Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophia Holloway.
Hi Sophia, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1968, a year when America was grieving the loss of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. The streets were filled with unrest, and so was my home. My mother, a teenage Black woman, was raising four children alone by the age of 23. We were a family stitched together with love, poverty, trauma, resilience, and often laughter would help to ease the discomfort, and we laughed plenty; it was how we healed. My mother, experiencing her own trauma, did the best she knew how at the time, being a young mother with no real guidance. My early years were filled with challenges—emotional, sexual abuse, financial, and educational. I struggled with a learning disability and didn’t learn to read well until I was 12. I was placed in Title 1 classes, which were meant to help, but often left me feeling alienated and ashamed, which led to emotional instability mixed with anxiety and depression. To put it plainly, “I was mad as hell.”
Despite the chaos around me, I discovered a gift: empathy. This may have stemmed from my growing up in church during my adolescent years. Even as a child, I listened to others, classmates, especially the bullies, and often connected with their pain and offered comfort, the best I could, despite my pain. In return, I would be protected from being bullied. I didn’t know it then, but I was already becoming a counselor—someone who could see past anger and hurt to the heart of a person’s struggle.
In high school, my music teacher, Evelyn Tate, saw past my outbursts and challenged me to rise above my circumstances. Her words—“Sophia, you are being facetious. You can do better than this,” — stuck with me for decades. She saw that I had a natural gift in vocal performance. Something I had acquired from singing with my sibling growing up in church, where my grandfather was the Pastor and my grandmother was the First Lady. Mrs. Tate would often leverage my gift into a meaningful conversation that empowered me to get a better handle on my unhealthy emotional outbursts. I digress to say, I’ve never taken time to thank her as years have moved forward, but I hope to one day see her in person again to thank her for making me feel seen with positive regard. A turning point came when I received a music scholarship at the age of 21, graduating from high school with a GPA of just 1.4. Though I initially failed in college on my first attempt, her belief in me planted a seed that reaped a harvest in me.
Years later, as a wife and mother, I realized I still had unfinished business with myself, so I went back. In my 40s, I returned to college. I earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology with an interest in understanding human experiences. I wanted to know what the hurt meant. I tried to understand why healing felt so far away for some and not others.
Then I pursued a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the age of 57—not to fix people, but to walk beside them. To help them find their own light. To be the person I once needed.
Today, as a life coach, I’ve founded Keep On Living Life LLC. It’s more than a name—it’s a declaration. It’s what my grandmother used to say when life got hard. It means choosing to live fully, even when the world tries to break you. It means embracing your story, your scars, your strength.
It was a long journey, but I’ve learned to forgive. I knew that forgiveness isn’t just for others—it’s for yourself. I’ve forgiven the people who hurt me. I’ve forgiven the girl who couldn’t read, who lashed out, who felt unworthy. I’ve forgiven the woman who failed, who quit, who carried shame.
Because she, I kept going.
She, I kept on living.
And now, I help others do the same
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all—it’s been anything but smooth. My journey has been paved with hardship, heartbreak, and healing. The road I’ve walked wasn’t lined with opportunity; it was carved through adversity.
I was born into a world already in turmoil—Memphis, 1968, a year marked by the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. My mother, a teenage Black woman, was raising four children alone by the age of 23. We lived in poverty, surrounded by instability and trauma. Abuse—emotional, physical, and financial—was a recurring theme in our household, and survival often meant enduring more than any child should.
School was not always a refuge. I struggled with a learning disability and didn’t learn to read well until I was twelve. I was placed in Title 1 classes, which were meant to help, but often left me feeling labeled and limited. I was pushed through grades because of my age, not my readiness, which only deepened my sense of inadequacy. I carried the weight of shame, anxiety, and depression, all while trying to make sense of the chaos around me.
But even amid my own pain, I found myself drawn to others who were hurting. I listened. I connected. I counseled without knowing that’s what I was doing. I made friends with bullies because I understood their anger mirrored my own. That empathy became my lifeline.
One of the most pivotal moments came from a woman who saw past my rage: Mrs. Evelyn Tate, my music teacher. She didn’t indulge my excuses or react to my outbursts. Instead, she challenged me. “Sophia, you’re being facetious. You can do better than this.” That word—facetious—was foreign to me, but her message was clear: I was capable of more. Her belief in me earned me a music scholarship, despite my limitations.
But the road didn’t smooth out there. I went to college and failed. Miserably. I left with shame and a heavy heart, feeling like I had let everyone down. That failure haunted me for years.
Eventually, I became a wife and a mother. And while those roles brought joy, they also stirred a more profound longing—to finish what I had started. In my 40s, I returned to college, driven by the echo of Mrs. Tate’s words. I earned my bachelor’s in psychology, then a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. I wanted to understand the roots of pain, not to fix people, but to walk beside them in their healing.
Forgiveness was one of the hardest lessons. I had to forgive those who hurt me. But more importantly, I had to forgive myself—for the anger, the shame, the years lost to fear. That act of self-forgiveness was the turning point, although it is still an ongoing journey for me.
