Maya Jai Pinson 14 Year Old Motivational Speaker Motivates Local teens
DESOTO — She is only 14-years-old, but she has a lot to offer about life lessons. The Washington, DC native is not only a speaker and actress, she has a book out as well.
Maya Jai Pinson will be coming through DeSoto this weekend. Her focus is to tell her story and motivate tweens Friday at the Best Southwest Everything Teen Expo 2019.
“I love motivating and inspiring people,” Pinson says. “When opportunities present themselves, like the Best Southwest Everything Teen Expo, I love being a part of them. These types of expo’s and events afford me the opportunity to give back and make a difference in other’s lives.”
Pinson’s main purpose as a speaker and author is to encourage kids and teens to dream big, follow their dreams and to never give up.
Author Touts Time Management
Her book “Back Pack Lilly” teaches children about time management.
“The book features a dog ,Lilly, who teaches kids how to “Stop, Drop, Work, then Play.” The idea behind stop, drop, work then play is: “[It’s] my easy method to remind kids how to prioritize their studies over playing,” Pinson says. It is also what she talks about during her speaking engagements too.
She explains this idea is all about stopping what you’re doing, dropping what you’re doing and getting your work done first, then play.
“That’s the same technique that I’ve used all my life, which helped me to maintain a GPA average from 3.80 – 4.15 over the years,” she adds. “It’s an easy system to adapt to. I believe that if young toddlers to kids learn this method then it will make life much easier for them to automatically dive into their work before playtime.”
Keeping Busy
Her target audience is tweens and teens because she can relate.
“I’m a teenager who’s active in a lot of projects. So I want to encourage other tweens and teens that they’re not too young to pursue their dreams,” she explains. “Juggle multiple projects and give back to the community.”
As an actress Pinson works on a show called “Dad’s Do It Too
(DDIT)” in the role of Taylor, the children’s babysitter.
Pinson began print modeling at the age of one and was in her first film at the age of 11.
“I love acting,” she says, “Currently, I’m filming as Nova Wallace in a film “Indigo Child” and playing the role of Ava in a new web series “Patricia’s Independence.”
She has also been on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Sinner’s Wanted,” Cause Unknown,” and “The Other Two.”
Overcoming Obstacles
Pinson says with her constant quest for success there are also challenges.
“The one challenge that comes to mind is the one where some people didn’t take me seriously while pursuing my dreams because of my young age.”
That’s okay though, since she says she knows her family and friends are supportive of her and her goals. She says inspiring others through speaking, writing, acting or volunteering keep her dreams alive.
The Everything Teen Expo is Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the DeSoto Town Center, 211 E Pleasant Run Road and the event is free. For more information visit www.desototexas.gov/everythingteenexpo to register.
