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S.L.A.Y. Your Mother-Daughter Relationship

Shelley Meche’tte & Bree K. Jones

By Tammy ReesePublished 4 years ago 13 min read
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Left- Bree K. Jones (Daughter) & Right- Shelley Meche'tte ( Mother) Photo Credit : @doctarinteno MUA @makeupbydrue

S.L.A.Y. Your Mother-Daughter Relationship

The Mother-daughter relationship can be tricky sometimes; especially when you are both adults. There may be tension due to senseless arguments, battles of “power” or even unresolved feelings of resentment. What if there were a way for mother and daughter to build a healthier, deeper and more loving relationship with each other?

Certified Life Purpose Coach, Author and Self-Awareness Expert Shelley Meche’tte ( Me’SHAY) is the go-to expert when it comes to sharing how moms and daughters can S.L.A.Y. their way into a closer and healthier relationship, through self-awareness and personal empowerment!

She and daughter, Deaf Culture Merger, Bree K. Jones are known as Hollywood’s Favorite Mother-Daughter Duo. Not only do they live together, but they also work together as Producers and Celebrity Event/Red Carpet Hosts. They understand how to S.L.A.Y. (with 2 snaps) into greatness…together!

* Speak LIFE: No matter how you look at it, words have power!

We as mothers have the power to impact our daughters’ lives, with life or death words. How we speak to our daughters is a great indication of how they will allow others speak into them. The world is filled with negativity and outside forces waiting to slaughter the being of our girls. If we want a relationship that includes trust, love and mutual respect with adult daughters, life words will need to be spoken into them while they are still girls.

* Live…Who You Want Your Daughter to Be:

The best way to show our daughters positive self-love, value and the importance of creating healthy boundaries for outside relationships is to LIVE that example before them. Many moms don’t realize that, when we don’t show our daughters the type of women that they can excel to be, we leave room for outsiders to fill their hearts with lies of who they can never be. We create prosperous relationships with our adult daughters, when we develop relationships with our toddler daughters. Highlighting their inner beauty, magnifying their gifts and being present, are just a few things that will help our girls develop into a woman who understands who will probably become one of our best friends!

*Accept Each Other’s Flaws: Guess what? We’re all human.

We all make mistakes. We all have flaws…even your perfect little angel and the superwoman that you call…mom. One of the best ways to ruin any relationship is to never allow people the space to grow from their mistakes. None of us has all of the answers. Mothers make mistakes before…and after motherhood. Daughters are constantly discovering themselves…even into adulthood. Mothers have to give space for their daughters to grow, even when it’s painful to watch. And daughters have to give space for moms to live their life unapologetically, just as any other woman would.

* Say Yes to Time Together:

One of the best ways to ensure a great mother- daughter relationship in adulthood is to make spending time together a habit from childhood. Relationship development takes time. Say “yes” to deliberately investing in one another’s happy. Take time to do things that make the other person feel special. Spending time together reinforces the importance of your relationship… makes you both feel loved and creates opportunities for precious memories. Mother-daughter relationships thrive, when we learn to say YES to each other! Shelley and Bree have been featured on Fox Soul, Off the Dome Radio, What Women Want, Your Resource for Success and more! They have even graced the cover of Sister2Sister 2.0 Magazine. They have had the pleasure of interviewing various talent on the Red Carpet including, Dave Brown, Dj Damage, Renee Lawless, Anne-Marie Johnson, Disney star Ava Kolker, Days of our Lives star Shawn Christian and Reality star Sunday Carter to name a few.

Their web-series I Hear You can currently be viewed on YouTube

Vocal readers please enjoy our interview!

Left- Bree K. Jones & Right- Shelley Meche'tte have been featured on FoxSoul.TV

Tammy Reese:

What is it like working together?

