Natassia Wright – A people person

SHE’S a Christian and entrepreneur who’s courageous, God-fearing and kind, possessing a resilient spirit with a drive to inspire people to become the best leaders.

Born and raised in Allman Town, Natassia Wright, 27, tells All Woman that she came from humble beginnings and from an early age she was taught true survival skills as she had to fend for herself after losing both parents before she turned 17.

“My father was a police officer and he died in the line of duty when I was in grade five. While at Wolmer’s Girls’ School my mother died when I was about 15 — the weekend before I sat my CXCs. After my mother passed I went to live with a grandmother and she died a year later,” she says.

It was at this point that Wright expresses that she knew there had to be a purpose in her life and though she didn’t quite know what it was, she became determined to find it.

And so, after mustering up the courage to complete her examinations and gain six grade twos and two grade ones in her CXCs, she enrolled at the University of Technology (UTech) where she pursued a bachelors degree in production and operations management with a minor in international business.

But though her school fees were taken care of by the Police Federation, this period was no bed of roses for Wright as she became the sole provider for herself and her younger brother.

“I started working straight out of high school. I wasn’t even able to get an NIS card because I was too young. I was working as a claims representative for an insurance broker. At university I had a part-time job with the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) and that kept me from school to work,” she says.

“I was never spoon-fed. My father died at an early age and my mother taught me to be independent. When she died I was living on my own. Going to university, unlike others I knew, I had bills and responsibilities. It was simple — get to school, learn, come back home, because I had a little brother I had to take care of.”

As a result, Wright says her social life was dormant for a few years, but it didn’t matter as she had to do what was necessary to get by.

“There were times I had to give up school for a week to work, because if I didn’t work there was no money and we couldn’t eat. I had to make crucial decisions. My social life didn’t come until my brother’s father took him, which was in my third year at UTech, so at that point I had a bit of room, but I was still focused,” she says.

Wright says regardless, she was not fulfilled, as though she showed determination despite her setbacks, the people she witnessed around her daily seemed to be wasting their lives.

“After my grandmother died and I returned to Allman Town, I started doing Saturday classes and I would take the young people to youth meetings at YWCA and I introduced them to SSC [Secondary School Certificate] examinations as the YWCA was able to get us in on that programme and I was so excited. I gave the forms to people on the street. Everybody was happy but only one person took the test. From that time I realised I couldn’t live like that or stay in such an environment. I hate seeing people sit and decide to give up ‘just because’, and that fuels me. If I can help one person to come out of the mess, kudos to me.”

As such, Wright and her husband Jamar participated in a mentorship programme with empowerment coach Alvin Day and started sending out e-mailed morning inspirations, which has now evolved into their business — Mind Food International Limited, that aims to encourage, inspire and train people to become leaders.

Also an administrative secretary at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, Wright says her passion for people is overwhelming.

“What my husband and I do, it’s about people. Our whole focus is to take people from one level to the next. It’s about personal development. I use my experience in the human resource department as foundation for me to foster the right skills to do it,” she explains.

“It’s a part of our purpose to see people doing better, especially in our society. We come from environments where people don’t believe in themselves or that anything can happen. They blame the government, their parents, poverty. They say ‘nothing better no deh’ and it’s a lie. If we can activate something in somebody to say no, let’s try, the world is out there and you can do it, then we are making a difference.”

Subsequently, Wright and her husband did an empowerment forum in 2013 with 80 participants, which has since become an annual event that attracts over 100 people. Their messages reach over 4,000 followers on their Facebook page. They have published their first book, Mind Food: Recharge Your Mind: 31 Day Inspirational Guide Jump Start Your Day, Your Life, Your Dream and are now set to publish a second book — 30 Days to a Renewed Mind, which will look at how to remove negative mindsets. They have started penning a third book called Hope Giver: From Woundedness to Wholeness.

“Sometimes you might have people who have gone through rough situations and don’t know how to get out, and that’s where I step in. You might not be able to forget about your bad experiences but you can overcome. It matters not where you’re from, you can get over your situation,” she says.

Wright explained that the content of the books is based on experiences, which she says is of utmost importance to the messages she gives people.

“We don’t speak about what we don’t know. You really can’t give someone what you don’t have. It is always about something we’ve gone through,” she says.

In her downtime, Wright can be found spending time with her family, watching television and lyming, as she says “all work and no play definitely gets you burnt out”. Additionally, she reads a lot and writes poems and blogs.

Wright is also keen on giving back to her hometown yearly, the latest being a street sports day and treat which she and a friend organised.

“Although I’m not there [Allman Town] I want to have influence on the children and youth there and being around them I can help to rewrite some of the negatives they’ve learnt. Any opening you leave for me to put in a word that’s positive, I’ll do it,” she says. She added that the fulfilment she gets is knowing she was able to do what is expected of her — influencing people positively.

Her current focus is to grow her business further and she envisions it becoming the largest leadership school in the Caribbean where people can benefit from inspirational messages and seminars.