Confidence coach, business owner, Radio presenter and Youtuber Nissy Tee talks to us about how she balances each of her crafts in everyday life. She mentions that her secret to success is Prayer and without God she would not be where she is right now.
Read below to hear what this phenomenal woman has to say regarding sharing your struggles, pressing on in life and her ultimate dream of interviewing Oprah Winfrey.
You speak around confidence and being your best self in your ‘Wake up Wednesday’ youtube segments weekly. Is confidence something that naturally came to you whilst growing up? Or did you need to work on this?
Confidence is definitely NOT something that came to me naturally growing up! I grew up “fat” and incredibly insecure. I was literally the little girl that did not ever let anyone see my body… EVER because I felt so ashamed! When we had to get changed for P.E. in school I would be the first person to hide myself away in a changing room or in the darkest corner of the room in order to avoid anyone’s eyes even catching a glimpse of my body. I had serious self-hate issues in regards to the way I perceived my body and as a result of that it affected how I then saw myself as an individual. I always felt like I wasn’t good enough, so I felt like I had to overcompensate by being the nicest person so that everyone would like me; I essentially was a yes man.
So yes, I really had to put in the work to be the confident individual I am today! I had to force myself into uncomfortable situations, learn to love the skin I am in, and work on developing a sense of self that existed outside of the limiting parameters that others tried to subscribe me to.
You are also a confidence coach offering 1:1 sessions, how did this idea come about?
I remember when I first started my YouTube channel in 2015 and people would ask me: how are you even confident enough to put stuff out on YouTube? Don’t you care about what people will say? How can you talk about your past experiences, aren’t you scared? And as my social media platforms have continued to grow the number of people asking me questions along these lines has continued to increase. So much so that I remember just getting to a point of pure frustration at the fact that so many people especially young women, especially young Black women, had so much potential but didn’t have the confidence to get out there and take what’s there’s!
And that’s when it was born: Confidence Coaching – to make sure everyone has the chance to exist as the highest possible version of themselves, irrespective of fear!
People would mainly know you from your Youtube channel, however you are also a radio host for ‘This is west side’ how do you find the balance for everything that you have going on?
Honestly, sometimes I have to ask myself the exact same question aha! Finding balance between everything is probably my toughest challenge at the moment but when you’re doing things you LOVE, trust me you just make time!
You quit your full time job as a Social Media manager a year ago to be a full time entrepreneur, and recently shared the struggles that you have been going through. How important do you feel that it is to share the struggles of the transition from full time employment to being your own boss?
It is sooooo important to share your struggles especially as what some might say that I am which is a “social media influencer” (I have such conflicting feelings about this term but what can you do). It’s important that people see a well rounded view of what it really takes to be your own boss! There are ups and downs, great times and really difficult low times and it’s important that people don’t wrongly assume that just because you always talk about the good that it’s always good and perhaps even easy. It’s really not! It’s long hours, putting in 10000 times more effort than you would at any job, it’s being prepared to keep pushing even when you have literally no motivation… lool shall I go on?
It’s been so amazing watching your growth and seeing you accomplish such great things! In a recent youtube video you shared that this has been the 2nd month in a row where you have earned more being your own boss then you would have been earning in your previous 9-5. How important is perseverance to you?
Firstly, thank you so much! Honestly having support from people on this journey is such an honour, it really does encourage you to keep going in some of those difficult moments.
In regards to perseverance I’d say it’s massively important! Probably even more important than things like intelligence or even finances. You can be intelligent but without perseverance not know how to deal with all the stress that comes with the responsibility of running your own business. Or you could have all the finances in the world but without perseverance you’ll never be patient enough to even see the fruits of that money you’ve invested into your business.
Anyone that is trying to be their own boss or is already their own boss needs to have perseverance. You need that hunger, that fire in your belly otherwise you’ll give up because it really isn’t easy.
What do you feel has been your best achievement from starting your Youtube journey 4 years ago?
I would say just the fact that I get to help people through the many challenges life can throw at people. I am so blessed knowing that people message me saying that watching my videos has helped them through really tough times or things that they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to get through.
What have been some of the challenges that you have had to overcome with yourself during the transition of your 9-5 to boss lady?
There have been quite a few but the biggest one I’d say is my own mentality. I remember when I first left my job and I literally felt like a bum. While my friends were going to work I was at home trying to “figure it out” – it was really difficult, especially because we’ve always been told that life follows a route: go to school, go to university, go to work. And to be outside of the traditional route proved quite difficult.
But I got to a point where I realised that this time in my life was bigger than me. It’s bigger than the four walls of my bedroom in a council flat in East London. It’s bigger than every fear or anxious thought I have, therefore there’s nothing I could do but keep pushing forward!
What tips would you give to a young girl who doesn’t have much confidence in themselves but has a big dream for their life?
I’d say something so simple: You. Won’t. Die.
I remember when I first started radio and despite the fact that it was something I was really interested in, the thought of my voice being out there in the airwaves and people listening to me, or judging me, or even criticising me scared the hell out of me! So much so that I got nervous every single time I was about to go on air or even host a show. And when I say every single time, I literally mean every single time, so much so that I would hope and pray that something would go wrong that the show on radio or the show that I was hosting would get cancelled! But the more and more I did it I realised something so simple yet so profound: I didn’t die.
Every time my heart was beating, I was sweaty and I literally felt like I was going to pass out, once I did it – I didn’t die and now I am genuinely fearless! I got comfortable with being uncomfortable and for anyone that truly wants to be confident, you have to get comfortable with being uncomfortable too. I know, it’s not the answer you wanted, but it’s the truth! *shrugging shoulder with hands up emoji*
What are some of the ways you stay motivated when you feel overwhelmed?
PRAYER! Let me tell you something I am nothing and can do nothing without God. So while I make it a point to pray every single day, when I am feeling a little overwhelmed I know that I have strayed away from God slightly attempting to do it on my own when I know I can’t. I always take it as a sign that it’s time for me to realign and that’s exactly what I do.
So that’s my secret weapon, my secret sauce, my secret to killing it in this life: GOD + PRAYER
Who is someone in the entertainment industry that you look up to that you would love to interview for either your Youtube channel or radio show?
There’s only ONE person that I really want to interview in this life: O P R A H! The queen, media mogul, absolutely incredible business woman, entrepreneur that is Oprah Winfrey! I mean do I really need to say anything else?
But I will say this, she’s not even someone I want to interview, believe me: one day Oprah and I will sit face to face and I will tell her about this very moment when I stated in an interview that the day will come that I Nissy Tee will interview THE Oprah Winfrey! You can bet your life on that one.
