- 1 hour ago
In a time of layoffs, burnout, and shifting economic realities, Black women are not simply leaving the workforce—we’re recalibrating how we work, earn, and build. This fireside chat explores how moments of disruption can become catalysts for alignment, ownership, and income on your own terms.
Grounded in real stories—including turning unexpected setbacks into thriving businesses—this conversation will unpack how to leverage your existing skills, pivot with intention, and build sustainable income streams using today’s tools and strategies.
Attendees will leave with practical ways to reframe career disruption, activate what they already know, and move forward with clarity, confidence, and control.
Grounded in real stories—including turning unexpected setbacks into thriving businesses—this conversation will unpack how to leverage your existing skills, pivot with intention, and build sustainable income streams using today’s tools and strategies.
Attendees will leave with practical ways to reframe career disruption, activate what they already know, and move forward with clarity, confidence, and control.
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FunTranscript
00:01Hello, hello, hello. Well, that was a great gateway to gateway into what we're talking
00:07about today. I'm Melissa Mitchell. I'm the wonderful co-host. We're leaving Quinn at
00:12the moment. I am the CEO of ABL Creations, and today I have the honor.
00:16Good afternoon. Good afternoon. Yay.
00:34Everything's fine. So wonderful. Again, I am Melissa Mitchell. I am the CEO of ABL Creations,
00:40and I have the honor of being your co-host today. And again, it's just so funny how God
00:45works, right? Today's topic is about pivoting and understanding how to go with the flow.
00:49And I have two amazing panelists and moderators that we're going to talk about how forced pauses
00:56become profitable pivots. And I don't know if you guys have heard all the statistics about
00:59black women in the workforce, how many of us are getting pushed out of these amazing corporate
01:04jobs, and we're left to figure it out by ourselves. But today, my amazing panelist, Crystal, is
01:10going to moderate with Tierra today and talk about how black women are thriving and becoming
01:14even better than they were before in the workplace. So let me bring up my amazing moderator and
01:19panelists. Come on up. Give it up for the girls.
01:23Thank you, beautiful.
01:24You're welcome, baby. No problem.
01:26You're welcome.
01:27Good morning or good afternoon, everybody. Y'all are too quiet. Let me try that again.
01:32Good afternoon, everybody.
01:34Good afternoon.
01:34Oh, that's way better. We're going to jump right into this conversation. It's very timely given
01:41everything Melissa just shared, but let's first introduce ourselves a little bit more. So I
01:46am Crystal Hardy Allen. I'm the founder and CEO of Kay Allen Consulting, which is a national
01:50management consulting firm. I'm also a best-selling author and a public speaker, and I have the
01:56pleasure of sitting in conversation with this incredible woman, Tiana Jorman, and she is a boss
02:01as well. She's the founder and CEO of Grounded Cup, which is a coffee company. Let me just pause
02:08and sit in the fact that we have a black woman who founded and owns a coffee company. Can
02:14y'all give it up for her?
02:16And so Grounded Cup is a very purpose-driven coffee company because you all always give
02:21back to the women behind the brand through ethical sourcing, transparency, and storytelling.
02:27And so you ready to get into this conversation?
02:29Yeah, I'm ready.
02:30Okay. So the first thing we're going to talk about is often what propels us to shift, right?
02:38And I'm going to kick off this conversation, telling a little bit about my own story, then
02:43we're going to go back and forth in a very fluid way. So those of you who may know me
02:48know that
02:48I'm a former educator. I'm a former school teacher and school principal turned business
02:53owner, right? And let me say how consulting wasn't something that I sought out to do.
02:58It was a major door that got opened for me through a traumatic work experience. So even though I've given
03:03my whole career to education, being an exceptional leader, I was actually pushed out of that position
03:09for being too black, doing the things that I was doing with black children at a time where
03:14diversity, equity, inclusiveness to black children was actually not welcome. Then it became trendy,
03:20which means that the things that pushed me into consulting and the things that caused me trouble
03:25on my job became the things that I got paid to do, right? Paid to talk about, right?
