Welcome to ReallyLeila! Great to see you landed on my page!
My story is diverse with a few twists and turns but will give you
an understanding of my training style and approach to my
consulting.
I’m a life-long student. I will always and am always learning,
and is the reason I chose to pursue my Ph.D. and become a
life long learner. However, today, I have the ability to pass on
my social media knowledge and mold minds with the creation
of efficient and low-cost social media frameworks.
In my past life, I wanted to work as a forensic psychologist and try to “cure” those young souls exhibiting signs of having psychopathic-like traits. Taken from one of the greatest bands on this earth, I kept saying “All they need is love”. Simple, right? Well, learning about psychopathy was fascinating, working in the psychopathy field was eye opening. Unemotionality is pretty awesome until you have the experience of watching kids with no emotion. I had a quarter life crisis and decided to change fields completely. So, here I am just a few years later with my Ph.D. in International Business with a specialization in marketing. Specifically, social media.
When I started my Ph.D. and my focus on social media back in 2009, it was in its infancy. Many of times, I heard "You think you can use Facebook for marketing?" But, that didn't stop me. I kept at it. Trying to convince anyone that listened, the importance of using social media to optimize your business. While taking classes, I focused on the global reach of social media.
How do organization create a cohesive brand image?
What makes certain social media sites popular in one country and not another?
Why do some social media campaigns go viral?
And when will people FINALLY see the value in Twitter?
Although I can't say I know the answer to the last question, the other's I think have figured out.
Since I knew the value of social media, I continued to develop my personal brand and started working for some SMEs to learn more about social media for business. As a result, I was able to determine the interplay between SEO and social media and the value of leveraging your resources. Make social media easy with the resources you have in front of you.
At first, SNHU On Campus started me on my journey to mold minds. They gave me the experience to teach international business, information technology, database management, and social media. Lots of social media. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to teach and assist in creating classes in social media at both the graduate and undergraduate level.
Today, my teaching and consulting have expanded to a place that I would never have imagined. I have coached hundreds on their personal brand, developed 12 social media courses at different levels (intro, intermediate, advanced) and time frames, consulted with a number of SMEs, spoken to dozens of organizations and businesses while continuing to mold minds.
Previously, I was an Assistant Profesor of Digital Marketing at Aurora University takes up a lot of time, as I head the MS in Digital Marketing and Analytics. I have branched off and developed classes in Digital Marketing, Customer Experience Marketing, Marketing, Analytics, Management and Metrics, and Advanced Internet Marketing.
Currently, I am an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Southern New Hampshire University on Campus. I went back to my roots so I could be at one of the most innovative institutions in the world. The work that SNHU is doing is astounding between the format of delivery and the work with refugees and Dreamers, we are changing the world.
On the side, I lecture at Harvard University, Division of Continuing Education in Harvard Extension School on Social Media and Branding and Social Media Management. At Harvard Summer School, I teach a summer course on Social Media Strategy.
Finally, I have recently moved into the path of mindfulness and meditation. As a result, I am a Reiki Master Teacher. Stay Tuned to see what are some next steps in finding the balance between social media and mindfulness. Or will we always be Mindfully Unbalanced?
Last but definitely not least, I am in the process of writing a book on Social Media Optimization and Analytics.
Social Media is my passion. It's amazing to call your passion "work". As a result, I am happier than ever, although I’m usually happy doing most things.