Say It Skillfully® OUR VOICES – Chioma Iheanacho Freeing Herself

Say It Skillfully® is a show that helps you to benefit from Molly Tschang’s expert guidance on the best possible ways to speak your mind at work in a positive and productive manner. Episode 133 is the 25th monthly feature of “Our Voices,” intended to accelerate social change that levels the playing field—helping everyone live to their full potential. The aim is for you to see a bit of yourself in these journeys, and embrace—we’re more similar than not. Molly is joined by first-generation American Chioma Iheanacho, who shares her journey from swanky law firm to single mother persevering to find a job, to Silicon Valley and finally her own business! Born to a father from Nigeria and a mother from Barbados, Chioma felt out of place navigating American culture. Bullied for her personality and ethnicity, she recalls insults such as “you think you’re so smart” and other kids laughing at her name. Chioma opens up about how this made her “shrink... at one point even asking her mother if her name could be changed to Linda Brown! Poignantly, she goes in depth about how trauma that shrinks you shapes your views and what you accept for yourself. Chioma talks about her early struggles as a single mother, overcoming the feeling of defeat in a tedious job search while raising her son, then eventually finding a tech support position in which she wore many hats. Learning about compliance, procurement, software, contracts, licensing, budgeting, risk management, business operations, and many more skills enhanced her career as employee, consultant and entrepreneur. With guardedness, Chioma shares her insights and learnings, including how she keeps implicit biases at bay and how leaders can create safe and inclusive spaces. Don’t miss Chioma detail the how and why behind katchimedia, her media company, which she admits she could have started sooner! Hear her passion in helping entrepreneurs and organizations optimize business operations & practices, ensure compliance and deliver online in a way that beautifully reflects their gifts and services. Tune in for heartfelt ups and downs of Chioma’s unexpected path in life and in business. She inspires all to know no boundaries and to commit to taking action so that all can be safe, seen and heard, and our true and best selves. Molly’s thought for the week: Never reduce your dreams to the level of the event, which is your immediate experience. — Howard Thurman. More ways to help you #sayitskillfully! * Minimize fear and transform “mistakes” into valuable learning moments https://bit.ly/2JynAEB * All my videos by category here: https://sayitskillfully.com