The EQ Oasis: Saving Lives with AI-Powered EQ Tools

The Spark: What Inspired You?

I had a vision—one where emotional intelligence would be taught as a foundational skillset in business, at home, and in all the spaces in between. I imagined a digital bootcamp, powered by technology but always led by the human spirit.

This vision became a sanctuary built on three essential pillars to address the most complex challenges of our time:

1. Leadership in the Age of AI: As AI investments skyrocket, who is investing in human potential? My goal is to upskill leaders to safeguard and unlock that potential, not replace it.

2. Emotional Firewalls Against Social Engineering: Technology evolves rapidly, bringing extraordinary innovation but also new forms of manipulation. We're not just being hacked through code anymore, but through emotional vulnerability.

3. Emotional Healing in a Digital World: With mental health crises affecting one in two people globally, we are more connected than ever, yet more emotionally isolated. How do we not just survive—but truly thrive—in this hyper-digital age?

Except for my son and me, no one believed in this vision. As a single mother on welfare, I faced rejection after rejection while pitching for even the smallest seed funding. I didn't have the luxury to hire developers or build an MVP. But I knew the world doesn’t reward words—it rewards the brave.

The Journey: What Did You Learn?

The real blocker wasn’t a lack of technical skills. It was fear. Fear of upskilling, fear of failure, and fear of taking on such a massive endeavor while raising my 12-year-old son.

Once I accepted failure as a stepping stone to wisdom, I became unstoppable. My entire mindset shifted.

• Red and green Bolt error codes no longer scared me. I started using Google Developer Tools to debug and experiment boldly.
• I learned to fine-tune my prompts, fix bugs, and craft creative workarounds.
• Most importantly, I learned that I could overcome technical hurdles and build something beautiful myself.

The Blueprint: How Did You Build Your Project?

I procrastinated for months, overthinking every detail in Notion. The turning point came when I was invited to speak at the Global Project Management Forum in Riyadh. I offered to develop an AI-powered Emotional Intelligence app for the conference to complement my keynote. They said yes.

Suddenly, I had no choice but to build.

In one week, I developed the gpmf.thrivewitheqacademy.com web app. It took four iterations, countless tears, and endless learning curves, but I kept going. The key tool that turned my vision from slide decks into reality was BoltNew.

With renewed confidence, I canceled my Kajabi subscription and used the funds to fuel my Bolt journey. I built:

• thrivewitheq.com – My main website.
• thrivewitheqacademy.com – AI-powered EQ toolkits for business culture, leadership, and digital safety.
• shieldwitheq.com – A not-for-profit in the making, offering emotional firewalls for our teens.

But one piece was still missing—the third and final pillar, The EQ Oasis. When the global hackathon was announced, I knew this was the moment. The EQ Oasis, an AI-powered emotional sanctuary for healing, would be my submission.

The Hurdles: What Challenges Did You Face?

My journey was filled with both personal and technical challenges.

• Overcoming Fear and Procrastination: The biggest hurdle was my own terror of failure. It kept me locked in planning mode for months until a hard deadline forced me to act.
• Resource Constraints: As a single mother on welfare, I had no funding for developers. I had to become a builder myself, learning on the fly with the tools I could afford.
• Technical Complexity: Choosing between Firebase and Supabase was my toughest technical decision. Bolt loves Supabase, but I struggled with its authentication flow. Firebase felt easier but lacked the security features I needed.
• Solution: I found a way to make them both work together as a temporary workaround, with plans to hire a developer to help me scale in the future.

This project is my love letter to every soul who’s quietly surviving and longs to thrive. It's a sign that it’s okay to begin, that healing is possible, and that you can build something beautiful, too. It all starts with emotional intelligence.

Built With

• chatgpt
• google-gemini