ABOUT US

Hi! My name is Em Jay. I want to give a little insight into my background which led to the creation of Innovate Joy. Ever since before I can remember, I have been consuming all sorts of tv, movies, music, and social media, as most of us do. I had no idea of the huge impact that all of the negative portrayals of people that look like me would have on how I viewed myself in this world. There are a lot of intentional negative stereotypes that are placed on different ethnicities, and if we don't have a strong inner voice telling us how beautiful, powerful, and magical we are, our mental state can suffer. I hated my skin and hair for the majority of my life. I found myself comparing my attributes to other ethnicities and really going down a dark place. 

There are many different traumas that we can experience as we move through our lives, that can affect how we handle different situations. If we don’t know how to heal through the pain, it can weigh us down and cause disharmony and imbalance. After understanding that there are a lot of things within society that have affected the way I view myself, I realized I had to actively counteract the messages I was being fed. There are a few things that truly helped me along the way:  

• I started eating healthier and being more mindful of what I consume. 
• I started going into nature more. 
• I chopped off my relaxer and went natural (You don't have to do a big chop to go natural! I learned the long way). I have locs now and I AM IN LOVE with my hair! 
• I started journaling and practicing gratitude. 
• I unfollowed accounts that did not make me feel good energetically. If you notice you are following someone, and their content triggers you to have a negative reaction repeatedly, or you see yourself going down the rabbit hole of comparison, you might want to consider unfollowing them for your own peace of mind. 
• I became more intentional about the tv, movies, and music that I consumed.  
• I began meditating and started my yoga journey.  
• I placed pictures (still do) around my home of beautiful, powerful women that look like me. 
• I began using positive affirmations to reprogram the self-sabotaging, negative thoughts that I held about myself. 

  

Affirmations are used by so many people across the world to better improve their mood, productivity, and overall well being. I have created multiple empowering art concepts, most of which have affirmations specifically picked out to motivate, inspire, and empower. 

Whether you need that extra boost of self love like I did, or you have friends, family, or children that could use some help loving themselves and staying balanced, I hope that I can help assist in your journey.

Stayed Tuned: More concepts coming soon!