Who is Tricia Hercules?
In a nutshell, I am a believer in Jesus Christ, and I am devoted to God and to doing His will. I am an artist, a worship leader & musician, content creator, business owner of a small social enterprise called Bright Life Family Centre (BLFC) and owner of a creative content design business called The Content Hub.
I am a qualified and professional Counselling Social Worker with a BSc. Degree (Hons) in Social Work and trained concentrations in Children/Youth, Family & School social work.
I have 8 years of experience as a therapeutic counsellor working with individuals, couples and families. I love justice and I'm totally in love with the work I do daily to help my clients thrive!
I am a fun, witty and kindhearted soul who is practicing living life daily with purpose. I adore cats and I'm a cat mom of two adorable fur babies (TAZ & Ollie) who take up a big chunk of my world.
What does a typical day for Tricia look like?
A typical day can sometimes resemble a scene in an apocalypse zombie invasion movie and other times it's the opposite (lol). Work can be pretty crazy at times especial since my main career allows me to work with people with many different personalities and from so many different backgrounds. Though it can be draining at times, I do love it! I am really blessed to have the opportunity to do what I love.
What keeps you motivated?
My passion and love for what I do definitely keeps me motivated most days. In times when passion is overshadowed by disappointment or stagnation, I always try to remember the key reason why I do what I do (my purpose) and that most often than not changes my perspective and everything else then falls into line.
What is your most memorable accomplishment to date?
I'd have to say that one of my most memorable accomplishments to date was the first successful BLFC promotional outing we did after a major re-branding of the Organisation. It was at Girlfriends Expo, 2017 and our theme for our booth was "#helloBLFC". It was our big opportunity to showcase our existence here in Barbados and to also say who we were and how we could serve those who might need our services, especially since we'd been in operation for nearly 3 years and weren't that well known.
What also made that time memorable was how impactful one of our main activities (The Encourage Board) was. Those who participated in the activity wrote and pinned (on to the board) words of hope and encouragement to someone else who might be having a difficult time in their lives while at the same time received encouragement from other messages on the board. The board is still used today with my clients, as a tool of encouragement.
What is one common myth about Social Work that you would like to clarify?
I think many people even other professionals in the metal health field don't know that Social work is much more complex and multifaceted than meets the eye and that all social workers aren't made equal. I think the impact that a social worker can make especially in the area of improving a client's mental health & wellness needs to be first of all known, then better understood and finally nationally acknowledged particularly by means of inclusion into the national mission to improving mental health service solutions across the many social landscapes in Barbados.
What advice would you give someone who is interested in pursuing a business similar to yours?
I would say to that person a couple things:
1) That it is a great career to pursue, but do test the waters in this field first to really ensure that you are cut out for this kind of work. This work isn't easy, nor is any other helping profession for that matter and it definitely isn't suited for persons who don't have a strong backbone, strong sense of self, strong passion for helping/empowering people nor a strong reliable faith line.
I've encountered a number of young and budding professionals who started out bright and eager in their internships but getting into the real work and having to get their hands dirty then snapped them into the reality that this career really wasn't the field for them; they subsequently left to pursue other passions. So testing the waters possibly through volunteer work is a good way to get exposure and a taste for what this career really requires from you.
2) If you are still determined to pursue this career, I would encourage that individuals
build their work experience through volunteering and available internships in various organisations especially if no paid work opportunities in the field exist.
I can say that my volunteer experience was a great help in exposing me to the field and directing me into the area(s) of social work that I discovered I'd loved the most, and wanted to pursue.
COVID-19 has impacted people everywhere. Any advice for life during and after this pandemic?
Do you have peace right now in this COVID-19 Storm? 🤔 At night, do you feel peaceful when you go to lay your head on the pillow to sleep? PEACE truly is Golden when you've got it despite everything that is going on in your life. 🙂 Many times realizing that circumstances are never fully in our control leads us to accept that God is Sovereign and is the only one who knows what is to come. This can bring us a measure of un-explainable peace while we're in this storm and we learn to surrender our fear and anxiety over to Him.
Where can our readers connect with you online?
Via the Bright Life Family Centre's Instagram and Facebook pages, or via our website's contact page (www.brightlifefamilycentre.org.)
Persons can also Call or WhatsApp me via the BLFC main number at (246) 264-9109.
