India Harris MBA shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
India, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
Yes! As a matter of fact there is a very recent moment that I was proud of! As the Founder of my nonprofit organization Black Doves of Excellence Inc., here in Dekalb County, Georgia, I had a wonderful opportuntity to be a Blessing for at least 50 people. I requested gift card donations from the Dollar Tree Gift Card Bank for Christmas distribution. My plan was to have a beneift Christmas party for those who may be having a hard time, and planned to distribute the gift cards at that time;to my surprise, I received an email last Friday from The Gift Card Bank with an urgent request to submit a list of people affected by the SNAP Disruption. When I tell you I was elated that God anwered my prayers so quickly! Just 2 days prior, I wondered if my organization would be Blessed with gift cards for Christmas. I quickly gathered a list of 50 peope and submitted the spreadsheet last Saturday. With anticipation and excitement a speedy response was sent to my email on Monday, stating the spreadsheet had been received and $100 gift cards would be distributed by end of business day! Calls and texts began pouring in, that all have received their virtual gift cards to be used at the store of their choice.
I emailed the company thanking them for the speedy distribution. This was thee absolute proudest moment of this year for me!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is India C. Harris, and I am the CEO and Founder of Black Doves of Excellence Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering youth and families through mental wellness, personal development, and leadership education.
My journey began long before the creation of my organization — as a young mother learning to navigate life’s challenges while striving to rewrite my own story. Through faith, perseverance, and purpose, I transformed pain into power and turned obstacles into opportunities for healing, growth, and community impact.
What makes my work unique is the way it bridges real-life experience, spiritual healing, and practical empowerment. I’m deeply passionate about helping others discover their worth, heal generational wounds, and recognize that they are not defined by where they started, but by the strength it took to rise.
Through my nonprofit, programs like Crowned & Capable, and now my personal healing projects such as Unspoken Pain: Healing the Mother Wound, my goal is to create safe spaces for transformation — where stories are honored, truth is embraced, and individuals remember who they truly are. Currently, I’m expanding my mission through writing, and speaking, with a focus on emotional healing, self-worth, and legacy building.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
When I lost my mother at thirteen, I believed I was abandoned and unloved — left naked to the world, exposed and unseen. I carried a silent fear that being motherless meant being unworthy of protection, care, or belonging. For years, I moved through life trying to fill the emptiness she left behind, wearing strength like armor so no one would see how broken I felt inside. But with time, grace, and healing, I’ve learned that I was never truly abandoned — I was being guided toward a deeper understanding of love. I now know that my mother’s absence did not define my value; it revealed my resilience. I am no longer that frightened girl searching for someone to save her. I am the woman who learned to mother herself — to love, nurture, and protect the child within me. I am no longer exposed; I am seen. I am no longer unloved; I am love itself.
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
The fear that held me back the most was believing I wasn’t enough. As a child — and later as a young mother — insecurity lived in every corner of my mind. I doubted my worth, my voice, and my place in the world. That fear of inadequacy whispered that I wasn’t capable of conquering anything, so I learned to wear strength like a mask. They say smiling faces sometimes tell lies — mine did. I smiled to survive, to protect my children from the heaviness I carried inside. On the outside I appeared strong, but inside I was a little girl still afraid of not being seen, not being chosen, not being loved for who I truly was. But healing has taught me that the fear was never truth — it was a wound. Today, I no longer hide behind my smile; I wear it as a reflection of peace. I am not less than. I am whole, capable, and worthy of everything my younger self once believed she couldn’t have. I was never inadequate — I was simply growing into my power.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What truths are so foundational in your life that you rarely articulate them?
The truths that anchor my life are simple, yet they live deep within me — so woven into who I am that I rarely speak them aloud. I know that God has never left me, not even in the moments I felt most alone. When I lost my mother, when I doubted my worth, when I smiled through silent pain — His presence held me. That truth shaped my strength.I know that love is my birthright, not something I have to earn. It took years to unlearn the belief that I had to be perfect to be loved. Now I understand that my existence alone is proof that I am enough. And I know that my pain had a purpose. Every heartbreak, every trial, every moment of feeling unseen carved space for empathy, compassion, and divine wisdom to take root in me. My story — no matter how heavy — was never meant to break me; it was meant to build me. These are the truths I carry quietly, the ones that keep me grounded when the world feels uncertain. They are my foundation — not shouted, but lived every single day.God never left me. I was never unworthy. My pain became my power.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
For a long time, I did what I was told to do. I followed the path that looked right on the outside — the one that made everyone proud and kept me safe from judgment. I chased stability over fulfillment, survival over purpose. I wore many titles, but few truly reflected who I was inside. I became the strong one, the provider, the fixer — all roles that served others but slowly silenced me. Deep down, my spirit whispered that I was meant for something more — not something greater in status, but something deeper in meaning. I was born to heal, to guide, to speak life into others, and to turn my pain into purpose. Today, I’m finally doing what I was born to do. Through my words, my workshops, my programs, and my writing, I’m answering the call that was planted in me long before the world had an opinion. I am not living by instruction anymore — I am living by intention. I no longer move by expectation; I move by divine design.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.blackdovesofexcellence.com
- Instagram: @blackdovesofexcellenceinc
- Linkedin: indiaharrismba
- Facebook: @blackdovesofexcellenceinc
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