Shontavia: What’s up, y’all. Welcome to The Shontavia Show, where my goal is to help you start a business based on your life’s vision. This ain’t gonna be your daddy’s business advice. I’m laser focused on entrepreneurship in the 21st century, vision and breaking the traditional mold. If you can get with that, you can get with me, be sure to visit shontavia.com for more episodes, blog posts, and other content. Thank you for listening. The show starts now.
Shontavia: What’s up everybody? I’m Shontavia Johnson and this is another episode of The Shontavia Show where I help you start a business based on the vision you have for your life. And I am so excited everybody to have with me Dr. Nika White. Thank you so much for being here.
Nika: Thank you for having me, Shontavia.
Shontavia: I just love your work. I love what you’re doing, and I should introduce you to everybody so they know your work and know what you’re doing.
Shontavia: So Dr. Nika White is a national authority and fearless advocate for diversity, inclusion, and equity. She’s an award winning management and leadership consultant, a keynote speaker, a published author. She’s written two books. The Intentional Inclusionist is that one, right?
Nika: That is correct.
Shontavia: Okay. Alright, so y’all pray for me with the next one. This is a little bit of a longer title. The Next Level Inclusionist: Transforming Yourself and Your Work for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Success. Is that it?
Nika: You did it.
Shontavia: Alright, awesome. So Dr. White helps organizations break down barriers and integrate diversity into their business frameworks. Most recently, this is what I know most recently, in November of 2019 you were named one of Forbes’ 10-what was it-10 Diversity and Inclusion Experts You Should Know.
Nika: Top 10 Trailblazers for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Shontavia: Got it. So congratulations and welcome. Thank you for being here.
Nika: Thank you for having me.
Shontavia: So Nika, so many questions for you. So I follow you. I’ve been watching your work for such a long time. Where are you from? How did you get here? What is your story?
Nika: Oh, you’re going way back.
Shontavia: Where are you from?
Nika: So I am from Belton, South Carolina, so a small town in the upstate, specifically in Anderson County. That’s where I grew up. Born and raised and um, really, really small town. In fact, the town is so small that it required two small towns coming together to form one high school–Belton-Honea Path. Yeah. That’s how small it is.
Shontavia: Oh wow. I’ve heard of that. Yeah. Okay. Alright, cool.
Nika: Um, and so my story is, is pretty traditional to what I believe is probably a lot of people’s story. I grew up in a home with both parents, loving home, both working parents, um, who always instilled in myself and my sister that the sky was the limit.
Nika: We could do anything. They were ones, um, from a parenting perspective who always, um, would challenge my sister and I to drive towards our potential. And that’s important. And I’ll come back to that at some point, I’m sure in this conversation because everything that I have been able to accomplish in my life has been because I have, um, viewed barriers and obstacles as nothing but an opportunity to overcome. And so I remember even like in school, you know, if you would bring home like a B, my mom would always say, okay, B it’s okay. It’s not that i’s bad, but I know your potential. Your potential is an A, so what are we doing here? And that is how I live my life, you know? And I have instilled that in my kids, and so anyway, um, matriculated through undergraduate. I went to the University of South Carolina.
Shontavia: Whew, let’s stop right there.
Nika: Okay.
Shontavia: Right. So I went to Clemson. For those of you who don’t know, Clemson and Carolina have a little bit of a rivalry–a historic rivalry. IJust a little bit, a little bit. I still love you, Nika. That’s okay. You have done wonderful things. Even given your background…
Nika: You’re way too kind. Give me credit for being a Gamecock. That’s okay. You know? See what’s interesting is that because like grew up in Anderson, as I just mentioned, Anderson County, I grew up loving the Tigers. So Clemson was my team, and although I went to USC, my husband is a Clemson grad. And I always tell people that both the Gamecock and the Tiger pay the bills in my house. And so, gotta like both teams, right? So anyway, so yes, I went to University of South Carolina–actually went through their J-School. So….
Shontavia: Oh cool.
Nika: I thought that I wanted to work in the field of marketing communications forever, and that has given me such a solid foundation. I absolutely love the industry of marketing communications. I love the on time, on budget, on strategy, the rat race, right? All those dynamics. I felt that I was really in my element. And so when I went through the J School, um, I actually graduated with a concentration in advertising public relations, and I think I graduated on a Friday, and on that Monday began working in an advertising agency, a really large, a nice sized advertising agency that’s actually based here in the Upstate.
