“Let’s launch a global food drive so no one goes to bed hungry!” With Donna Reid-Mitchell
“…A global food drive so no one goes to bed hungry! I would love to see each family of means partnering with a family that cannot afford food for the day. This simple gesture can greatly minimize the number of families that go to bed hungry night after night.”
I had the pleasure to interview Donna Reid-Mitchell. Donna is an Avon Representative who, over the past 15 years, has built up a $4 million business and received countless accolades, including the Woman of Enterprise Award, Gold Executive Leader, and more. Currently, Donna is one of the real men and women starring in the iconic beauty brand’s latest campaign catalog, launching August 21. From top-sellers to accomplished leaders, the first-of-its-kind catalog for the brand recognizes the Avon Representative community by highlighting the real people who are not only the cover models but also the role models — just like Donna.
Thank you so much for joining us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
Fifteen years ago, I had just given birth to my second child, a beautiful baby girl, and I was just not ready to go back to working my full time job as a professional hair stylist. I signed on with Avon to earn some pocket change until I was ready to get back in the salon.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your company/current career path?
One of the most interesting things that happened since I started my Avon career, was a big life change that happened in May of 2006. I came to Texas for the first time to visit my nephew in Plano, and after visiting for three days I fell in love with Frisco. As soon as I got back to New York I started packing up my life — and one month later, my family relocated to Frisco! This has been our happy home for the last 12 years.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
The first month after I started selling Avon, I was so excited about all of the wonderful products that I ended up being my biggest client! I was buying products for myself, my mom and my six sisters, and at the same time couldn’t understand why my business was not generating any extra income. I quickly realized that for my business to be profitable, I had to treat it as a real business, which meant I had to let my family pay for their own products and I had to monitor my own spending. Now, I encourage all my new team members to train their family members early to respect their business and to be sure you’re not your biggest client.
What do you think makes your career stand out? Can you share a story?
As a home-based business owner, I have specific annual goals for my business and I hold myself accountable. My personal business model is “Donna’s DDD.” I start every day with the Desire to be among Avon’s best, the Discipline to accomplish my tasks while blocking out detractors and distractions, and the Dedication to keep working through challenges.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry/industries to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Calendar management is critical to avoid burnout. Identify your business operating hours and train your family and business partners to respect those hours. Be open to delegating low priority tasks so you can focus your time on key income generating activities.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
I have been blessed with quite a few wonderful mentors in my Avon career. The most notable would be my personal Mentors Bernadette and Peter Calamaras, who have taught me the value of working my business consistently and Evertrue Bell who taught me the value of good calendar management.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
I am proud to be the mentor of a team of over 2,500 Avon business partners that I get to partner with to help make their dreams and goals a reality. It gives me joy to see their personal growth and transformation in their confidence as they generate income to make a meaningful contribution in their household. I have coordinated over 300 makeovers for cancer survivors in my home country of Jamaica — this has been a very satisfying project, to give these beautiful women their first professional beauty treatment ever.
Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that was relevant to you in your life?
One of my favorite quotes is the Chinese Proverb: “If you want happiness.”
The proverb says:
If you want happiness for an hour take a nap.
If you want happiness for a day go fishing.
If you want happiness for a month get married.
If you want happiness for a year inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime help others.
Thanks to my Avon career, I get to make a difference in the lives of over 2,500 families nationwide — impacting the lives of my business partners and, by extension, their children’s lives. I find this to be the most humbling and satisfying experience.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
- To have a successful home-based business, you need to have a business plan. I did not have established goals when I started. I saw it more as a hobby, versus a real career opportunity. When I started looking at my business as a real career opportunity, established clear and defined goals, and began focusing on key income-generating activities, the results changed drastically.
- Let your challenges be the reason you should strive to succeed, not your excuse to fail. I have had many challenges during my career, and there were times that I would let my challenges distract me from pursuing my goals. Now, my challenges fuel my desire to keep moving forward.
- Partner with someone who has bigger dreams and goals for you than you do for yourself. I was setting mediocre goals for myself and hitting the targets, thankfully! However, my son and daughter now compel me to set ambitious goals — and we work to achieve them together as a family.
- Believing in yourself is the first secret to success. If you truly believe in yourself, you will work hard every day to achieve the success you deserve.
- Never prejudge what others’ appetite for business will be. I have six sisters, and I assumed they would all join as Avon Representatives soon after I did. Only one of my sisters was interested in a career with Avon — and the others are all happy to be our clients!
You are a person of influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
A global food drive so no one goes to bed hungry! I would love to see each family of means partnering with a family that cannot afford food for the day. This simple gesture can greatly minimize the number of families that go to bed hungry night after night.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Connect with me on Facebook @DonnaAvonBeautyBoss and Instagram @donnaavonbeauty.