Today we’d like to introduce you to Zenovia Nwosu.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
To make a long story short, I am a career coach who enjoys networking. Simultaneously, I’m a Young Urban Professional, taking on the streets of Dallas.
But, let’s make a short story long. Born in Chicago, IL and raised in Southern Illinois. I am the youngest of 4 children; my oldest sister works in Big 4 Consulting, my middle sister in Health & Fitness Training and my brother died a few years back. My mom, both my sisters and I are Dallas transplants.
I attended the University of Missouri- Columbia (Mizzou) and graduated with a B.S. in Health Science and Business. During my time there I was unsure of what I was supposed to be doing. Freshmen Year, I started as a history major with dreams to be a Tour Guide in Greece, but that changed. So, then I moved on to nursing, and I quickly realized that wasn’t going to work either. By this time, I was at the end of my sophomore year, feeling defeated by my own indecisiveness. Also, at the time I was working at a Wellness Resource Center—which helped me choose my 3rd and final major: Health Science. That summer I interned at Dallas Cowboys Merchandising with the sales team. This experience inspired me to pick up a business minor.
Once I graduated from Mizzou, I went straight into a graduate program at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Downtown Dallas. I didn’t know much about SMU, except that it was small with a beautiful campus. During my time there, I learned the power of networking and how the university strongly encourages entrepreneurship and innovation. There were professional networking events every week. Though my classes were in the School of Education and School of Business, I also attended events hosted by both the law and engineering schools. There is a saying that goes a shark will never outgrow its environment. So, I took advantage of learning from industry experts in many fields, volunteering, and connecting with people.
During my time there, I created zeeconnects. At first, it was an Instagram account with minimal time investment. I was unsure what to create and afraid to establish myself as a Talent Consultant. My fear was that people wouldn’t take me seriously.
By the time I finished the graduate program in 2020, I also became a Certified Project Manager (PMI – CAPM). I received a lot of praise and a lot of people reached out for help. This success pushed me to design and publish my website and create a consistent graphic theme for my social media post. While I continued to work my 9-5, I also started to on take clients. Today zeeconnects is about 3 years old, however, the passion to help people started many years ago. The website serves as an online community for career resources and I share career-related content on the Instagram page.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No, it has not been an easy path. I’ve overcame many things: homelessness, loss, financial stress, and a rare disease.
I grew up in Cairo, Illinois—a once hustling and bustling town with a rich history. It’s located at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. However, it was destroyed by hatred and racism—or so I was told. We lived in the Elmwood Projects, but I spent a lot of time on 19th Street with my grandma. Growing up we seen, heard, and experienced things that I don’t want my children to have to go through. Yet, I experienced more good moments than bad. The grownups would play cards on the weekend, and us kids played outside and ate good food. Cairo is home.
We moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri when I got older. Like Cairo, there were good times and bad ones. It was harder to cope with the bad moments in Cape, maybe because I was older. On the positive side, Cape had a great public school system, and I did well academically. In high school, I became involved with the college enrichment programs and was able to tour in-state colleges. I had my eyes set on Mizzou, got accepted, and went off to college.
Mizzou was great overall. I was making friends, had a nice part-time job, and got along with my roommates! Unfortunately, it hit a low when my brother was killed my junior year. I remember seeing all the missed calls and stepping out of my work meeting to call my mom back. A few minutes later the text messages started coming in. That night my friends took me to meet my cousins, and I cried the whole way home. The next morning, my cousins drove me to the STL airport, and I cried the whole way up. I cried the whole flight to Texas. I cried so much. I remember walking in to see my mom’s face. She told me “I just wish my mama was here to help me.” That’s when I stopped crying. The beautiful part was that my family poured in from all over the country. It was so much love. It was a bad moment, but we got through it together. Pray to God that you never get your heart crushed.
The real healing began after everyone left. I closed myself off, stared at walls, and cried most nights.
I planned to drop out of school, but my advisor encouraged me to keep going. So, I stayed in school and as time went by, I would get out and socialize. Fast forward to my last semester I was struggling with a severe stomach illness. It was supposed to be easily fixed, but my stomach wasn’t cooperating. I spent the first five weeks of the semester in the hospital – three surgeries and a lot of hopeless feelings. I wasn’t sure if I would make it to graduation, but I did.
After Mizzou, I was headed to SMU. I easily got through grad school. Of course, there were hard moments, but the whole experience was amazing. I was introduced to more opportunity and met mentors who pushed me to invest in myself and take zeeconnects more seriously.
After SMU graduation I was feeling pretty good. Here I am, a 25-year-old beautiful Black woman with a master’s degree, a published website, zeeconnects.com, and great clients. Growing up, I never expected this.
In early 2021 I started experiencing the symptoms again. I feared that the illness had come back, so that summer I had to have surgery again. It was a breeze. I was out in two weeks. However, I had to come back to the hospital in early October 2021. And as I sit here in my hospital bed writing this interview, I am grateful to tell my story. I had surgery the first week. They said it was a hard one. It took about 5 hours, then 7 hours in post-surgery trying to get me stable enough to go to ICU. The doctors said, “she’s a fighter.” It’s been lots of tears and lots of love.
It has not been an easy path, but as T.I. says “grin and still bear, win and still share it.” You can either let hard times (obstacles or trauma) harden your heart or soften it.
As you know, we’re big fans of zeeconnects. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
zeeconnects is my career coaching business. I started zeeconnects Instagram because I enjoyed networking and connecting with people. The Instagram features stories and I share different professional networking events, career resources, and opportunities for professional development. It started as a creative outlet. By the time I published the website, it had transformed to an online community for career resources that I wanted to share with my network and beyond. This may sound cliché, but if you look at companies like Amazon, Apple, or IBM, you’ll see that they all had to change their business models to become or remain trusted industry leaders. I use this example because I have bigger plans for zeeconnects.
I specialize in writing resumes and career advising; however, the website lists the services that I provide. I work with a lot of fresh grads and early career professionals. Also, as a networker, I do a lot of connecting. Sometimes I’ll meet someone and think of all the people I can introduce them to. Other times, I may be working with a fresh grad and connect them professionals in their field. Some of my friends would say “girl, you know everybody!” Which is the reason I chose the name zeeconnects.
A cornerstone of zeeconnects is relationship building, so brand-wise I am most proud of the relationships that I’ve been able to develop with some of my clients.
Lastly, check out the zeeconnects website. It lists the services offered and is the best way to contact me. The resource page has free resume and cover letter templates. I also do small group presentations.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Firstly, network and build genuine relationships. Be open to learning, most people are happy to mentor. Secondly, be open to constructive criticism. Lastly, start where you’re standing. I was scared when I started, but the fire in me kept me going. This whole zeeconnects journey has been a learning experience—from ideation to creating something tangible. When I learn something new, I think of ways I can integrate it into my business model and create better processes. I believe that God has ordered my steps and will continue to do so.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@zeeconnects.com
- Website: https://zeeconnects.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zeeconnects/
Image Credits
Royal J, Films and Photography