03:30And for me, the shift from being unjustly let go of in a workplace position actually pushed me as a
03:38black woman to create my own table and not ask to have a seat at somebody else's, right? Tiana,
03:44I want you to talk to us about your pivot, right? What shifted you into considering pivoting?
03:51So my shift actually was propelled by COVID. At the time, like you, I was an educator. I was in
03:57the
03:57classroom. But of course, being forced to shelter at home, I knew I didn't want to go back into the
04:04classroom. At the time, I had a one-year-old, soon to be two-year-old. And in that moment,
04:10I had just so much joy. And I hate to say joy because we were going through such a tumultuous
04:17time during that time. But just being able to be home and be present with my one-year-old in
04:23a way
04:23that I felt like having a nine-to-five, it didn't always lend to that. And so once they decided
04:29we
04:29were going to go back into the classroom, I made the decision not to go back into the classroom.
04:33But during the time, I started researching. So one of my friends, I was talking to her every day
04:40during COVID. And she's like, girl, you drink coffee all day. Literally, I'm talking to you seven
04:47in the morning, seven at night, and you're still drinking coffee. And so for me, she's like,
04:51why don't you start a coffee business? And as someone in education, I had never really thought
04:56about starting my own brand. But I did the research, and here we are, organic certified
05:01coffee business, what, six years later. That's what I'm talking about. And so here's something
05:07I want to say. Because often when we think about pivoting, y'all, we think about a complete total
05:12change. But here's what I want to break down. Pivoting, especially from a place of employment
05:17to becoming a business owner is not always the pivot. Y'all are hearing us talk about it,
05:22but I want to name a few different pivots. And I want to also, because I'm a huge person of
05:27faith,
05:27and I know you are too, I bring God with me in everything I talk about, right? Because sometimes
05:32the pivot means that we need to actually start something on the side, and you still need to stay
05:37where you are, right? So some of us need to pivot, meaning you need to go launch that side hustle
05:42that's been tugging at you for the longest, right? Other people's pivot means that you leave the job,
05:48and you go into founding your own, right? And I also want to say that sometimes a pivot can be
05:54moving to a different sector. So you're moving in one industry, and God shifts you to another.
05:59So pivoting for the purpose of this conversation means shifting or changing in some way that has
06:06implications for not only how you spend your time, but how you make your money, right? And that can
06:11happen in a lot of ways. Let's talk, too, about the barriers to pivoting. What are some of the
06:18things that get in our way when we know we need to make a leap, right? What holds us back?
06:25I think as black women, we deal with a lot of imposter syndrome, right? I think we wait so long
06:34for the
06:34moment to be perfect, and sometimes we talk ourselves at an opportunity. And I think about me, right?
06:41Even in starting my business and being presented with different opportunities, there are so many
06:47times that I sit in question, are you really ready? Like, even being on this stage today, right? Like,
06:52ma'am, you have an organic certified coffee brand, soon to be weed corp certified, and you're asking if
06:58you belong to be on this stage, right? And so I think sometimes we do ourselves the disservice of not
07:03just executing when we have the moment. So for me, it's really about leaning more into giving yourself
07:10permission to show up, right? Give yourself permission to be seen. Give yourself permission
07:15for people to show up for you and be loved. And so I think for me, that's oftentimes, like,
07:22just getting out of my own way. I feel like we spend so much time standing in our own way.
07:27You know, I've worked with interns in the past, and I tell them, show up with the same mediocrity
07:32as the white men, because they are never prepared. And the way they will walk into a room and command
07:38the space, show up in that same way. Yeah, I love that. I love that. And I want to build
07:43on to what
07:44you shared, right? Because I do think we overthink things sometimes, right? Though you're in the
07:51audience, I want you to raise your hand if you have ever overthought something too much,
07:55and you did not make the move you knew you needed to make, right? And look at all the hands.
08:00That
08:00applies to so many of us, right? And so the things that I think additionally get in the way
08:04is, one, feeling like we don't have the resources. You're like, in order to do this, I need to be
08:10rich.