Nika: And I was in between both the New York office because they had an office and a presence there and the Greenville office and just really fell in love with the industry. That is where I began to realize that I had this, this draw and this concern for diversity and inclusion. Because I was met with every single day, so many circumstances whereby as marketing communications professionals, you were charged to be smart, effective marketing partners for your clients whose consumer constituencies represented diverse America.
Nika: So why aren’t we doing more, to be more intentional about creating that level of diversity in the workforce so that we can produce smart campaigns, positioning strategies for our clients. And so anyway, that, that’s kind of how I ended up in this space that I’m in now.
Shontavia: Excellent. So your background, diversity, equity, inclusion, marketing. What I want to know about is the entrepreneurship behind it. You have taken all of these really amazing educational backgrounds, professional backgrounds, and turned it into a full time entrepreneurship strategy. So how did you do that? So how long did you work, like, in your former position? How did you transition to being entrepreneur?
Nika: So that’s an interesting story. Entrepreneurship somewhat found me. And I say that because again, my background is marketing communications.
Nika: I understood that aspect of, of, of the world and how powerful marketing communications, really was to different brands. And so I saw that just in my career path. As I was continuing to operate in this space of diversity, equity and inclusion within still an advertising agency environment, I then was presented with an opportunity to begin doing this work, on a larger scale for the Greenville Chamber (of Commerce). They were creating a new position–it was VP of Diversity and Inclusion–and they did a national search. I was the lucky beneficiary right in their backyard. I had some trusted mentors that said to me, “Nika, this seems like it’s something in your wheelhouse. You want to take a look at it.” And, so I trusted my instincts and of course the confidence that I had in those mentors, and I ended up putting my name in the hat and, um, I appreciated that leap of faith.
Nika: And I do call it a leap of faith because on paper the position was funded for three years. And I knew the history. I knew that there was some baggage there. I knew that I would have to spend a good bit of my time trying to regain the trust of those constituents that, quite honestly, felt that the Chamber was not relevant to their needs. But in doing so, I’ve surrounded myself around many entrepreneurs who were just perseveringly, willing to give it all that they had to make it work. Not to mention my husband is a serial entrepreneur and has been since day one that he and I met. And so, I saw it and, um, I guess I kind of viewed it as, you know, it was his season. So I supported him in his entrepreneurship endeavors.
Nika: And after he was doing that for so many years, um, and I was, you know, really progressing in my career as a D and I practitioner. I started getting tapped, and people were asking me, can you come help with this? Can you come and kind of consult with me around this project? And then I started noticing that this, this area, this discipline is high in demand, you know? And so I saw it as an opportunity. So even while I was working still as VP of Diversity and Inclusion for the Greenville Chamber, surrounded by all of these entrepreneurs, all of these key business community leaders, I was being very strategic, and I was kind of developing my exit strategy, if you will. I didn’t know the timing of it, but I knew that it would come and I knew that I wanted to be ready. And so I started preparing myself.
Nika: But what did that look like? I ended up, writing books. I ended up on the topic, of course, that was, you know, really, um, in the center of what I wanted to be known for in terms of my brand. I began to accept speaking engagements. I asserted myself in many different community endeavors and boards, um, being able to operate directly with the lens of, of equity and inclusion in those spaces. I pursued my doctorate and I didn’t do it because I wanted some additional letters behind my name. I did it because I felt as though it was going to be pretty instrumental in setting me up with the credibility that was needed. And even, I was intentional about the, the route. I did not go the PhD route. I went the, um, the D.M. Route and that was important for me because my intent was not to be a part of some type of, you know, research higher learning institution.
Nika: Um, I wanted to be able to go into organizations and drive change. And so my doctorate is in management organizational leadership. And I could’ve probably gone even more specific to diversity and inclusion, but that wasn’t my intent. I wanted to be seen as someone that could bring thought leadership to all areas of business, within an organization. But yet and still, I knew that, um, part of that was going to be certainly a lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion. So that’s my story.
