“Wife & Mom First - Boss Lady Immediately after”. That is a line in JaLisa Jefferson’s instagram bio and if you scroll down her page….you’ll immediately see why. From slaying looks at New York Fashion Week, putting the girls on to all things fashion & beauty, and sharing raw and relatable content that moms can relate to, Jefferson does it all.

Boasting over 350,000 followers on Instagram and 100,000 followers on Tik Tok, JaLisa captivates her audience by creating authentic content while looking great doing it.

We got to chat with JaLisa about working with big brands such as Ulta, self love and the importance of having a village. Check it out below:

Introduce Yourself

I,JaLisa, am a dynamic Dallas-based Influencer and entrepreneur who throughout my journey has become a wife and mom who aims to share the various aspects of my life through fashion, travel, motherhood, inspiration and encouragement! I'm passionate about sharing my life so that my community & the women apart of it know that you can have it all and deserve to have it all.

In 2019, you quit your full time IT job to focus on your passion of being a content creator. What gave you the confidence to make such a big decision?

I gained the confidence to make the decision to quit due to the demand that was coming from my online community and also the brands that were reaching out. I learned pretty early on that I could make a living doing what I love and it would pay more than my IT Job was paying me. I wasn't fully fulfilled with my job and I knew there was more out there for me. Influencing filled the void and brought me so much more joy when creating content and connecting with my followers so I just listened to my heart and followed my passion and took the leap of faith.

Fast forward to today, you have over 350,000 followers on Instagram, 58K subscribers on Youtube and have worked with many brands such as Amazon and Ulta. How does it feel to look back at where you started and see where you are now?

It’s so surreal to look back at where I started and to see where I am now. The journey has been tumultuous but rewarding and I am proud of myself for believing in myself blindly and following my dreams. God has been the ultimate driving force in all of that I have and I could not be close to where I am without him. Not to mention there is absolutely no way I would be here without my amazing community there support is really unmatched and them staying constant as I continue to evolve has been phenomenal.

You are surrounded and supported by your husband, friends/family and your team. Talk about the importance of having a village.

Having a village has been vital in my personal and professional journey and I am constantly preaching that I don't know where I would be if it weren't for them. They all play a part in how I show up online, as a wife, mother and friend and I genuinely have my best interest at heart. They keep me grounded, humble but most importantly they hold me accountable and advocate for me on the days that I can’t show up for myself. Without my village to reign me back in and or help me see clearly I honestly would not be where I am. There is no way that all that goes on could if they didn't exist!

You’ve been very open with your audience about your postpartum journey and getting back to feeling “normal”. How do you show yourself self love and practice body positivity after giving birth to your beautiful babies?

I show myself love by finding a balance in figuring out who I am outside of what my kids and family need for me. It was very hard in the beginning and took some deep diving to figure out what made JaLisa happy and what I enjoyed that didn’t involve serving others. I show myself self love by taking time for myself, whether it be massages, nail salon days or just laying in bed to reset and recharge. Practicing body positivity was hard because it took a while to get used to my “new” body after having my pre-baby body all of my life but with giving myself grace, finding a workout regimen that felt good to me and just appreciating what my body has gone through body positivity is second hand nature now.

It’s so easy as moms & wives to focus on tending to everything and everyone else around us, often forgetting who we are and what we mean to ourselves. Balancing all the things hasn’t been easy and to be honest at times I fumble but I have been learning to give myself endless grace and realize that each day/week will look different. Some days I will be super mom, some days I’ll focus on my role as a wife, some days I will have to focus on the brand & the business and some days I will need to solely focused on JaLisa and her mental health. But I am human, and the fact that I even have the opportunity to do all of these things is a blessing in itself and I don’t take it lightly. With that, I am here to remind all the mamas, wives, mamas to be and really just women in general that it is okay to be a little selfish and give to yourself the same grace give to others and it’s okay to feel the guilt that may come (it’s normal and it passes), but you can’t pour from an empty cup so make sure YOU fulfill YOU.

Why is it important to you to be open and transparent with your audience?

For me it is important to be open and transparent with my audience because I want them to know they are not alone and at this point we are all winging it in all aspects of life. Everyone is in different seasons of life always but no one's life is perfect and I think it’s important to be able to be that vessel and share my trials and tribulations to help someone out there really understand that what they are experiencing is normal.

With everything that you have going on, you still find time to do things that you enjoy, including traveling. Talk about the importance of taking time for yourself.

The importance of taking time for yourself is honestly as simple as the saying “you can’t pour from an empty cup” I know that in order to show up and give my all in any aspect of life I need to mentally feel charged and that reminder helps me implement a routine in taking time for myself however I need to at the current time. Also it’s so unfair to those around me to be on the receiving end of my stress or frustration all cause I didn’t tap in to my needs first!

You recently attended New York Fashion Week (and KILLED IT with your looks!). What was that experience like for you?

NYFW was a full circle moment for me. Not only had it been my first time in New York since graduating college,I was there attending something that had been a dream of mine for years. Being surrounded by so many amazing creatives and personalities was electrifying.It was also amazing to connect with other influencers and creatives as well. It’s so easy to send emojis or comment on each other’s posts but to really pour into each other in real time was definitely a beautiful and gratifying moment. I’ve had moments in my career where I felt it was best to play it safe, by not being what people thought was “too much”. Being in New York — where everyone was expressing themselves through fashion, and absolutely nothing was “too much” felt incredible and beyond inspiring. I don’t even have the words to describe the feeling. I truly am glad I got to have that experience and can’t wait to go back!

What is “The Influencing Standard” e-book and what can people learn from it?

“The Influencing Standard” is a digital resource that is a step-by-step guide kickstarting your content creator journey or elevating your brand. People will learn what influencing is, how to get started, being intentional with your content and creating, how to build a team, pitch to brands and so much more.

What advice would you give to someone who is in the beginning stages of being a content creator?

It’s going to sound cliche but don't just create the content, post it. I know for some it may be a constant battle of comparing with others you see on social media but we all started from somewhere. Use what you have and put your best foot forward, your audience will find you & you already have exactly what you need to get started– Your story & a social account!

What advice would you give to women in business?

I would tell women in business to give themselves grace and never take no for an answer. Navigating this world as a woman is hard enough, adding a business owner in a once male-dominated field is even harder. Don’t give up on yourself or your dreams. You can do whatever you want and become whoever you want as long as you believe in yourself.

Celebrating JaLisa Jefferson: From IT to It Girl