08:11I need to make a lot of money. I need to know all these people. I need to do X,
08:15Y, and Z.
08:16And the reality is that we can build relationships, right? We can enter physical spaces where we can
08:22network and obtain the resources we need. And I want to also say this. Here's my faith tidbit.
08:29If God put it on the inside of you to do something, he is going to give you the provision
08:34to do what he
08:35called you to do. So some of you are needing people. He's going to send you the people. He just
08:40needs you
08:40to say yes. Some of you need material resources. You are going to get the material resources as soon as
08:46you say yes, right? And so you have to learn to walk on water and build it, even though you
08:53are
08:54afraid. The fear doesn't leave you. You just continue to walk. And that's literally by definition,
08:59walking by faith, not by faith. Build it and they will come. Yeah, yeah. The other thing I'll say,
09:05and then I want to, you know, get to the next question, is that sometimes what gets in our way
09:10is the wrong counsel, right? And when I say the wrong counsel, y'all, sometimes the wrong counsel
09:17can be people you following on social media who proclaim to be subject matter experts or not,
09:23right? They have not walked in your shoes. They don't know your story and they tell you it can't
09:27be done and you actually can do it, right? Wrong counsel could be family members. Somebody who's
09:33telling you, oh, you can't do that because no one in our family has done that. Well, guess what,
09:38baby, you're going to be the first, right? Sometimes the wrong counsel are friends. They're
09:43associates. But I think we have to be careful to say, who am I listening to? What am I consuming
09:49on the inside? And is what I'm consuming taking away from my belief that I can go execute and do
09:57it?
09:57And if so, we got to change environments, right? So let's talk then about practically what you did
10:03and making that pivot. What did it look like? So I want to go back to something you said in
10:09terms
10:10of being the first. Yeah. I think, and I talk about this heavily in my friend groups now,
10:16I think oftentimes being the first is why you don't take the step, right? Like knowing I'm going to be
10:22the first, I'm going to be alone. I have to figure this out by myself. It's like we let the
10:28fear of
10:29being great stop us from being great, right? And so for me, some of the things, it kind of worked
10:36out for me that I had other friends, right? It was COVID. So I had other friends who were also
10:41starting passion projects or starting a brand. So I was fortunate enough to do it with people and
10:47peers who were also starting something. But some of the things that I had to tell myself was,
10:54you deserve this moment, right? Like there is nothing that you cannot figure out. Like whether
11:00that's taking a class, you know, learning more about ag space, learning more about coffee farmers,
11:05going to like different countries and being on the soil. So for me, it was really just a matter of
11:10getting out of my own way. Yeah. And once I allowed myself to do that and show up, I think
11:17my yeses
11:17starts to slowly roll in, right? I think during that time, I did like the Amazon Black and Business
11:22Accelerator. Met some amazing women there. And then from there, they told me about other
11:27programs. And so in telling myself, yes, and being more visible, I think it also opened up my community
11:33and connection to other opportunities. And so also have people in your corner or in your network who
11:39mentioned your name when you are not in the room. I have even this opportunity today, like came by way
11:46of
11:46new voices, but it came by way of someone else saying, hey, my friend has this amazing brand and
11:52she needs to be on this stage. That's so good. I can't double click enough on what she said, right?
11:59About surrounding ourselves with the right people that we can trust. People that we don't have to
12:04question, right? Their intentions and motives about, you know, us. And so I want to share some,
12:10for me, the pivoting looked like, number one, take an inventory of what I did well, right? I was in
12:18a
12:18work situation where I was really good, but I wasn't actually told by my immediate manager how good
12:24I was at executing, right? And so I push those of you to say, if you're not getting acknowledgement
12:29and praise for what you're doing, don't mistake that for the fact that you're not good at what you're
12:33doing, right? Envy is a real thing, even in a workplace environment. What do I mean? I mean,
12:40there are people you will work for who see more talent on your life than what's on theirs,
12:45which means that they will intentionally hold you back or not pour that encouragement into you
12:50because what have you found out who you really were? What have you understood how great you really
12:55were? Then you might outshine them. And that's ego that gets in the way, right? And so I had to
13:01kind of take inventory to, Crystal, where are your receipts? Where have you done exceptionally well?