Shontavia: Wow. How did you find time? So you mentioned writing books, accepting speaking engagements, pursuing a doctorate degree. You’re married with children– you’ve mentioned your husband and kids. How did you manage the time?
Nika: So Shontavia I have somewhat of an addictive personality. I have to be, I have to be honest about that. I mean, while I think a lot of it was really just, um, being intentional with my time and my planning, um, I began to really operate, true to my calling, which is, you know, knowing when to say yes and when to say no.
Nika: That’s what I kind of teach and coach other people around. And so I began to do it for myself. And there were seasons in my life where I was not open to a lot of different opportunities to extend myself. You know, I have, I have two kids and my kids now are pretty self sufficient. I have a senior in high school and I have a daughter that’s a sophomore in college. Um, but when my kids were younger, that’s when I was in this support mode of helping my husband build his business, supporting him while he was building his business. So fortunately for me, when it became my time, uh, my kids were older and again, more self sufficient, but I had that support. My husband was the one that was kind of cheering me on. And because his business had already reached a foundation where it was very profitable, we were able to fund the start and launch of my business.
Nika: And so a lot of it is just, again, knowing where you have those gaps and being communicative enough to be able to try to put people in your corner and your tribe that can help support you. And, knowing that there’s a season for different things and I just had to wait for the right season and that’s what I did.
Shontavia: So how’d you know it was the right season? You mentioned being at the chamber–were you there for the full three years or longer than three years?
Nika: I was there for about six years in that role before I then transitioned out. Um, so I knew it was time because, again, my calendar was starting to fill up. Any kind of PTO that I had. I was, you know, filling it up with accepting, you know, opportunities to go and speak and train and consult. And so I remember one day we were having, I was having conversations with the leader of the chamber, the president and CEO, who was very supportive of the work that I was doing within the chamber.
Nika: And we just had an honest conversation about the trajectory of my career path and where I wanted to go. And he within his own words, you know, basically shared, “your reputation proceeds you. I know that if I’m going to have you around to continue to help building upon this great equity that you’ve created in the work here at the Chamber, that we probably going to have to be creative.” And um, and so that led to just an honest conversation for me to be able to share and disclose what I wanted to do. Um, and you know, then it was, it was how do we make this happen cause I want to see you be successful, but I also want to see you be closely connected to the efforts here. And um, and from there it, it just, it happened very quickly.
Shontavia: So, so many questions, Nika, I don’t know how much time we have here. But, so you mentioned your PTO, so your paid time off. It sounds like you were maybe beside hustling, but building.
Nika: It was a side hustle! I really didn’t consider it a business at that time. It was exactly that. It was a side hustle, um, before the benefit of, at some point this is going to mean something. And I knew that what ever it was going to mean was going to be related to some type of future entrepreneurship endeavor. That’s all I could tell you at the time. But I was committed to it because I knew that it would eventually pay off and it did.
Shontavia: So, so many people I work with who have full time jobs say “I don’t have time. I don’t know how to start on whatever this entrepreneurial endeavor is. So you mentioning paid time off makes so much sense for so many people, right? Were there other things you were doing? Were you traveling on the weekends? Were you doing anything else to manage your time? It sounds like you were juggling a lot.
Nika: I was investing in myself. I was, um, immersing myself in the industry. I became, um, a certified diversity executive through the Society of Diversity Certification. I was reading lots and lots of books. Even my dissertation research was, you know, grounded in the work of diversity and inclusion. So I was intentional. And that is, that’s an important word for me. It’s actually one of my favorite words. That’s why the first title of my book is Intentional Inclusionist. I believe there’s such power in intentionality. And it has a certain look about it. It’s very calibrated, it requires, you know, foresight and it requires believing in all the steps of a process to get to an end goal that’s worth it. And so, you know, it’s interesting, I tell this story often, Shontavia, but when people go and it’s time to do the strategic planning for an organization, right?
Nika: We have no issues walking into a conference room with our flip charts, our markers and you know, a draft of the mission statement, vision statement, just tearing them apart, right? Just tearing them apart to refine them and then identifying those goals and objectives and then how are we going to track and measure it. But I rarely find that people are just as diligent about doing that for their personal lives.
