In a turning of events, entrepreneur Alivia K. Barrett started using her passion for helping others and incorporated her teaching abilities with a bit of business flare. She spent a few years after college working as a mentor in a school system, but she soon realized that she was ready for a change. Because of her abilities in business, Alivia began managing multiple enterprises concurrently for 20 years after that turn in careers. When the world went virtual in 2020, Alivia felt compelled to get back into teaching and began developing minicourses online (ltkradio.com/minicourses) that combined her interests in business, education and faith in God.
Her distinctive method combines these three worlds in harmony with an excellent learning opportunity. Alivia is passionate about interacting with people and fostering their development. Everything she does shows it. Since a few years ago, Alivia has been changing lives by instructing these minicourses. The virtual platform is an area of influence that is constantly expanding. Since that shift, Alivia K. Barrett is part of that wave of online resources and development. She wants to spend time on a mission that matters to her and matters to others that take these minicourses.
Initial stages
Young Alivia K. Barrett recalls longing for a purpose—something that would identify her and be greater than herself. Early on, her parents had a significant impact on her. Her father was an excellent public speaker who inspired audiences to think outside the box. He was a pastor, a community club volunteer, and a shepherd to those who went to their neighborhood church. Her mother instilled in her a constant belief in children’s capacity for greater understanding. She crafted and led musicals for people of all ages and taught in both Sunday school and baby classes while teaching in a local elementary during the week. Alivia wanted something similar to what they both had, which were missions bigger than themselves.
This journey grew for Alivia when she went with her dad on a trip to St. Vincent.
Alivia says, “I could see kids and families that were completely different from me. They were so grateful for us being there. It made me want to jump in and help.” Alivia helped their school out in the yard. Although she admitted that being hot or dirty wasn’t her favorite thing, she was nonetheless picking up very important knowledge. She and others around her were given such vitality by her presence, hard effort, and lack of complaint. She yearned for more adventures!
Imagine that it was 1997 and Alivia was about to board a plane for Kenya, Africa. She had collected enough cash to cover a three-month internship that summer of college. She set out to research the relationships between Americans and Kenyans. She was looking to see if there was an assignment she could pick up on. The information she discovered was crucial to her journey. Enter Alivia’s encounter with the neighborhood Massai school. These young people looked extremely stylish. She remembers that they were wearing blue uniforms and had the biggest, whitest smiles she had ever seen. They could hardly wait to meet her and stroke her pale skin. It was hilarious to Alivia, she thought. Like they needed to be certain that she was real.
Alivia stood up in front of the class to speak about her family, the journey from America to their school, and her relationship with God. She could see the adorable ebony children huddled together and listening closely.
Alivia returned to the US, continued in college, and eventually earned a teaching degree. She remembers thinking that was the appropriate move and the new beginning she was ready to make. Nevertheless, after a few years of mentoring in a school system, she discovered a new interest and she was drawn to business and managing businesses.
Joining Corporate World
Alivia recounts the moment when she was “finding herself” in an opportunity when a business was being presented to her. It was a wonderful chance for Alivia and her expanding family. She was unaware that it was the first in a string of occupations that she thought were her destiny. It astonished Alivia how much she felt at home in these unfamiliar surroundings because being around business was simply in her nature. She was managing teams, scheduling, bringing in new clients, and doing all of that while working from home before that was the thing to do. She was really passionate and driven.
When 2020 arrived, she had almost 20 years of experience managing small businesses in various contexts. For Alivia’s job to survive, she recalled believing that everything had to change. She was not only terrified but also inspired to succeed despite the difficult situation. Alivia had faith that God would reveal to her a different route that would work— and He did.
While out on a walk, Alivia heard from a mentor a brand-new but really profound idea about riches. It was the idea that building healthy soil both within you and outside of you is the foundation of kingdom wealth. Alivia was literally stopped in her tracks by just that notion and how different business could look. Although it seemed contradictory, Alivia claims it was the beginning of a new journey that she needed and started looking forward to.