13:07And once I started understanding, oh girl, you are good, good. And these areas,
13:12no one could take that away from me. And I want to invoke my grandmother who is not here,
13:19but she is 87 years old and she's in Selma, Alabama, my hometown. And she always taught me
13:25that people can take anything from you, but what they can't take is this right here.
13:32And they can't take the proof of how good you are and what you can do. They can try to
13:37steal anything
13:38they want to, but they can't steal the anointing that's on your life. Right? And I think everyone
13:43needs to hear that because you can inspire people and people can also try to be copycats.
13:48But whoever you are in the audience, you are you and there is nobody like you. So don't also let,
13:55and this is my last point going to this next question, don't let a saturated market hold you
14:00back from launching. Cause some of us say there's so many people doing it. Yeah, but they're not you.
14:06And they can't do it the way you can. Right? And it doesn't hit the way it'll hit when you
14:10do it.
14:11If God told you to go do a thing, go do it. Right? And so go ahead.
14:15Can I just add to that? Because I think oftentimes we think that we need to reinvent the market.
14:21Sometimes it's just a matter of doing a little bit better than what's already out there. Right?
14:26Like coffee, very saturated market. But I knew for me, I had a story aside from being in education,
14:32I used to write for a jet and Ebony. And so for me, I knew I wanted storytelling to be
14:37at the very
14:38essence of my brand. And so in that, like I created community, but it's like people drink coffee daily,
14:44right? What can you do differently? What I can do is bring visibility to these women farmers in these
14:50rural countries who don't have access and resources and make that the brand ethos, but also humanize
14:57something that you do daily. That's so good. So I want to take a nugget out of what you just
15:02said,
15:02because it was so good. I want us to sit with the fact that you are endowed with gifts and
15:09talents
15:09to solve a unique problem in the world, in the world, Craig. And what I mean by that is there's
15:18a unique problem that your business, your venture, your product, your side hustle, whatever you're
15:23trying to do, that it can solve and address. And what you are doing is what we need. And it
15:28wasn't
15:29being addressed in the marketplace. So sometimes think of it as if your venture, whatever you're
15:36trying to manifest or birth could actually be the solution to a problem or gap that you don't see
15:42anyone addressing. Right? And so let's get to the next question. What advice do you have for folks in
15:47the audience who are like, oh my God, you speaking to me, you're in my aisle, you're in my row,
15:52and I
15:53need to pivot?
15:56I would say, do it scared, right? Do it knowing that there are going to be a lot of no's,
16:04but show up
16:05for yourself. I think the biggest advice I've gotten in this year is to allow yourself to be seen,
16:14right? Give yourself permission for people to show up and love you and support you, right?
16:20There was once a point where I was like, why? I know I have a good business. The aesthetics of
16:27the packaging people absolutely love, but why don't I have more sales? And it's like, girl,
16:33you don't talk about the business. You want people to clap for something that they don't even know
16:37about. That's good. How? And so I would encourage you to just show up for yourself day in, day out.
16:46So do a little bit each day. We often think about growth and we figure it has to be something
16:52astronomical. But if you do a little bit each day, you'll look back at the end of the year and
16:57whatever that thing was or is, you will have accomplished. So do it scared, do it shaken,
17:03do it unsure, and then be kind to yourself along the way, right? You're going to trip. You're not
17:09going to know everything, but just be kind to yourself and, you know, just have a vision and
17:14an open mind. Yeah, that's so good. That's so good. I would say to that same question to trust the
17:21process. You know, many of us are who we are today and I want you to think of the teenage
17:28version of
17:29yourself. I want you to think of yourself in your 20s, yourself in your 30s, 40s, etc., right? And just
17:36know that you are a work in progress, you know? And just like what you're needing to pivot into,
17:43it's going to take time, but you have to be diligent, not give up, keep doing it. Even when
17:48you don't see results, you still have to work and put in the work to refine your craft. Nothing great
17:54comes from lackluster effort, right? And we talk a lot about faith and works, but the reality is that
18:02we also can't expect God to bless something that you're not putting in the time and grind to make
18:08great. So you have to combine the hustle and the grind with deep belief and unwavering faith
18:14that you may not know me yet. You may not know this ring yet, but the world has yet to
18:21benefit
18:22from what you bring to the table, right? And so that said, let's give it up for Tiana, y'all.