Nika: And I believe in personal strategic planning. And so I remember when I started having these thoughts about, okay, so what can be, again, what are the possibilities here? Because again, I’ve already shared with you that I’ve been grounded to be this person that believes in true potential, not just what you can see, but you break through that glass ceiling. Right? And so as I was really strategic visioning around what I want my future to look like and what I want it to be attached to, I began to map it out. And that’s where some of those decisions came from.
Nika: They were informed by this ultimate goal. And so if I find myself kind of wavering from that goal, I will, I will pull out my strategic plan and we will get the markers and the flip charts and we will, we will refine it. But I think that’s what has allowed me to stay to course. And I’m a real big fan of people doing personal strategic planning.
Shontavia: Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! So six years in the Chamber. You decide to jump completely…
Nika: Leap of faith!
Shontavia: …into entrepreneurship. What were your first steps? If you could give people advice on like the three things you have to do if you decide to become an entrepreneur, what would those things be?
Nika: Well, I think first and foremost you need to be clear about your product and your service. And that requires doing enough research to understand is there a market for it? What’s going to be the distinction that separates you from others? How do you differentiate yourself? What is your brand? You know, and as a marketer that was important to me. I spent a lot of time developing my brand. What does it look like? You know, what are the colors? What’s the message? And also, being true to understanding, “What am I good at?” Because I knew that with this type of business as a consultant, I was my brand, you know, so I needed–that’s why I mentioned before–I needed to really invest in myself and make sure that I was prepared. And then I think just again, surrounding yourself with people that have been where you are, that can support you, that can give you that sense of community whereby sometimes you feel a little vulnerable, because you know, you’re thinking this is territory that’s new for me.
Nika: How do I do this and do it successfully? No one has gotten to where they are on their own. We all have people in our corner that are supporting us, that are mentoring us, coaching us. And, and so I think that building that network was really important. For me, my husband was a great part of that because again, he had been on that journey and quite successful. He had built businesses, sold businesses and started other businesses. And then he and I together as a couple, we also have two other couples that we align with and we call this group Fuel Up. And it’s just for that purpose. We will pour into each other and make sure that where our cup gets empty, we’re encouraging each other, supporting each other, being thought partners to each other around our own business endeavors. And so those were the things that became really important to me.
Shontavia: Who helped you? So you mentioned your husband, you mentioned your group, you mentioned mentors. Who were your mentors? Were there people you were following online or reading about?
Nika: So it was interesting, and someone said this to me once before and I thought, “well that’s strange, is that even possible?” And it is possible and this is what they said. They said, you’re my mentor and you don’t even know it. I know it’s because they were following all of my work and they would find it very appropriate and intentional to position themselves in environments where they probably knew that I was going to be, maybe it was an event that I was putting on. And I found that to be a little odd, but when I started really thinking about it, I thought, you know what? I think I have some of those mentors too. They just don’t know they’re my mentors.
Nika: And so a lot of the people that I learned from, and I say learn in the present tense because there still are folks that I’m closely connected with in terms of following their work. And even many of them I’ve been able to have, you know, direct formal relationships with. But, um, I remember when I was starting out in this role, a dear friend of mine who used to be directly in the upstate area, but now in Charlotte as a chief diversity officer, Kinneil Coltman, she was a big inspiration. I saw that she was able to have conversations with people around these complex issues that allowed such a level of comfort and a level of transparency. And I love that style about her. And she had this incredible way of making people feel like whatever areas that they felt caused them to want to, you know, cover or mask or hide, she would bring that out of them and the best way. So I just kind of loved her style.
Nika: And there’s several others. But to me it’s not about just finding people who are directly in your space. It’s also finding other attributes of people, especially from an entrepreneurship perspective, that you then want to try to emulate. You know, I love people who are so confident in their business. We hear oftentimes, particularly from women that, you know, the imposter syndrome, right? That we’re kind of faking it a little bit. Well, I know some great imposters. I will tell you, behind closed doors, they make it happen. And so even just that fortitude of having the confidence to know that I may not know, I may not know exactly how to get to the end goal in this particular conversation immediately, but I’m going to let you think that I do, and I’m going to go figure it out and whatever that looks like.
