Defining freedom with Dr. Shakkiah Curtis

Dr. Curtis shares her complicated relationship with Wisconsin—a "love and hate" dynamic shaped by leaving Milwaukee at 17, experiencing HBCUs and the East Coast, and returning multiple times before finally seeing the opportunity hidden in her home state. She now runs Taylor Nicole Wine and Cupcakes in Madison's Black Business Hub, creating the cultural space she couldn't find as a young woman in the city. Research on Black Women's Success Dr. Curtis's doctoral research followed 14 Black women at CEO level or higher in Fortune 500 companies for two and a half years, uncovering the SCALE framework—five foundational elements these women needed to succeed and sustain success for 10+ years:     •    Support Systems (mentors, networks, village)     •    Capital Management (resources, allocation)     •    Assets and Investing (wealth-building)     •    Learning and Knowledge (continuous professional development)     •    Enabling Technology (staying current with industry trends) A striking finding: 90% of successful Black women she studied had never had another Black woman as a mentor in their workplace. The Superpower Nobody Wants Dr. Curtis describes being a Black single mother as "a superpower nobody wants"—the exhausting reality of working harder because "no one was giving me handouts," of always being both woman and Black woman in corporate spaces, and of constantly asking "who's saving her?" when Black women are expected to save everyone else. From Pain to Healing In a vulnerable moment, Dr. Curtis shares hitting a breaking point during COVID—scoring 50 out of 50 on a stress assessment, meaning "you can break at any moment." Her journey to therapy, initially for her daughters, became her own path to asking a fundamental question: "Do I want success from pain, or do I want success from a healing space?" The Energy Economy Dr. Curtis speaks candidly about being "energy-led" rather than simply social—giving deeply in every interaction, which means protecting her capacity fiercely. She's retired from being "the strong friend" and encourages other Black women to ask daily: "Did you do anything selfishly for you?" Honest Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs Rather than romanticizing entrepreneurship, Dr. Curtis asks the hard questions: What do you actually want? Can you live in uncertainty? Can you handle anxiety? Can you go into deficiency for a long time? She emphasizes that stability doesn't come from entrepreneurship and that sometimes the answer is investing in someone else's business or keeping your 9-to-5 while building—whatever serves the life you actually want, not the one you think you should want. Defining Freedom The conversation closes with Dr. Curtis's challenge to listeners: What would you define as freedom? What kind of life do you really want? For her, it's "an unimaginable life"—and getting there requires the honesty to say no to many things to say yes to what matters most.     •    LinkedIn/Instagram: @DrShakkiahCurtis     •    Email: [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])     •    Visit: Taylor Nicole Wine and Cupcakes (Madison's Black Business Hub)