Sharing Knowledge through Short Videos
Alivia began consuming information about this idea and how to develop her voice. It took some time, self-investment, and learning from a few mentors for her to realize that something was resurfacing. It was her skills and background in teaching! Alivia was discovering that she was prepared to teach using a new method. So she recorded her first lecture about listening to God’s voice and the simplicity she’s discovered. That appeared to be quite effective and worked. Then, she kept thinking of more and more videos. She recorded an introduction video and then moved on to additional lessons. Alivia could see something emerging before her own eyes—minicourses were being born!
Alivia says “The concept of a minicourse was actually a new thought. From research I had found, most people were doing long courses and then would have levels like 101, 201, 301, 401 and masters series. I wasn’t finding much in courses that would give small amounts of information to digest quickly and go right into implementing what was learned. But that was exactly what I wanted to do.”
Alivia selected the first four classes in the curriculum for her 25-minute teaching videos. Also, they received bonus lessons that were part of the minicourse. The student could view and learn all of this online at their own convenience. She also scheduled a weekly live community time during which the students dug further into the subject matter. Alivia can recall some of those early times when people were absorbing information quite quickly. She was receiving emails and SMS requesting the next steps. She was fascinated by how rapidly these students were picking up the subject. They became ravenous for more of it. These students went through a handful of minicourses together and some of them wanted a one-on-one with Alivia too. It ended up being a fruitful time, right in the middle of covid restrictions. Alivia says “It felt like we were defying the odds with this new way of learning. It made me very hopeful for minicourses and it’s future.”
Minicourses are still in use today. She recently relaunched an updated version and is working to enroll additional students. The first minicourse that Alivia leads her students through is titled “Direction in Detail.” She managed to establish the direction of decisions and inspire confidence in how to proceed. While moving out into new experiences, Alivia feels that hearing God’s voice over other voices of influence (including our own) leads to genuine satisfaction and confidence. She also found that few people were hearing God’s voice and becoming perplexed over what they believed to be the right decision. It was logical to design a learning environment where students could proceed at their own pace, particularly when it came to understanding and validating their own path.
The name of the second course is Minicourse LIVE. She ultimately started capturing other people on the screen as well. According to Alivia, teaching in front of them, recording the sessions, and making the material available to additional students was enjoyable. After that, they had a discussion lesson that was also recorded. It was helping the students hear and reinforce directions from God’s perspective, similar to what a debriefing group would look like. Alivia recalls that changing the format of this minicourse was both a great learning experience and a lot of fun. The curriculum of Minicourse LIVE also includes supplementary material.
More Courses in Future
A new minicourse is coming, according to Alivia. All of the lessons learned from previous minicourses should become active in the student’s life. That would be the end goal of this next minicourse. To help people digest and put in action simple ways to confirm direction and be confident Infront of others because of what they’ve learned. Alivia is looking forward to this year’s new classes and revised versions of previous ones.
Alivia recalls, “What I’ve found by doing the minicourses in this way, is that others get a chance to seek God the way I do. Being virtually Infront of someone increases the opportunity for that person to experience change and for more people to become students of this subject. That alone feels revolutionary because now I can teach people at any time, in any location. They don’t have to just wait for my schedule or travel to my city. It’s available to them when they are ready to learn.”
The minicourses are intended to help people come to their own understanding and confidently confirm their next decision, no matter how big or small. Alivia wants people to access the source of knowledge, solutions, and life guidance. She is convinced that God offers all of this to those who ask to hear Him clearly. That, according to Alivia, is one of the best missions to be a part of. There can be more self-assured individuals in families, in positions of leadership, in employment, in churches, and in our own life if we give others the freedom to hear the word of God on their own. We would witness folks who were not persuaded by events or frightening news but rather heard a voice directly guiding them.
Throughout the world, minicourses have had an impact on individuals. In addition to Texas, Michigan, Florida and Kentucky some of Alivia’s students came from Germany and Canada. There are countless opportunities provided by the accessibility of learning online, going at their own pace, and connecting with other students in Facebook groups. Using online learning settings, things that were once exceedingly difficult are now quite possible.
These minicourses are a blessing in Alivia’s eyes. These options for smaller versions of course material enable students to learn quickly and easily. She is thrilled that minicourses are related to her life’s work and that they have the ability to grow and expand globally.
You can register for minicourses on Alivia’s radio show website.
Visit–ltkradio.com/minicourses
https://aliviaminicourses.thinkific.com/courses/direction-in-detail
Written by Steve Sanchez.