Nika: And so I’ve had people that have coached me through those types of scenarios. And then just building relationships, you know, relationships are King and knowing what you don’t know. And so I’m a big, you know, advocate of surrounding yourself with people that are smarter than you. So that you can begin to really understand how much you don’t know. I think there’s a lot of power in that too. Although it can be a little intimidating, it’s also liberating because then it kind of gives you greater inspiration to want to go and learn more. And so anyway, all of those things I think is what led me to a place where I began to feel like entrepreneurship was something that certainly could be in my future. And um, and I wanted to be a part of it.
Shontavia: Awesome. So you say entrepreneurship, when I hear the term entrepreneurship, I think about people who solve problems, right?
Nika: Not just solve problems, but solve problems for a profit, I believe in capitalism!
Shontavia: Amen to that. Amen to that! And get paid to do it. So what does it look like for you? How are you solving problems? What is your business model? How do you make money? What does it look like, the day to day?
Nika: So we were talking about this just a moment ago. So I consult and I train. The premise of my business is to intersect the work of diversity, equity and inclusion with leadership and business. And so I go all over the country, even some international clients that I do work for, and I train, I consult. I really help them to think strategically about diversity and how to operationalize inclusion. And there is a difference there because I’m one of those D and I practitioners, that I really believe in getting to the crux of the matter, peeling back all of the layers, identifying what are the root causes that’s compromising inclusion and a sense of belongingness that can keep people from showing up at their best and less address that.
Nika: And so it’s not just about a program or an initiative because those have start and end dates, right? I am big on let’s think about systems, culture, policies, procedures, and really shift the mindsets of all of those that are part of this organization to where everyone is owning this responsibility of creating inclusivity. And what that looks like varies from organization to organization. You know it really depends upon where they are within their journey of diversity and inclusion. I really like to meet clients where they are. And oftentimes that starts with a pretty deep dive cultural audit or assessment. And I always have to warn clients that, you know, sometimes when you hear audit or assessment, people perceive that you’re trying to find everything all that’s bad, right? But to me it’s also about taking inventory of what’s going well and then trying to amplify that. How can we put some greater intentionality around those efforts as low hanging fruit opportunity, to be able to then create this momentum that leads to greater traction and results and outcomes.
Shontavia: So how do you find people, you’ve talked about your consulting and your training. How do people find you and you know, sign on that dotted line and say, “Hey, yes, I’ll hire Nika to do X, Y, Z. I think so many people are afraid of asking for money, asking to be paid and figuring out, you know, navigating all of that. How do you navigate that?
Nika: Well, so, um, you know, I’m a firm believer that if you’re going to be an entrepreneur, you’re an entrepreneur, you’re there to make money. To be profitable. You’re not there for a hobby there. There’s, there’s other ways in which you can satisfy your favorite pastimes without really calling it a business. And so I’m here to make money and my husband reminds me of that all the time as someone who again, is kind of like my business coach in many regards. But for me, I think that the way in which I attract my clients has everything to do with relationships. You know. And again, remember I mentioned that I was very strategic when I was, you know, transitioning towards that exit strategy. So I was planting seeds, I was building relationships, cultivating those relationships. They knew that this was something that I was already kind of doing a little bit on the side.
Nika: And so it was, it was pretty commonplace for people to hear now that she’s doing this on her own. So I had already built up a pretty nice sized clientele. And then beyond that, when I go to speaking engagements, that is one of the best ways to build your business because people hear you. They can hear that you have a high level of, of credibility around the topics that you are connected to you. And it never fails. It always ends up resulting into additional opportunities and additional business. Um, and then, you know, I’m also a marketer at heart. That’s where I started, of course with my career. And so I believe in marketing, communications and branding. And so I do a lot of that to keep my name out there. I develop a lot of content and, um, I just, you know, I think that being visible and being visible in meaningful spaces, and creating those meaningful relationships, is a large part of it.
Nika: I am fortunate to be at a place in my business, and again, we’re just talking a little less than three years, where I can be very selective about the opportunities I say yes and no to, and that’s not always the case, you know? And again, as a consultant, I am my brand. Now what I’m going to have to, um, think more strategically about is how do I scale? We were talking a little bit about that because right now I am my brand and I feel like a lot of the way in which I make money is very contingent upon me, you know? And at one point in time I said that I was not really interested in having this large enterprise where I had all these W-2 employees, I was really set on building my business around partnerships through 1099s. But now I’m having to revisit that, because of the sheer volume of, um, of you know, potential opportunities that are coming to me.
Shontavia: So when your business, you mentioned consulting, you mentioned trainings, are there other things you do to actually make money? So you have two books you’re selling. Are there other things? Do you have classes? Do you have other things that you do?
Nika: Well, I do offer virtual training opportunities and that doesn’t require me to physically be there. So that’s something that’s creating some consistent revenue. I do have a number of clients that are retainer based, and so it’s not just kind of a one and done. They’re ongoing relationships. And in that regard, I serve as an outsourced chief diversity officer, if you will. And so if you think about that role and how big that role is, I’m always looking for other ways to be able to bring value to the organization. And so that tends to lead to other projects as well. Of course, again, I’m an entrepreneur, I’m constantly looking for those opportunities.
Nika: But yeah, the majority of my work is consulting and speaking. I do a lot of speaking engagements around this broad topic of diversity, equity and inclusion. And I’ll tell you something else that I’ve been very deliberate about as well. You know, while my space and discipline is DEI, um, it’s all about leadership. And so, you know, again, this organizational leadership decision in terms of my doctorate was very strategic because I want it to be able to put diversity, equity and inclusion in the center of leadership. I believe it’s a leadership competency. And so that tends to open up a lot of opportunities as well. Sometimes people aren’t quite as willing to engage or invest in dollars relevant to diversity, equity and inclusion, but they are for leadership, right? And so sometimes you have to just be strategic about how in which you position yourself in the work that you do.
Shontavia: So one final question about your business. You are doing so many dynamic things that are hard for people — to put themselves out there, to create content that they share, to negotiate with large brands and large companies. How do you figure out how much to charge? How do you set rates? How do you navigate all of that, particularly when it’s you and a large enterprise. How do you do that?
Nika: So it varies based upon the organization, the scope of work. Is this a repeat client? You know, there are certainly some nuances that informs those decisions. But generally speaking, I know the market value of what people are charging for these sorts of things. Because, keep in mind, before I transitioned to a business owner, I was hiring and sourcing these types of entities to do this work for a lot of the clients that I was working with or even the organizations that were kind of in my circle. And so I knew what those going rates were. And then also I have to look at the amount of time that’s being required of me. And so, I always like to tell people that what I charge has nothing to do with just the amount of time for when I’m in front of you. There’s a lot of background work that goes into getting prepared for that type of, you know, consulting opportunity or speaking engagement, including, you know, the years of experience and the credentials that I had to invest in to be able to invest in myself to have that knowledge base. And so, they are paying me, you know, for the convenience of not having to reinvent the wheel. So sometimes you have to position yourself in that regard. I have as part of my media kit, a page that says at the top “A word on value.” Basically that’s where I just express, I don’t desire to be the cheapest D&I practitioner, and I’m probably not, but I know the value that I’m going to deliver to my clients. And in that regard, it’s not really an Apple to Apple comparison. And so usually I find that being very transparent about that it actually lands on people in a, in a positive way. They want to know that you’re fully committed.
Nika: Um, so, you know, and I’ll tell you something else that helps me, especially if I don’t want to potentially rock the relationship with all those negotiating conversations that can be a little awkward and complex. I have a buffer, so I have someone that serves as my executive assistant and she is very skilled at helping to negotiate. And so usually she’s the first line of defense and she kind of knows my parameters and it keeps me from kind of having to be in that tough spot, you know, where I really can just build the relationship and work primarily on the content and delivery of the content instead of getting to the weeds on some of those other issues. That helps tremendously.
Shontavia: Brilliant. I signed with the Speaker’s Bureau about a year ago, best decision I ever made, because they handle all of that for you, which is wonderful.
Shontavia: So you’ve made a ton of really good decisions, it sounds. What are some of the mistakes? What are the things where you think, “Ugh, I really wish I wouldn’t have done that, or I learned a lot from that mistake.” What are some of those things?
