Today we’d like to introduce you to Valere Merriweather.
Valere, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve always been drawn to the health and fitness industry. Growing up in Southern California was pivotal for me since I got a first hand view of how living a healthy lifestyle impacts longterm health. I attended Howard University and worked as Radiation Therapist traveling around the country treating cancer patients. During that time, I worked closely with physicians and teams to help patients navigate a difficult health season. During that time, I learned the importance of early detection, quality care, and the power of family support in the healing process. I decided to enroll in a graduate program that would help me manage care at the administrative level. After receiving my Master of Health Administration, I chose a career in healthcare consulting. I consulted with academic medical centers and organizations that wanted to improve patient satisfaction, streamline operations, and enhance revenue. While the projects were interesting, I noticed a common theme. Prevention was an underrated and often overlooked area. That a-ha moment lead me to Kaiser Permanente, one of the largest HMOs at the time working in prevention and wellness. I saw firsthand the power of prevention, education, and ways to empower communities leading to generational health.
I come from a family of entrepreneurs and my dad would always remind us to have a side hustle before it was a thing. Working in his insurance business as a teenager gave me a preview of how entrepreneurship empowers communities and creates generational wealth. I am grateful to be married to my best friend and husband Kurt and having our journey blessed with our four incredible young adult children aka our “heartbeats.”
I love being able to blend my lived and work experiences to help leaders and their teams thrive beyond 90 days. Mark Twain said, “Find a job (career) you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” I am grateful and feel the same way.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey has been far from smooth. As an early entrepreneur, it was common to feel isolated. I missed the days of going into the office and connecting with my colleagues. I second-guessed myself and sometimes dealt with imposter syndrome. Additionally, I had plenty of naysayers offering advice to play it safe or remind me to stick with certainty. However, as an entrepreneur, uncertainty is the common theme. There was a time during my journey when I had to take a temporary role. At the time, it was an opportunity I didn’t want because it took me away from my full-time entrepreneurial pursuits. However, that “detour” proved to be one of the most life-changing seasons that catapulted Fitwell Solutions to a new level and opened unexpected opportunities.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As Founder and Chief Well-being Officer, I have the privilege of working with organizations that are mission-aligned and focus on impact. Specifically, I help nonprofits with Executive Onboarding, board training, and team integration. This work evolved over years of seeing a pattern. Oftentimes, new employees are provided with a basic onboarding training which includes benefits selection and perks review. However, at the senior leadership level, it’s typically a sink or swim set-up where a leader receives little to no training on how to be successful in their roles. This missing ingredient is what can lead to early burnout, early exits, and a declining organizational culture.
Fitwell Solutions is known for its ability to help leaders thrive beyond day one equipping them with the essential tools to create a culture of well-being personally, on their teams, and beyond the workplace. I’m proud of the way we provide customized solutions for organizations based on their unique organizational DNA but also a blueprint that helps with helping leaders thrive beyond 90 days and addresses those critical metrics that drive retention such as new hire turnover and time to productivity.
My services are ideal for mission-driven organizations who want to start their Executive Directors off strong, boards that want to build their capacity to support an ED, and teams that need integration and team building in preparation for a new leader.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
What I like best about the Triangle are the variety of activities throughout the year that give you a different vantage point of the area. For example, Durham has great weekend community events, and other cities have unique events interest the entire family.
What I like least about our city is the traffic. Over the last several years, there’s been tremendous growth and the traffic bottlenecks continue to impact travel. I’m good with directions though, and make it a point to always have an alternative route.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.fitwellsolutions.com
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/valeriemerriweather
