4 Key Takeaways from Bozoma Saint John & Lena Waithe

I attended Chicago Ideas Week for the second year in a row. This time I was prepared. Not only did I receive a media pass for one of the events, which I will link the video recap below, but I was also able to go to a few really dope events because I was able to scope them out. The event, “A Seat at the Table,” was the bomb! I was introduced in depth to both of these ladies that night and I am so glad I came.

First up was Bozoma Saint John. She is currently the Chief Brand Officer for Uber. As soon as I saw her on stage, I immediately identified with her. She is Fabulous from head to toe, loves her look, confidence is great and her personality is even better. But the thing that stood out to me was that she said she is fabulous intentionally. In a world that black women are put in siloed categories: we are either smart, or pretty, or funny, or a boss chick, or sexy, but never more than two things. I love that she says that because I am too intentional. I am intentional with the work I take, the volunteer organizations I align myself with, the clothes I wear, choosing to beat my face for certain events, choosing to wear makeup on a regular basis, choosing to wear my hair natural and then switching it up and wearing a wig. All those things are important to me and more important they are a representation of me and what I represent. I am your Average Black Girl and there are more of us than you think.

Bozoma went on to give me two key takeaways:

1. 1. Obsessive thoughts are okay. When you think of things and wonder why it has not been done this way or that way that sometimes means you have to do it.
      • Average Black Girl’s Two Cents: It is okay to be obsessive. It shows us what we are passionate and what we will be great at. Society allows us to be passionate about sports but that is about it. I disagree, we should be passionate about many things, and the obsessive thing determines what will be a permanent factor and what is a simply a “trending topic.” If you have a thought that is obsessive such as dream, feeling, or idea, do yourself a favor and move forward on it. Bozoma says so.
   2. Always Be Ready. How she got her latest position with Uber happened over coffee. She met with Ariana Huffington and she simply asked what would you do? She gave her a high-level answer. After the coffee, she went home and the conversation was still on her mind. She then realized, “I will do it myself.” She called Ariana back and the rest is history.
      • Average Black Girl’s Two Cents: I think this speaks values and ready means different things at different times in your life. Ready can mean do you have a linkedin account before you start applying for jobs. Ready can mean do you have a firstnamelastname.com with your speaking engagements, personal mission, vision and work experience before you apply for jobs, speaking engagements or apply for that next big contract. Ready can mean if the guy that meets everything on your criteria, are you approachable and will you be open to accept him and make him yours.

Next, we had Lena Waithe, and although I had watched Master of None it took me a while to figure out who she was but as soon as she started talking I got super excited and it all clicked. In 2017, Lena became the first black woman to win a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series. Now Lena touched on what A LOT of people deal with. We want to do a lot of things and our goals are not just one thing but MANY. How do we balance, how do we build, when is it time to start branching off into brand/ task/ business #2?

Her advice was the following:

1. Cover 1 thing 1st. Tackle it and then choose another.
   • Average Black Girl’s Two Cents: I LOVE THIS! I personally can attest to this. When I first started, I wanted to build out two brands that although connected were separate at the same time. At first, everything was fine but then the lack of time started to appear and I chose to pursue Average Black Girl. I still love my baby Melanin Business and I have not forgotten about that one but Average Black Girl was gaining more traffic and I chose to give her the much-needed attention and support that it needed and in return, it thanked me back. I am able to hire people, I need to get better at sourcing jobs and giving out tasks but guess what? I still would need to go through the learning curve of hiring people whether I focused equal attention on one brand or another and if I was slower to get to this point then I would be dealing with this stuff a little later in life. My life lessons are mine to learn and there is no getting by it. So by diving head first into Average Black Girl, I am able to grow faster, build more streams faster and be less stressed. There would be less video content, less speaking gigs, and less money because I would be exhausted and become frustrated because I am not going anywhere. Set some goals, break them and then start the next thing. 🙂
2. Being specific matters. Not all black shows are created equal and there is beauty in that. Atlanta is different than Black-Ish and that is OKAY and that is how it should be. In your brands, content, business or streams, make it super specific and in that people will like it.
   • Average Black Girl’s Two Cents: In a world where we want to be all things to all people. To grow a massive following we think we need to appeal to the masses. In reality, there is beauty in being niche. Just think of black culture. Studies have been done and proven that all races (especially in america) love black culture. They love our music, clothes, physical features, skin tones etc. You do not have to change yourself to become appealing but you do need to create appealing content, and strategically release it. Take pride in your voice and your specific and unique self.

Lastly, Lena ended her segment with a quote so Chicago, I had to include it. “I’m from Chicago, you can drop me in the middle of a jungle and I will come out with a full belly and a fur coat.”

It is important to hear people’s stories, get some valid advice, receive key takeaways and put it right back into your pot. I strongly recommend Chicago Ideas Week. Tickets to this event was about $12.00 and I thoroughly enjoyed my time.