being BALANCED podcast

Octavia Raheem, is a mother, online business owner, author, and life partner (wife) who prioritizes rest for her and my family despite the sometimes hectic pace of life. She has taught rest, restorative yoga, and Yoga Nidra for 10 years. She self published my first book, Gather, and it focuses on courage, rest, and connecting to your Ancestors. Her second book: Pause, Rest, Be: stillness practices for courage in times of change is now available!

One of her greatest joys is supporting high achieving and driven people in resting AT WORK. Some of her clients are Lululemon, The Highland Project, KIPP, and Civic Lab.

She believes we all need, deserve, and require more rest- especially now. Books on her nightstand:

Radiant Rest 

Finding Refuge: Heart Work for Healing Collective Grief 

Connect with Octavia on Instagram and visit her website for details on her Devoted to Rest program.

Ciji Townsend, founder of Balanced Not Busy and host of the being BALANCED podcast shares how her world turned upside down on March 11, 2002 beyond the direct impact of COVID-19. In this episode she explains the importance of navigating life's seasons with grace, acknowledging how you feel to make adjustments to "tools in the toolbox" and giving yourself permission to accept bandwidth changes.

Stay connected with Ciji:

Instagram

Facebook

Email

Kailei Carr is a champion for women in leadership and an expert in creating safe spaces for women to thrive, both personally and professionally. Since 2014, she has led The Asbury Group, a transformational leadership development firm specializing in elevating women and people of color. Her signature approach to leadership presence -- which is grounded in one's personal power and cultivated from the inside out -- has helped high-potential leaders around the globe thrive and advance to the most senior ranks. When she’s not facilitating leadership development programs or speaking at conferences and corporations, Kailei can be found hosting her podcast, Beyond the Business Suit, which has listeners in over 100 countries.

In this episode:

Kailei takes us back to 2013 when she saw the fragility of life which led to the next phase of her career. How to navigate your career with intentionality during disruption. And provides recommendations for pursuing something new in your profession.

Stay connected:

Instagram +Twitter: @kaileicarr

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaileicarr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kaileicarr

Websites: http://beyondthebusinesssuit.com/ + www.groupasbury.com

Ciji Townsend, founded Balanced Not Busy because she knew that the glorification of busyness was a societal problem AND she knew that there were solutions. She's worked for the over five years to share those solutions with the masses via social media conversations, speaking engagements and as the host of the being BALANCED podcast.

In this episode she goes back to the basics and discusses what life was like with busy parents and as an over-programmed busy kid.

Stay connected to Ciji on Instagram, @balancednotbusy and find out more about her speaking engagements on www.balancednotbusy.com.

Michelle Carlton and Adrienne McCrary, connected through insta, collaborated on a project and Founders of The Valorie. The Valorie offers a unique experience for Black Women, by providing a social + wellness club that is focused on connection and community, giving Black Women the space to be their true selves.

In this episode we chat about all things community care, why black women need support now more than ever and ways to be intentional every single day.

Learn more about the Valorie on Instagram, @thevalorie and at www.thevalorie.com

Born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India, Alka has lived in the U.S. since the age of nine. She has a BA from Stanford University and and MFA from California College of Arts in San Francisco. Her debut novel,The Henna Artist, became a NYT Bestseller and a Reese Witherspoon book club pick in 2020. The sequel, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur, premieres in July 2021, and she’s at work on the third book of the trilogy. An episodic TV series of The Henna Artist starring Freida Pinto is in development by Miramax TV.

In this episode Alka shares why she believes in the beauty of binge reading, how she reacted when she learned that Reese Witherspoon had picked her book for the book club and how important it is to see people of color in powerful positions.

Click here to purchase The Henna Artist.

Stay connected with Alka:

Instagram

Facebook

Twitter

www.alkajoshi.com

Dr. Alisha Reed is a Mother, Pharmacist, Certified Life Coach and creator of the lifestyle brand Fly with Alisha Reed. Since 2014, Alisha has inspired women to live their best lives by becoming the best version of themselves.

In this episode Dr. Reed covers how to grieve with grace based on her personal experience of suddenly losing her husband, the challenges associated with the expectation that black women have to be strong and what's she's reading/listening to/meditating on in this season of her life.

Stay connected:

Instagram: @flywithalishareed + @theflywidowpodcast

www.flywithalishareed.com

Book Stack:

Manu Muraro is the founder of Your Social Team. She helps marketing professionals and entrepreneurs use Instagram to grow their businesses. She has 20+ years of experience in Creative, Marketing and Strategy and has worked full time for brands such as the Cartoon Network and King of Pops. She's taught over 100 classes, created several online trainings and started a membership program to support business owners and social media managers with innovative tactics and new ways to leverage Instagram.

In this episode, Manu shares how to have social media boundaries, the real deal life of an entrepreneur and how she made drastic changes to improve her productivity.

Stay in contact:

Nette Archangel is a charismatic human of all things Living Life With Nette lifestyle brand. She's the proud mom of two kings, Lane and Thomas who are also known as the #brodudes. One of her greatest joys is raising them and with the support of their other parent Jasmine. When Nette is not playing Power Rangers, dinosaurs, or assembling puzzles, she's advocating for children autism, building a growing LGBTQIA+ community in New Orleans and business, listening to Carrie Underwood, indulging in Hamilton and planning her next power move.

In this episode, Nette breaks down her journey to motherhood, shares how her planning tools help to maintain her balance and encourages us all to be busy in a good way!

Stay connected:

Instagram: @livinglifewithnette

Email: [email protected]

In this episode, Cara and I pick back up on our previous conversation. Cara dives right in on what long-term allyship and advocacy should look like even when you have to have the tough conversations. And then it gets real juicy when she breaks down what white women should be doing to end systemic racism.

If you could sum up Cara Snow on a t-shirt it would say "Run all the miles, pet all the dogs, fight all the injustice and then stop for wine." Cara is a long time champion for diversity in tech and avid runner and volunteer. A devoted Southerner, she now lives, runs and pets all the dogs in Portland, Oregon where she works for a business association and focuses on equity and inclusion work.

Stay connected: