PODCAST EPISODE № 65

The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself

by Anita Charlot

Listen to The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself:

It’s been a great two years of transformation and growth for many women of color and a time of complete and utter chaos. Which end of the spectrum you landed on depended on your self-identity and self-worth before the pandemic and the George Floyd murder.

As a result, I stepped into my Blackness and stopped code-switching once I got to the office.

If a man could be murdered by the people who swore to protect them, what was the point of toning down my Blackness?

No amount of playing nice or being the safe Black woman in corporate America would make up for the color of my skin. By hue alone, I would never be safe or fully accepted.

Join me inside the episode as I share what waking up to my truth looked like for me, and how you can begin embarking on the journey to waking up to yourself in the weeks ahead.

See you inside…

What You Learn:

The journey I took of introspection and facing my trauma to wake up to myself
The questions you can ask yourself to start your own journey
How it’s never too late to wake up to yourself, and you are not alone in the process
Some resources for sharing and healing with others through a community of like-minded women!

Featured on the Show:

Listen to Episode 51, “The Town Hall – My Corporate Undressing” for more backstory on my journey
Get on the Waitlist for my upcoming community for healing and supporting my Black and Brown sisters!
Check out and follow Anita on LinkedIn
Reach out to Anita on our Contact Page
Learn more about how you can work directly with Anita
Love the show? Leave a review of the show in Apple Podcasts (click the link to find out how).
Follow me on Instagram!
Find me on Facebook!

Episode Transcript

As a result, I stepped into my Blackness and stopped code-switching once I got to the office. If a man could be murdered by the people who swore to protect them, what was the point of toning down my Blackness?

No amount of playing nice or being the safe Black woman in corporate America would make up for the color of my skin. By hue alone, I would never be safe or fully accepted.

Join me inside the episode as I share what waking up to my truth looked like for me, and how you can begin embarking on the journey to waking up to yourself in the weeks ahead.

See you inside…

~~~~~~~

While taking time away from the business to embark upon my healing, the old way of doing things just wouldn’t work anymore. I had to do something to help support the women who look like me, and/or could relate to my experience, mothers, and mother figures of Black and Brown children who lost sleep like I did. Those that pray that our loved ones made it home safely.

Growing up Black, there were two separate histories that we were made aware of: Black history and whitewashed history. Once these truths started becoming public knowledge to the entire world, my White counterparts couldn’t believe it, and some were even mortified. They had no clue how they were kept in the dark about the trauma Black and Brown people had suffered as they were shielded from the truth.

If you’ve been following me for a while, then you have probably heard this story. If so, bear with me while I share it with others.

In 2020, my world was turned upside down by the pandemic, the social unrest, the division between Black and White, the hatred, the racism, and the fear of simply walking while Black was too much for one person, much less an entire race to bear and the world to witness.

The years of pushing down and trying to ignore my Black history caught up with me. As long as things were relatively quiet, I could continue to move in the world, choosing what to give my attention to.

Well, in 2020, I had no choice. None of us did.

I was forced to face the harsh truth of being Black in America and how little my existence meant to many White people, and White people were forced to witness the racial treatment we dealt with every day for generations.

If you’d like to hear more about this particular time of my life, you can listen to Episode 51, The Town Hall, My Corporate Undressing.

After I shared publicly in that town hall, things started to shift within me. I can no longer hide from the truth, my truth as a Black woman in corporate America. I was forced to wake up to accept the reality of the world, the reality of corporate America, and could no longer retreat into my safe space in my head and spirit to make it through the workday and bared my soul to over 400 people on that call that day…

…And I was unprepared for what would come next.

I spent the rest of the summer completing a trauma-informed yoga training, which I initially started for my clients and it ended up ripping off the band-aid of my own trauma, another wake-up call.

It was easier to act like things didn’t bother me, to laugh off racial slurs, comments, and jabs, and even participate in them myself. Hell, if I was the one telling a joke then I was in control, right? That may work for comedians, but it was becoming clear that it didn’t work for me.

That year, I began to sit with my feelings to decide what my business would look like: Who did I want to serve? How can I serve them, and what will be most beneficial not just for them, but for me too?

The first 20-plus years of my business resulted from my first wake-up call, that all relationships are not healthy, and by not knowing or paying attention to certain things, it was possible to find yourself in abusive situations. Once I realized this, during the time of my healing from my abusive first marriage, I set out to keep other women from going through the same.

This time, it took almost two years to decide what direction I wanted to take in the business. This time, I took my time, and I gave myself permission to scale back to do fewer pieces of training, and speaking engagements, take on fewer relationship clients and embark upon the journey of waking up to myself my truth.

What about you?

Have you found that you are no longer willing to attempt to hide who you really are in corporate America or in life? 
Are you tired of feeling like you’re putting on an outstanding performance as you assimilate into the corporate environment? 
Trying your best to be that safe Black woman, not that angry Black woman? 
Have you started acknowledging that you may have or may still be experiencing corporate trauma?
Do you know the difference between the traumas and how they may appear in your personal and professional life? 
Could you benefit from a safe space to learn, grow and share with other Black and Brown women that have experienced the same as you have where you can just be yourself, let your guard down, and vent while being supported by your sisters? 
I know what it’s like to be in these groups. I have been in several of my own in the entrepreneurial space.

Well, I’ve since decided that it’s time I created a container to help heal my Black and Brown sisters from corporate and workplace trauma, and increase their confidence and leadership skills, and then teach them how to prosper in corporate America without selling their souls.

Would you benefit from learning how to identify true White allies, male and female that can help you navigate the corporate arena? Sis, no matter how nice or agreeable you are, you are still walking into these spaces as a Black or Brown woman.

Give yourself the gift of being supported while in these spaces by a sister that knows, understands, and is ready and willing to hold space for you.

It took me two years of introspective work facing my own corporate and workplace trauma, embarking upon my healing journey and waking up to myself to shift my company to where it is today.

It has also taken me almost 57 years to finally feel comfortable in my own skin. It doesn’t have to take that long for you.

However, it’s never too late to wake up to the truth of who you are.

Stay close as I will be launching a sacred and safe community just for you in the upcoming weeks where you can come to receive healing from Workplace trauma, get relationship marriage work and business advice, let your hair down, and for once allow others to support you.

If you want to be the first to know when the community opens, join the waitlist! Go to bit.ly/For-My-Black-and-Brown-Sisters.

Until next time, sis. Hold your head up. I see you.

Enjoy the Show?

• Don’t miss an episode; subscribe via iTunes, Stitcher, or RSS.
• Leave us a review in iTunes.

The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself

PODCAST EPISODE № 65

The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself

by Anita Charlot

Listen to The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself:

What You Learn:

Featured on the Show:

Episode Transcript

Enjoy the Show?

IF YOU LIKE IT, SHARE IT

Get the free video training...
"Can He Handle Your Grind?"

podcast

stay in touch

PODCAST EPISODE № 65

The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself

by Anita Charlot

Listen to The Journey of Finally Waking Up to Yourself:

What You Learn:

Featured on the Show:

Episode Transcript

Enjoy the Show?

IF YOU LIKE IT, SHARE IT

Get the free video training..."Can He Handle Your Grind?"

podcast

stay in touch

Get the free video training...
"Can He Handle Your Grind?"