Now, through my life coaching practice, Keep On Living Life LLC, I help others navigate their own storms. My road wasn’t smooth—but it was sacred. Every bump, every scar, every detour shaped me into the woman I am today: resilient, empathetic, and committed to helping others rise.
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?
🌱 About Keep On Living Life, LLC
Keep On Living Life, LLC is a life coaching practice rooted in empathy, transformation, and the power of perseverance. I have experienced a journey from trauma to triumph that has shaped every corner of my work. This practice is designed to help individuals not just survive, but live with intention, healing, and purpose.
💬 What I Do
I specialize in:
• Trauma-informed coaching: Supporting clients who carry emotional wounds from childhood, relationships, or life transitions.
• Empowerment coaching: Helping individuals reclaim their voice, confidence, and direction.
• Resilience building: Teaching tools to navigate adversity with strength and grace.
• Emotional wellness: Guiding clients through anxiety, shame, and self-forgiveness toward clarity and peace.
Each session is structured to foster trust, transformation, and growth. It is structured to listen deeply and reflect with compassion, creating a space where clients feel seen, heard, and safe.
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🌟 What Sets me Apart
• Lived Experience Meets Professional Expertise: My journey—from struggling to read as a child to earning a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling—infuses every coaching moment with authenticity and insight.
• Faith and Purpose: The name Keep On Living Life comes from a phrase that embodies resilience, spiritual grounding, and the choice to keep moving forward.
• Connection-Driven Coaching: Sessions are not transactional—they’re transformational.
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🎯 What I am Known For
• Empathy that heals: My ability to build rapport with clients—especially those who feel unseen—is unmatched.
• Clarity through chaos: Clients leave sessions with actionable insights and renewed hope.
• A safe space for transformation: Whether you’re grieving, stuck, or simply searching, this practice meets you where you are.
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🏆 What I Am Most Proud Of
• The brand’s soul: Keep On Living Life isn’t just a name—it’s a declaration. It’s a reminder that no matter what you’ve faced, you can choose to live fully.
• Client breakthroughs: Watching clients move from pain to power is the heartbeat of this practice, implementing SMART goals.
• Authenticity: I don’t coach from theory alone—I coach from truth, experience, and a deep desire to serve.
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📣 What I Want You to Know
• Keep On Living Life, LLC is here for the broken, the brave, and the becoming.
• I offer one-on-one coaching and empowerment.
• Every offering is designed to help you reconnect with your worth, rewrite your story, and reclaim your life
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
🌟 The Girl Who Felt Deeply and Saw Clearly
Growing up, I was a child of contrast—quietly observant yet emotionally intense, wounded yet wildly empathetic. I carried a storm inside, but I also carried light. Even amid trauma, instability, and academic struggle, my personality shone through in unmistakable ways.
💫 Personality Traits That Defined You
• Empathetic to the core: I had and still have an uncanny ability to sense when others were hurting. I didn’t just notice pain—I felt it. I was the kind of child who would sit beside someone in silence just to let them know they weren’t alone.
• Emotionally intuitive: I could and still can read a room before I knew how to read a book. I understood people’s moods, motives, and masks. That emotional radar made me a natural counselor long before I knew what that word meant.
• Resilient and reactive: Anger was my armor, but underneath it was a fierce desire to be understood. I wasn’t disruptive for attention—I was expressive because I was desperate to be seen with positive regard. And when someone saw me, like Mrs. Tate, it changed everything.
• Curious and questioning: I asked questions—lots of them. Not just about facts, but about why people behaved the way they did. My mother would say, “Girl, you ask too many questions,” but those questions were the seeds of my future in psychology and mental health.
• Protective and loyal: I gravitated toward the misunderstood. I made friends with bullies not because I feared them, but because I recognized them. I saw the pain behind their behavior and offered connection instead of judgment.
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🎨 Interests That Lit You Up
• Music as a lifeline: Music wasn’t just a subject—it was a sanctuary. It gave my siblings and I rhythm when life felt chaotic. We created a singing gospel group named “The Brown Singer.” This was therapeutic for my siblings and me. My connection to music became a bridge to opportunity, healing, and self-expression.
• People and their stories: I am always fascinated by human behavior. Even as a child, I wanted to understand why people did what they did—especially when it caused them pain. I wasn’t just interested in psychology; I was driven by it.
• Helping others feel seen: Whether it was classmates, friends, or even those who lashed out, I had a gift for making people feel heard. I didn’t have formal tools, but I had presence. I had a heart.
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🌱 The Soul of a Healer in a Hurting World
I didn’t have the academic accolades early on, but I had wisdom. I am shaped by hardship but not defined by it. Unbeknownst to me, I was already becoming the coach, the counselor, the advocate—long before I had the titles.
And now, through my life coaching, Keep On Living Life, I’ve turned those early traits into a powerful practice. I help others because I was once in their shoes. I listen because I needed someone to listen to me. I learned how to heal.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://keeponlivinglife.clientsecure.me/#services
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWr5W5WJIuE
