Meet Marsha-Ann Donaldson-Brown: Chief Activator of Purpose / Director of Romance (Hotelier)

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marsha-Ann Donaldson-Brown and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marsha-Ann, as a parent, what have you done for you children that you feel has had the most significant impact?
I strongly believe that the most impactful thing that I have done as a parent is that I demonstrate that I believe in my children and that I empower them to explore and pursue what they desire without influence or bias from me. I believe they are confident of the support that I give and the independence that I encourage them as they make decisions for school as well as for any other activities to include participation in volunteerism, entrepreneurship or skills or hobbies. M

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I have been in the Hospitality and Tourism sector for close to 3 decades. I am often asked, how did I end up in Hospitality and Tourism and I candidly share that I grew up in Jamaica and hospitality seemed so ingrained, smiling from my heart, the zeal to create service experiences and to take great pride and in showcasing the island that was my childhood summation of hospitality. Fast Forward, I had migrated to Florida and learnt at University that they had a degree in Hospitality and Tourism ( Yes , I had NO idea it was something one could study for ) and as they say the rest became history, my journey began. I originally honed my craft in Hospitality with recognizable names such as Hilton Corporation, The Doral and The Biltmore Hotel in South Florida and now I occupy a pivotal role with a global power brand. I am share with great pride and joy that I am the Director of Romance with Sandals Resorts International . Sandals is an incredible chain of hotels across the Caribbean and I have the honor to oversee the Destination Wedding Program and an amazing team spanning 18 resorts and 8 islands. What sets me apart from others, I believe that my passion, pride, professionalism, my knowledge, experience, drive, determination, confidence, commitment and conviction sets my apart. I believe in myself, I believe in the teams that I lead and my ability to engage and empower the teams, I love to know that I can make dreams a reality for couples that are entrusting us with their wedding day to make it a reality. Also what sets me apart, I love to meet people and engage them and believe the engagements make life very rich. A key differentiator is that I am a thought leader about the dynamics of Destination Weddings In the Caribbean. I am most proud of having the opportunity to positively impacting lives, wheter it is being instrumental at making couples once in a life time wedding a reality, to impacting on the lives of team members and watching them grow and I am proud to see the growth of our company and the impact is has on the Caribbean and the World. I am proud of the brand and I am proud to speak of the brand. I am most proud of being an example for other women. I am also proud of my ability to use my voice as a voice of encouragement and empowerment. I am also proud of any media printed, electronic media engagements I am involved with. How did I get to where I am ? I believe as a woman, I instinctively made it a point of my duty to work harder, I was intentional about to gaining extra knowledge, exposure, experience , training , I always felt like it was important to know the various faucets of the field so that I could lead from the platform of knowledge. I believe I was forthright in how I applied myself, I equipped myself at being multi faceted and backed myself up with my degrees, I wanted to know for myself I was more than qualified for any position that I wanted to explore. It was not easy to have my growth trajectory. I believe Career Moms have to work harder at juggling home and applying 110% at work. I instinctively believed, as a woman, I did more to ensure there was no doubt of what I could do, that could have been self imposed pressure as well. If I were to give advise to young ladies now in Corporate do your best , consistently work with excellence but do not work exhaustively just to show what you can do. Let your work speak for itself and know your worth. What would I want the world to know about me ? My rock is God and my family. My greatest title is being called Mom. I would want the world to know that the spirit of positivity, perseverance and prayer has kept me. Life hasn’t been easy but giving up and giving in, has never been an option. I am an optimistic. I believe in hope and believe that my attitude of gratitude and faith have paved a good way for me. I believe we are blessed with one life, I treasure, family, friends, faith, fun, fellowship. A solid tribe. I am convinced more now than ever that purpose evolves and that I am more than degrees, titles, accolades, I believe that we can experience deeper levels of purpose to excite us, engage others and make a difference in our sphere of influence and beyond. I have come to the realization that I must daily ask myself “What would I want my legacy to be? ” “How do I want my children and generations after to remember me? ” Then I need to work towards that. I am keenly interested in ensuring that women and girls understand that their is greatness within them and I want to guide them to focus on how to activate that greatness and purpose. I am your Chief Activator of Purpose. In addition to my Tourism Career, I am also a transformational speaker. Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shout out is to Patrice C Washington from Redefining Wealth Podcast. Patrice is an incredible transformation coach and mentor. Without question, 2020 was a year that rocked everyone’s boat in one way or another. For me, with lockdown, no movement, I was forced to come to a screeching halt from my usual hectic Corporate work pace, I, for the first time ever really stopped! It forced me to have introspection and found out that although I was functioning, seemingly successful , I discovered I was functioning but I was not fulfilled, I discovered, that there was more to my life, a higher purpose than just accolades, titles, things. I could feel there was a deeper sense of purpose that I needed to tap into so that I could create greater impact and leave a legacy of my children and beyond but I didn’t quite know how to tap into “there is more to my life” In June 2020, I joined a business incubator coaching program with Patrice and the depth of the program called “Purpose to Platform” was my epiphany and true transformation about living life on purpose for a purpose. It was an intense program, an incredible community of women and I came out of the program with such a positive transformation, I tackled fear and imposter syndrome (I didn’t even know the name for it) but I know it is a plague for many high achieving women. In my case, I had the typical Superwoman persona both for home and work, I could take care of everything, strong and mighty. Yet, I had been diagnosed with lupus and hid it for 12 years because “Superwoman” didn’t want to appear weak and impaired from my ability to function. I found out that I was also afraid of judgement, that I appeared to have it all together but how could I “want more” . With the program, I dismantled all that, I decided to speak up on my IG platform, finally shared about lupus and spoke of so many of us as women suffer from Imposter Syndrome. It was so freeing and it has allowed me to help others. It was just “Real Talk” So many women have other “secrets” carrying and weighing them down. Since then, I have actively engaged and empowered other women to transform their lives to one of purpose, passion and prosperity. Some I encourage to digger deeper to live a fulfilled, flourishing life because functioning is existing and we are meant to thrive. Out of this I began a Sunday “IG TV” program called “Real Talk with Marsha-Ann” . In addition, I must give credit to my solid foundation, my example of a strong woman, my Mom. An incredible woman of faith, who has led her life by example in every aspect. She has always empowered me to do and be my best, to stand up, stand out and to make a positive difference not just to my family but the community, Nation and the world. She is the best 90 year old cheer leader a girl could ever ask for.

Instagram: @marshaannb

Linkedin: Marsha-Ann Donaldson-Brown

Facebook: Marsha-Ann Donaldson-Brown

Youtube: RealTalkwithMarsha-Ann

Other: Just formed a private Facebook Group Women Activating Greatness and Purpose.

Image Credits
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