue to grow as a leader and thought provoker, I’m careful of what I say out loud about others and myself.  Heavy on the about myself to myself part, this is most important.  You see rather your words be good or bad, the Universe believes you. Naively, she trusts that you use your words accordingly. We all know that not to be true.  It takes a certain level of self-awareness to begin to see the true power of your words. Words are probably one of my most favorite things because they are a powerful weapon we all own by default. Words are the verbal manifestation of the energy we put out. Knowing all of this, we should stop saying things that dig into your existence.

I’m sure you’ve said the term FML or used the hashtag in some capacity. I used to say it anytime when something went wrong, until I did a survey of how my life was moving. Whenever something bad happened I found myself blurting out FML.  It was like no matter how hard I was trying to succeed; things weren’t working in my favor. I made a conscious effort to remove that thought process and saying from my mouth. Once I recognized a pattern, things changed. I changed the way I began to speak out loud about anything gone wrong. I started speaking life into my life and business, not death. It began to feel like I was living in my purpose, not magnifying my woes. In time I begin to see my life move differently. I don’t say that phrase at all now.  Woes come, you cannot avoid them, they are necessary to build you. What we have to do is be very careful how we speak to them.

I also saw this power when it came to the way I spoke about my finances. There was a time when I used to talk about “how broke” I was and oddly enough I stayed broke talking like that. The moment I began to speak life into my finances and stop proclaiming broke, there came the increase. I went from being broke to having and in abundance. My business started to reap the benefits as well. This relationship between you and the Universe is call and response. The words you chose to use, how you use them and when you use them are basically the secret formula for living out my personal quote.  The next time you think about saying anything negative, overly critical or just downright judgmental, remember E.D. said:

“What you speak becomes a reality, so watch what comes out of your mouth.”

What should our readers know about your business?
I’m The It Girl is my creative brand strategy firm. I specialize in brand building and strategic marketing with PR undertones. We exist specifically for black women owned brands and businesses, Of course it hasn’t been easy, but nothing thrills me like the reality of creating a business that allows me to fulfill my purpose. I’m selective in who I chose to work with because of my passion. Not everyone is meant to receive that. And everyone isn’t my ideal client. I had to learn this through some hard trial and errors. I went into business for myself to not only help women who look like me do some amazing things, but to also reserve freedom of my time and finances. When you work with just anybody or everybody you will burn out. Burn out can bring on resentment and I never want to resent doing something I love.

So, what is It that I do.? I work with small businesses and turn them into brands. I help black women owned businesses create their own PR while cultivating a community. From content creation to marketing strategy and execution, we do IT!  I also teach other business owners how to incorporate a social strategy into their marketing plans. People hire me to ultimately do two things, be super creative and strategize. I’m really excited to be hosting my first It Girl Masterclass in October. We use social media all the time but a lot of us are doing it wrong and I’m not talking about posting. Attendees will learn how to eliminate the stress & anxiety of keeping up with social media by applying a social strategy. Visit www.itgirl-list.com to find out more. .

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Good question! The DFW area is so big and I’m north of Dallas, so we would explore all the cool eats and treats in the Plano/Frisco area. We’d for sure hit up the food hall at Legacy West and the Frisco farmer’s market. We’re still in the middle of a pandemic, so there wouldn’t be a ton of going out and socializing LOL. Let’s throw in some thrill adventures, like zip lining or jet skiing. Yes, you can do both here in the DFW area! And there are soooooo many great Black Owned Businesses that we can explore, literally can pick a part of town each day and buy black. I’m eager to bring a friend to The Cake Bar’s new vending machine in Turtle Creek or try one of those AMAZING cocktails from True Kitchen Kocktails.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to dedicate this Shoutout to Raven. She is someone who supports me not matter what however she can. She is one of those friends who defends your honor in your absence. She is loyal to me. She is the friend who prays over and for me and my businesses. She is the friend that constantly speaks life into me owning my greatness, she’s my personal cheerleader win or lose, and if I lose she might fight LOL. Get you a Raven, this one’s mine. Thank you Raven for believing in me especially in those dark moments when I can’t even believe myself.

Website: www.itgirl-list.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/im_theitgirl
Facebook: www.facebook.com/imtheITGirl

Image Credits
XO Quinntographer Leah Centeio Photography

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