Alicia Harrison Shares the Life Lessons Her Mother Taught Her
We look like them. We laugh like them and in many cases we love like them. Our mothers and motherly figures taught us how to be women and the lessons we learned from them are ones we have the pleasure of passing along to our children.
This week we spoke with five career women to see what lessons have stuck with them over the years from the women they call mommy. Here is our interview 2 of 5 featuring Alicia Harrison.
Alicia Harrison
Dallas, TX
COO of The Money Script Wealth Management
What are some of the greatest lessons your mom taught you growing up?
My mother had me at the age of 22 and we lived with my grandparents so my grandmother was a huge influence. [Both my mother and my grandmother] both taught me resilience.
My grandmother was a white woman in the fifties married to a black man and she had to fight for what she believed in so she also passed that along to me. Both of these women also taught me the value of hard work and taking care of yourself so you can take care of your family.
What lessons have stuck with you over the years?
Take care of yourself.
My mom also became a widow and was taking care of five kids. But she always had her nails done. “No matter what you have to take that time to pour into you so you can pour into your family.”
Now that you’re a mom yourself do you ever find yourself repeating the same things to your child that your mom said to you as a kid?
It’s not something that is said but it is something I believe and that’s family comes first. That was instilled in me at a very young age and I was taught that we should always make time for each other. My family is my why. They are the reason I wake up every day, work hard in my business, and work hard on myself.
How has becoming a mom changed your perspective of your upbringing?
I always knew my mom was a strong woman but when I became a mom and realized the demand and the calling and the transition into motherhood, I saw that it is a shift. Life is no longer about you it’s about your children. I only have one child and my mom had five so thinking of the amount of patience she had to have to raise five children is significant to me.
I also get now why it seemed like she had an attitude or was angry. As a widow, she had to start from scratch and rebuild. She put everything she had into her family.
What lessons from your mom have you instilled in your child?
Value family. Take care of yourself and fight for what you believe in. I want my daughter to grow up and be an independent woman who pursues all her interests and never give up on finding her truest self even after she has her own grown children.
What is one character trait you hope your child takes from your mom?
I hope she takes her big heart.