Shelley: I can truly say that being able to work with my daughter has been a fun learning experience. I think that we’ve learned a lot from each other as professional women. Now, there is an extra layer to our relationship. When in work mode, I have to step back as a mother and become her partner. I do my best not to allow the lines to blur…but every now and then…I have to remind her of the hierarchy. Lol

Bree is creative, hard-working and dedicated to what she puts her mind to. As parents, we are constantly adjusting to our forever changing relationship with our children, including preparing for the day that they will leave the nest. Being able to work with my daughter gives me an opportunity to spend time with her and appreciate how beautiful she is, even more. For me, there is no “downside” to working with her. I love our moments.

Bree: I love working with my mom. Our work ethics are similar so I think that’s one reason why we work so well together. Of course, sometimes when people have the exact same work ethic, it can be a challenging environment to operate in. However, the reason I believe it’s not too challenging for us is because we know how to separate our working relationship from our personal relationship. We respect that we juggle two different types of relationships.

I’m not saying she hasn’t hurt my feelings from time to time because she has. Lol. But when I feel offended, I express myself to her. She might apologize, she might not. In fact, she may tell me that I’m the one who actually offended her. Lol.

Regardless of if we disagree, we both are open to hearing each other out. I think that’s what makes our professional relationship successful.

Tammy Reese:

What inspired you to become media Influencers?

Shelley: It all really started by accident. I have always loved entertainment. Was doing monologues in the womb! I’ve always loved performing and being in front of a crowd. A few years ago Bree decided that she wanted to work in entertainment behind the scenes, helping directors communicate with Deaf talent (I’ll let her tell you more about that). From there, we developed a show called I Hear You. Because people were so fascinated by our working relationship, we were constantly answering questions of how we were able to work so well together and keep a great mother-daughter balance.

It really grew from there. We started doing videos together, hosting Celebrity and Red Carpet events together and doing guest interviews together. I think people enjoy seeing a healthy, fun-loving (sometimes bickering) mother-daughter relationship. We’re just “us”. No fluff…no perfection. Just Shelley and Bree. And that’s what people like.

Bree: I mean, my mother really covered it. It happened by accident. I initially wanted to be behind the scenes, working closely with directors, producers, casting directors, etc.. to explain the Deaf Culture to them in hopes of having more Deaf talent on screen. I wanted to follow this path because my Deaf and Hard of Hearing friends were having a hard time breaking into Hollywood. There are so many misconceptions about Deaf people, so I wanted to ally with my Deaf friends to educate Hollywood about that world.

This is important because most hearing people don’t view Deafness as something that’s cultural. There’s this notion that Deaf people are sad because they wish they were hearing….they don’t. They love being Deaf, are proud to be Deaf and unapologetically operate in their Deaf Culture. The Deaf Culture is completely opposite of the hearing culture, causing a lot of unfortunate misunderstandings between both worlds.

One day I was in conversation with a Casting Director about this and she suggested I create a web-series. Without much thought, I took what she said, talked it over with my mother… and we just did it. After that, one thing led to another, and before I knew it, I started chasing an entertainment dream.

Tammy Reese:

What type of feedback do you get from life coaching?

Shelley: I have to say…I’ve really been blessed as a Life Purpose Coach. I have had the pleasure of guiding some amazing women into new life levels. One of the greatest compliments that I receive from clients is…”you’re real”. I give you the real deal…with love. You may not like what I have to say regarding your situation. You may not like the truth that I’m pushing you face or the responsibility steps that I’ve outlined for you to take, but one thing that you will always get from me is honesty and love! So, when clients tell me that they know that I care, because of how I make them feel, it means the world to me. I want to see my clients succeed...in every area of their lives. That’s why I became a “life” coach. I want their lives to reflect the beauty that I see in them. And that means coming to terms with some hard truths sometimes.

Tammy Reese:

What are some memorable moments in your career so far?

Shelley: If you’re speaking of working with my daughter…there are so many awesome moments, but I’d have to say one of the greatest ones was doing the Hollywood screening of our pilot episode of I Hear You. After many tears, frustrating days, people not believing in our vision and even walking away from us…we were able to unveil our work in a small private screening.