18:28Let's give it up for you. Thank you, girl. Let's give it up for us, okay? And I want you
18:35to tell
18:35folks how they can support your incredible black woman-owned coffee brand. Organic certified coffee
18:43brand. Organic, okay. Yes, so I can be found by way of social media, Grounded Cup Co., and then my
18:49website is www.groundedcup.co. Awesome. Thank you so much. Thank you. And I can be found on Instagram
18:57at k.allen.consulting. And same thing on Facebook. And I just want to say thank you for being
19:07vulnerable, being open, and being obedient to the call that God has on your life, right? And I want
19:14to thank New Voices for the opportunity to give us as two black women founders to tell our story
19:19because we get free when we tell our stories, right? That's how we also overcome. And so let's give it
19:26up
19:26last but not least. But for all of you for being here today. And so that concludes our conversation.
19:33We have a minute and 30 seconds left. Anybody want to shoot a shot? Y'all got a comment, a
19:38question?
19:38You got 125, 24, 23. Anybody going once, going twice? There you go. Come on down here, brother. Run.
19:46Run. You got to get here for the timer. Okay? What you got?
19:51I appreciate you guys so much. It's so encouraging to my wife. I was telling her we have a daily
19:58rental property. And nobody knows us, though, but we try extremely hard. And I tell her, make
20:04sure she trusts the process. Thank you guys so much, too. And we're going to definitely support
20:08a few, too. And I wanted to be a consultant when I was younger, too, as well. Yeah, information
20:12and technology. I'm a little older, but, you know, I have to, my pivot is off right now.
20:19Yeah. It's the post office or it's real estate. That's good. But I'm going to stay with the post
20:23office a little more. Then I'm going to take your advice and just thank you guys so much.
20:26Thank you. Thank you. Y'all, give it up for this brother. You got one. Okay. Come on.
20:30Give you a testament, too. That was confirmation. It was good for him and his wife.
20:34And he took that advice that you shared, too, about sharing the story. You're my last
20:39one. You got 24 seconds, my brother. 24 seconds. There you go. How y'all doing?
20:44All right. My name is Bruce Thompson. I have a brand, by the way, called Dreamathon. And
20:50on the side, I take pictures. So I was walking just down and I heard her say, trust the process.
20:56You know, and it's all about God's timing. And I'm going to make sure I shop with you.
20:59I don't drink coffee, but I'm going to make sure my auntie have a restaurant called Twisted
21:03Waffles. I'm going to make sure she have it in there. And I'm going to make sure I hit
21:06you up sometime as well. But I have a brand called Dreamathon and I built it from the
21:11ground up. I started my brand because my grandmother passed away from COVID. I used
21:15to play for the New Orleans Saints, by the way. And when I started my brand, the crazy
21:20part about it is I just did a partnership deal with Nike. So I started from the ground
21:25up as well. I just got back from Oregon and I'm from New Orleans. So anything possible.
21:29So if God bless me, I know he can bless everybody over here even more than me, you know? So
21:34yeah, that's all I got to say.
21:35What's your name? What's your name, brother?
21:38Bruce Thompson.
21:40So Bruce Thompson said, I'm going to come to this mic and I'm going to shoot all my shots.
21:44Y'all got all his info. Okay. Thank you so much for that. And then for that confirmation
21:49and you keep, I know you will. And you keep encouraging, keep doing what you're doing.
21:54All right. Thank y'all so much. That is it for today.
22:03I don't need words.
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