Welcome to the Just BE BIWOC Entrepreneurship Journal where we alchemize our lived experiences as entrepreneurs into lessons, strategies, and reflections in service to joy, liberation, and community care.
Many of the articles below tackle complex and often overlooked issues around mental health, trauma, mindset, and healing as Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIWOC) business owners. Each article is preceded by content notices for potentially sensitive material so that you may choose to opt out of engaging with the content to protect your well-being. We understand that some days we want to go deep and some days we need a break. We honor and love you wherever you are at [big hug].
The Just BE Rebirth
The evening summer sun of 2016 beats down on the shoulders of eight Black Women as they enter a West Oakland community center. There is no air conditioning (as is normal for the bay), so the auditorium is a bit stuffy and humid.
My Deeper Why: Lineage & Community
My story begins in midtown Sacramento, California, as the product of an eclectic CAMEO-obsessed and Depeche Mode-loving Black mother and white father whose favorite song at the time was My Posse’ On Broadway by Sir Mix-a Lot. Growing up I always wondered what they saw in each other as they were two very different people.
Why Center Healing as a Black Women Entrepreneur?
It is the end of 2018 and I am exhausted, experiencing the second worst depression of my entire life. From the outside looking in, I should be celebrating. I achieved my goal of doubling my business revenue in one year, I raised $20,000 in financing capital, hired contractors, hosted a paid intern, and even paid myself.