Being content creators isn’t easy. And some days are even harder than that. But, when you’re able to bring thoughts and ideas into fruition, it is the greatest feeling of accomplishment. I’ve been proud of us many times for our tenacity and drive, but on this particular day…I had to puff out my chest, just a little bit and smile, because we had made it to a place that circumstances on so many occasions made us think that we never would. And the work continues. Lol

Bree: My proudest moment is watching hearing people going out of their way to make their company accessible towards the Deaf community based on an interaction they’ve had with me. Or, when people tell me they understand the importance of learning sign language and they take the time to educate themselves about the community and culture. It’s the small social changes I’ve been able to contribute to that are my proudest moments.

Left- Bree K. Jones & Right- Shelley Meche'tte

Tammy Reese:

How has the pandemic shaped your day to day life?

Shelley: Bree is always here! Geesh. Lol I work from home, so it has been a serious adjustment to have my entire family home, during my working hours…every…single…day. Good thing I like them.

One of the things that I’ve actually enjoyed most about how life has changed during the pandemic is the meeting of so many incredible talents. This pandemic has allowed me to share my expertise as a Coach on many online platforms. I’ve been to several states, other countries, connected with various directors, writers, participated in entertainment and speaker master classes with top influencers and more. All without leaving my home.

We have even birthed two more projects during this pandemic time. So day to day life is everyone working together to help the other person to succeed at whatever they are doing. If that means shipping orders for someone’s business in between an online meeting, that’s what we do. If that means helping someone do a video for their IG page after work is done for the day, that’s what we do.

Bree: The pandemic is tough for sure. But I would lying if I said it brought zero blessings. A lot of time I didn’t have, I gained, which allowed me to write more and develop more projects. It’s allowed me to meet more people in the entertainment industry and it’s allowed me time to binge watch some of my favorite shows.

Now believe me, I want some space away from my family. I love them dearly, I do…and I enjoy spending time with them… but SHEESH!

Tammy Reese:

What are you currently working on?

Shelley: Individually, I’m working on a few digital projects to release soon and more speaking engagements to show my fellow woman how to live a life of true purpose and happiness. I have a few other things in the pipeline… I can’t put it all out on the table yet.

Collectively, we’re working on more projects and preparing to do IG Lives, interviewing influential people who make change.

Bree: Aside from the projects I’m writing, I’m working on my ASL interpreting skills. I am in pursuit to get my National Interpreter Certification (NIC) so I’m spending a lot of time on personal development and being mentored by some of the best interpreters to prepare myself for the exam in a few years.

Tammy Reese:

What do you both wish for each other?

Shelley: My wish for my child is simple. I wish her love, joy and peace which surpasses all understanding. My wish is for her to follow her passion and submit to the purpose that God has pre-destined for her. I pray that she will always put God first in her life and make herself proud!

Bree: I wish for all my mom’s wildest dreams to come true. She’s worked hard her whole life. My wish is that she will reap double what she has sown.

Tammy Reese:

What is some advice you would give mother and daughters to get close to each other?

Shelley: Give each other the grace to make mistakes. None of us is perfect. No matter how hard we try, we’re all going to fumble. Fumble and learn. Fumble and teach. Just be willing to give each other the love and support that it takes to get back up again. Your relationship will be filled with so many precious, fun and even growth moments. And giving grace to one another will also strengthen the trust in your relationship.

Lastly, spend time with one another and get to know each other…in every phase of your relationship. The relationship with your 4yr old is going to be completely different from the one with your 14yr old, which will turn into something different with your 24yr old. Grow with each stage and continue to discover the best parts of each other.

Bree: For daughters to understand that their mother is a woman/human first before they’re your mom. Some mistakes are harder to come back from, but be patient with your mom in the process if growth is something she desires. My advice to mothers is to not play the “I’m your mom” card as an excuse to verbally disrespect your child and dismiss their feelings. As your daughter grows, find ways to grow with them. Respectfully discuss boundaries and do your best to come to a happy medium.

Keep up with Shelley and Bree on Instagram

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About the Creator

Tammy Reese

Tammy is best known for her legendary interviews with Sharon Stone, Angela Bassett, Sigourney Weaver, Geena Davis, Morris Chestnut, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Laurence Fishburne, Omar Epps, Joseph Sikora, and more.

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