Meet Melissa D. Barry | Brand strategist, Holistic wellness advocate & podcast host

We had the good fortune of connecting with Melissa D. Barry and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Melissa, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
My business is Wahayu agency. We help Companies & NGOs gain a unique and distinctive brand identity in the Conscious Living space by offering purpose-driven brand strategy and identities as well as digital design: logos, websites, etc.

Simultaneously, I created a platform called: Conscious Matters which is a safe space where I empower people through self-awareness, self-love, and self-development talks to reach our highest self and raise the collective consciousness together.

What should our readers know about your business?

My business turned into a hybrid between business (Wahayu agency) and creative outlet/plateform (Conscious Matters)

My business is an ethical boutique Branding and Design Consultancy agency passionate about creating unique purpose-driven brand strategy and identities for health, wellness & environmentally focused companies and organizations – led by conscious innovators, big thinkers, and dreamers who want to change the world for the better. We help businesses and organizations driven by improving the world through mindful wellness offerings and Conscious living advocacy & alternatives: stand out from their peers, attract, and build durable relationships with the communities that resonate with their mission. Wahayu actually means “revelation” in the Fulah language ([Wahyu] in Arabic). Not only the concept came to me in a sort of revelation but I also intend to reveal the mission of these thought–leaders in a way that touches the mind and heart of their community or targeted audience. The visibility of such though-leading entities can actually help change the world for a better future. There are so many amazing visionaries out there providing incredible services centered around wellness and the environment but lack expertise in making them visually appealing to their communities, or who are simply a bit lost when it comes to promoting their vision. I believe that this issue should not be an obstacle preventing people from benefiting from wellness and a healthier planet. Everybody deserves well-being and sustainable solutions. Finding an organization that provides that is the ultimate win-win situation.

*We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others?

Being part of the conscious living community myself as well as my team, we create exceptional heart-mind experiences relevant to making a positive impact on the planet and people’s wellbeing. I created a business model foundation based on wellness and environmental responsibility led by a purpose-driven, talented, eclectic, and international team of big thinkers and dreamers who really care about their clients’ missions (customer-oriented thinking– placed at the forefront).

Also, on a personal level – it’s easy and natural for me to see things from a different perspective than the norm. Coming from a legal background, I love mixing creativity with practicality in everything I do. After a Wahayu [revelation] moment, I decided to blend my creativity and passion for design with my natural knack for problem-solving, analyzing, and structuring ideas into cohesive and impactful solutions. Not only do I use my business acumen but also my intuition and my dedication to wellness and sustainability to encompass the different angles of the same problem the client is facing when it comes to its messaging and brand identity as a whole, and finally blend them harmoniously in an ensemble that is unique and which speaks to different sensitivities. Ultimately making the result powerful.

* What you are most proud of or excited about?

What I’m most excited about is giving visibility to people who are taking action – at their own scale – to make the world a better place, one project at a time. I absolutely love seeing people being passionate about their own craft and mission in life. It’s envigorating to me.

* How did you get to where you are today business-wise?

It has been a long journey full of ups and downs. Previously, I co-created an inclusive organic and cruelty-free beauty company, offering all-natural and vegan everyday skin and hair products for men and women of all ethnicities. This experience taught me SO much about building something tangible out of a simple idea or I’d rather say ideal but also about working with labs and contractors; getting familiar with graphic design, creating websites, photoshoot process, social media, the client-business owner relationship, etc but most importantly about the not-so-glamorous aspects of being an entrepreneur: the sleepless nights, the grind, wearing a 100 hats at the same time, juggling everything from legal, to accounting, to selling products at fairs and exhibitions and traveling the world to promote and share our vision. Unfortunately or fortunately, it came at a huge cost health-wise for me: burnout followed by a deep and long high functioning depression, without discounting severe anxiety built up over many years and other failures – which eventually led me to part ways from that business. So when I decided to build my own business a while later I had this experience to rely on, yet it was still not easy at all but one thing I decided from the beginning was to put my own wellness and mental health at the forefront and somewhat tried to prove to myself that it’s possible to build and carry out a meaningful business without the cost of my own health. It was the best choice for me. Even though I was on my second try, it obviously was not easy. I realized that creating a business is very much linked to our own personal development process. Building your personal business is intrinsically embroiled with your vision, your ideals, your ideas, and most importantly your values. As an entrepreneur, it’s a learning curve to disassociate our worth from our work or productivity, especially when you failed the first one. So it’s a lot of trials and errors, re-branding/thinking about and even changing many aspects of your concept several times until you really zoom in on what truly feels aligned with your soul which ultimately brings you joy.

* Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges?

So no, it was not easy at all and it is still not easy but it’s such an amazing, transformative, and invigorating process that leaves you empowered with so much personal growth and strengthens your mindset like never before. All of the challenges I overcame until now were mainly thanks to tapping into my own intuition, using my creativity even in problem-solving, and most importantly doubling down on my mindset work. That journey actually led me to create Conscious Matters podcast which is a safe space where I empower people through mindfulness: self-awareness, self-love, and self-development talks to reach our highest self, unleash our potential, and raise our consciousness. I just recently expanded Conscious Matters to YouTube as well (same name), thus adding another format and a variety of other type of content to it. Everyone should master mindset work, especially business owners in order to play the long game sanely.

• What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?

As corny as it sounds, I’d say: “you already have everything inside of you.” It’s when I started to really ask myself about my why, not what sounds good or what people want to hear but: What was my true intention behind my business? Who I really wanted to serve? What do I actually really want to do? And, how these three elements are aligned with each other – it’s then, that things started to shift for me, I felt less stressed, being more in flow and patient with everything instead of forcing things and being knocked down with every disappointment. I started to feel more joy and fun in my work, instead of the dread and heaviness that I would sometimes feel because even if it’s our passion, it is still work – there are still many unpleasant things we have to deal with on a day-to-day basis, such as accounting, promoting, pitching, among others. All in all, the biggest lessons I’ve learned along the way are:
– Success is in the mistakes. It’s important to make mistakes and fail to redirect yourself and your creation in a way that actually works for you and serves your clients and/or audience the best way;
– doing everything with intention;
– making sure to provide offerings/services that YOU actually want to, that bring you joy and fulfillment, not necessarily the things that are easier or more popular.

I’m sure I’ll keep on learning many other lessons during that entrepreneurial journey.

*What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

I lead Wahayu operations as if it were a philanthropic organization with the sole purpose of delivering the most purposeful results and value to all of our clients, so they can carry out their own mission effectively. We do our best and give our all to ensure that our clients get outstanding and impactful outcomes. I’m convinced that the growth and expansion of my business will unfold organically in due time as long as our values stay rooted, there’s no rush.

I want people to know that in our capitalist society and current economy, it is possible for a business to be meaningful and about improving the world, and supporting others in their own mission. To be a business, yet, to be primarily motivated to do something good for people, and to allow the creatives and humanitarians’ selfless goals to take precedence.
Wahayu is constantly demonstrating that business and social conscience/humanitarianism are not inherently incompatible. We strive to achieve both impact and financial success. It doesn’t have to be one or the other, they can be complimenting each other. You can do it too!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
– Music store: because music is life and so inspiring triggering our creativity when working. It does spark ideas. – Café: As a tea lover, I love chilling in cafés when I can.
– Big park: nature in the city is the best of both worlds.
– Live music place: because once again music is life and it gives me energy when I see people engrossed and lost in their own passion when performing.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to: my past-self who never gave up even in the hardest moments when she couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel; God for always having my back; my family for everything they are and have been; and for all the visionaries, creatives, teachers, and healers out there on the web who taught me so much and inspired me to keep on going when I felt like giving up on my craft.

Website: https://www.wahayu.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conscious.matters/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAdRtVMGc7PmESkAbUWyVbg

Other: Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast/conscious-matters-podcast/id1490175088 Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/5s2rds7XU8fA7OnbWvYhTs?si=hmMt8VnPQNWmK143eRIIgA&nd=1 Google Podcast: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5idXp6c3Byb3V0LmNvbS83NDYwMjcucnNz?hl=fr-CH