Nika: So one of the things that’s reoccurring in my life is that I am so results driven. And being results driven sometimes can cause an imbalance between people orientation and you know, being someone that’s task oriented or where you just want things done. Even sometimes to the point to where the way in which you may go about the execution of getting them done could cause some people to feel alienated, not quite as appreciated and valued.
Nika: So I’ve really had to learn to slow down and, even in the midst of my ambition, to recognize that, you know, we’re working with people and you know, people have feelings and you know, they could be having a bad day. And so to drive just towards results, results, results, while that’s admirable in some regards, you know, you also have to balance that to make sure that people are on your team, because they want to be on your team, they want to follow you, they want to be under your leadership. And so I think I’ve made some mistakes, you know, quite honestly, just historically around being so task oriented that I didn’t take enough time to recognize and cultivate relationships. And so I think I overcompensate for that now because of it. You heard me say just a moment ago that relationships are so critical. And such a big part of an entrepreneur’s success and just success in general. So yeah, hopefully, I’ve learned from it.
Shontavia: No. Great. Forbes has recognized you. I see you on every top 40, top 30 top whatever list. So you’re doing an amazing job.
Nika: Thank you.
Shontavia: Of course. What’s the future? What’s the vision for Nika White Consulting and your brand?
Nika: It’s interesting that you ask. And I think that it will all be crystallized for me, Shontavia, mid-month, when I get away, out of the country. Quiet time, just reflection time. And literally I will pull out my pen and pad, my flip charts and I will revisit my personal strategic plan, which includes of course my business strategy, growth strategy. And I will let that inform what’s next for me. I certainly want to grow. I certainly see that continuing this line of work is in my future. How in which I grow–it’s going to require me to rethink my business model and that’s, I’m at that crossroads now. And so that’s what that exercise is going to help me figure out.
Shontavia: Excellent. So if people want to find you, people want to work with you, people want to learn more about your story and your background, where can they find you? So the easiest way is to go to my website, which is nikawhite.com and that’s N, I, K, A , W, H, I T E–just like the color–dot com. And it has all of my social media platforms out there. It has access to where you can order my books. Um, I produce a lot of content, white papers and articles that are free for consumption. And so I hope that you will join me and follow me and learn a little bit more about what’s going on with Nika White Consulting. Oh man, this is wonderful. I’ve wish I had a pad and a pen. I should have been taking notes right now. This has been wonderful. Thank you so very much.
Nika: Thank you for thinking of me. I appreciate you more time.
Shontavia: Well I’ve been following your work for such a long time. And I remember when you were at your former employer and then at the chamber and seeing your work and thinking, man, she’s really doing it!
Nika: Well, we are similar in that nature because, Shontavia, I’ve been following you as well. You are, you’re kicking butt on your own. And I am just, you know, you may think that I inspire you but you inspire me in so many ways as well. So that’s what we have to do. We have to support each other.
Shontavia: Amen, my sister. We do. Alright everybody. I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as me. Head over to shontavia.com. Leave a comment if you have questions or feedback about this episode. If you have questions for Nika, please go to her website– nikahite.com I’ll make sure to drop a link in the show notes and in the notes below so that you can find her easily. You can also ask questions about other things.
Shontavia: So Nika has talked a lot about pricing and strategy and I love this idea of a personal strategic plan. I teach, myself, a lot about vision and creating a vision for your business and brand. So head over to shontavia.com for more resources. Thank you. Thank you.
Shontavia: Thank you so much for listening to this episode of The Shontavia Show. If you enjoyed this episode, please be sure to like, subscribe and leave a comment wherever you’re listening. You can find me on social media everywhere, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and wherever else @ShontaviaJEsq. You can also visit me at shontavia.com to find a transcript of this episode along with other show notes. While you’re there, please be sure to subscribe to my email newsletter.
Shontavia: The information shared in this podcast and through my other platforms is designed to educate you about business and entrepreneurship and I love to do this work. While I am a lawyer, though, the information I provide is not legal advice and does not create or constitute an attorney client relationship. The Shontavia Show is a LVRG Incorporated original. The show is recorded on site in South Carolina and produced at Sit N Spin Studio in Greenville, South Carolina. Original music and sound design is by Matt Morgan and Daniel Gregory. Mixing and mastering is by Daniel Gregory and the video is by GVL Media.