Looking back and reflecting on his life, DeAndre Nixon can honestly say it took him nearly half of a century to discover his life’s purpose. When he says discover, it’s not to say that he didn’t have one, but rather didn’t think about it. He had never heard of this term before, and he didn’t have a reason to reflect on the meaning behind it. He wasn’t formally introduced to this concept, and he didn’t have discussions with his friends about it. He just went through life, trying to live, survive, and learn different things and skills. Here is his story.
Born and raised in Akron, Ohio, DeAndre Nixon explored entrepreneurship by doing odd jobs at age twelve in his community. As a teen, he was involved in ROTC and a high school marketing program. He was nominated as president of the school store and became a Junior Achievement President for selling wind chimes. He bought his first car with cash after saving his hard-earned money over the summer.
DeAndre Nixon officially became an entrepreneur in 1998. He got his bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington in Business Administration Management and an MBA from Baldwin Wallace University in entrepreneurship.
DeAndre, a U.S. Navy war veteran, was involved in humanitarian missions as a medical professional and earned a chest of medals for valor in protecting families. Through his journey, he has visited eighteen countries during and after his service, giving him a global perspective on life. With all his travel experiences, he learned how to be accepting of different cultures and points of view. He has the ability to adapt to any situation that life may bring. DeAndre has taken on various leadership positions where his passion for consulting, life coaching, and mentoring helped those he encountered.
One of his eye-opening experiences was living on a mountain on the island Cebu, Philippines. He saw how the community came together and supported each other, not only through the hardship of the volcano eruption but also in a peaceful time. Each member of the community had their role, and they operated under a barter system. During his visit, DeAndre twisted his ankle and was fearful of the possibility of needing surgery. A local medicine woman with knowledge of natural remedies healed his injury using massage methods. It took a tremendous amount of DeAndre’s trust for her to both calm and helped him. Within 45 minutes, he was able to walk. She explained that his veins were twisted, and she simply untwisted them. That’s when he realized the gift that is within all of us and that coaching, and business consulting start with trust.
After leaving the Navy and transitioning from the medical field, DeAndre discovered his newly-found passion and gift of using his decades of experience to help others in business or personal life by “advancing their vision.” To serve others is a fantastic thing. As a young entrepreneur, his first business venture was iN Entertainment, a Seattle-based special events production company providing event planning service to nonprofit and for-profit organizations. iN Entertainment provided in-house fashion productions and D.J. services.
After his grandmother’s passing, DeAndre returned to Akron, Ohio. He dissolved iN Entertainment and founded a nonprofit organization called iN Education, which serves the youth of diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds to get equipped for life after high school.
After years of successful growth, he wanted to add more value to the services iN Education provided. Together with his wife Sona and his team, he launched Zealousness, an education-minded blog and an e-magazine where DeAndre serves as Editor in Chief. His passion grew further and further, and he realized the importance that arts bring to education. DeAndre became an Executive Producer of Battle of the Teal, a visual and performing arts program that allows individuals to “Express, Engage and Connect” through the arts.
DeAndre is also the founder & manager of Ohio-based Proficient Pro LLC, formed in 2007. We motivate and provide coaching for groups or individuals; we also specialize in consulting services for startups and small to medium-sized businesses.
Proficient Pro’s mission is to navigate its clients towards proficiency through professional business consulting and life coaching. The aim of its various systems and processes is to address, solve, and ultimately overcome. We motivate, inspire, encourage, challenge and train our clients. Lessons we teach include:
- Things that you have learned early on in life somehow end up being beneficial later on in life.
- The journey may not always make sense, but it’s something we all need to go through in order to grow and discover our life purpose.
- Certain situations may seem like deja vu. It’s because you need to realize what can be done differently before moving forward.
- Although we trust one another with most things, there are some areas of our lives where trust doesn’t come as easily. Trust comes from within ourselves.
- Live your life or purpose and continue to do things that make you happy.
Fast forward to today, DeAndre and his team continue to impact the lives of many individuals between the for-profit and nonprofit world. Teaching life purpose at a young age could potentially help today’s youth and young professionals discover and understand themselves better. DeAndre realized that his purpose is to mentor, coach, and consult with individuals (regardless of age) who wish to fulfill their personal or business passions!
