Brown Ambition

This week, Mandi Money is breaking down everything from a three-year-old soccer star making headlines for all the wrong reasons to the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders finally making moves toward getting the respect (and compensation!) they deserve. Because let's be clear: exposure doesn't pay the bills, and prestige isn't a benefits package!

We're also talking about some major corporate shakeups. With Microsoft offering employee buyouts and DoorDash making a multibillion-dollar move to acquire Instacart, Mandi is sharing what workers need to know before making their next career move. Whether you're considering a severance package or wondering if your position might be on the chopping block, the message is simple: Don't panic. Prepare. And always have your receipts ready.

Plus, we're getting into the conversation surrounding The Lip Bar, founder Melissa Butler, and the pressure Black-owned businesses face when trying to grow without alienating the communities that helped build them. Can we hold corporations accountable while still giving Black entrepreneurs the grace they deserve? Mandi has thoughts! 

And before we wrap, we're talking about the importance of showing up at the polls, celebrating the Atlanta Dream, and making sure our voices are heard both on and off the court.Because around here, we're not just keeping up with the headlines. We're figuring out what they mean for our money, our careers, and our communities.

In This Episode, We're Talking About:

• When Being Too Good Becomes a Problem: Three-year-old soccer standout Nevada Pierre goes viral after police are called to his game, sparking a bigger conversation about race, fairness, and protecting young Black talent.
• The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Know Their Worth: Why their push toward unionization is about more than a paycheck, and what every working woman can learn from their fight.
• Microsoft Buyouts: Take the Money or Stay Put? Mandi breaks down why a voluntary exit package isn't always the golden ticket it appears to be and what to consider before signing.
• DoorDash, Instacart & Corporate Shakeups: What a $17 billion acquisition could mean for employees and why now is the time to update your résumé, reconnect with your network, and document your wins.
• The Lip Bar Controversy: Melissa Butler responds to criticism surrounding the brand's relationship with Target, and Mandi weighs in on why Black-owned businesses deserve room to grow, evolve, and succeed.
• Brown Boost of the Week: A reminder to make your voice count at the polls and a whole lot of love for the Atlanta Dream!

Mandi's Money & Career Gems

💰 Know your value. Loving your job doesn't mean you should accept less than you deserve.

💼 A buyout is a financial decision, not an emotional one. Read the fine print, understand your benefits, and run the numbers before making your move.

📈 Stay ready so you don't have to get ready. Keep your résumé updated, build your professional network, and document the impact of your work.

💸 Protect your financial future. An emergency fund and a solid career backup plan can make all the difference when corporate changes come knocking.

🖤 Support Black-owned businesses with intention. Accountability matters, but so does recognizing the realities of entrepreneurship and what it takes to keep a business alive.

Join the Conversation!

BA Fam, we want to hear from you!

Have you ever accepted a voluntary buyout? Did it turn out to be a blessing or a decision you regretted? And where do you stand on the conversation surrounding The Lip Bar?

Pre-order Mandi's book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Career and Money When Life Knocks You Off Track, at BrownAmbitionBook.com

📲 Instagram: @BrownAmbitionPodcast

📧 Email: [email protected]

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This week on Brown Ambition, Mandi Money sits down with Emmy Award-winning journalist, author, and two-time breast cancer survivor Robin Allison Davis, whose journey from New York City to Paris is anything but your typical Emily in Paris fantasy.

After spending a decade building her career at NBC, Robin decided it was time for something different. So, at 32, she quit her job, saved $10,000, and moved to France to start over. But between taking a major pay cut, navigating a new language, struggling to build community, and facing two breast cancer diagnoses, Robin quickly learned that starting over isn't always as glamorous as it looks on Instagram.And BA fam, we're getting into ALL of it.

Robin opens up about the financial realities of moving abroad, the differences between American and French healthcare, learning to advocate for herself after devastating medical experiences, and why surviving cancer completely changed her relationship with ambition. Plus, Mandi and Robin get real about dating abroad (because apparently the men are still men, even in Paris!), finding freedom through freelancing, and knowing when it's time to pivot even when everyone else thinks you're living the dream.

From corporate success to cancer survivorship to becoming a bestselling author, Robin's story is a reminder that you can be grateful for the life you've built and still want something different. Because sometimes the biggest flex isn't having it all figured out. It's having the courage to start again.

In This Episode, We're Talking About:

• Betting on yourself: Why Robin walked away from a successful television career and how she financially prepared for her move to Paris.
• The real cost of living abroad: Saving $10K, navigating student loans, taking a 60% pay cut, and rebuilding a career from scratch.
• Career pivots and knowing your worth: Going from Emmy Award-winning producer to unpaid intern and learning that your accomplishments don't always translate across borders.
• Surviving breast cancer twice: Robin's journey through diagnosis, treatment, fertility preservation, and learning to advocate for herself.
• Healthcare isn't one-size-fits-all: The financial benefits of French healthcare, the challenges Robin faced, and why affordable care doesn't automatically mean better care.
• Finding your people: Building friendships, navigating loneliness, and creating community in a country far from home.
• Love, life, and the unexpected: Dating through difficult seasons and refusing to put life on hold while waiting for the perfect circumstances.
• Redefining ambition: Why Robin is choosing flexibility, creative freedom, and work-life balance over the traditional corporate ladder.

Connect With Robin Allison Davis

Book: Surviving Paris — Available in hardcover and paperback.

Instagram: @Robinista

Substack: On the Other Side with Robin Allison Davis — Exploring life, travel, healthcare, and everything on the other side of cancer and the Atlantic.

If you enjoyed this conversation, don't forget to follow Brown Ambition, leave us a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who needs a reminder that it's never too late to bet on themselves.

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This week on Brown Buzz, Mandi Money is breaking down everything from billionaires promising to make our babies stockholders to Gen Z investors letting election anxiety get a little too close to their retirement accounts. And while everybody keeps telling us the economy is doing great, why are our grocery bills, rent payments, and bank accounts telling a completely different story?!

First up, Elon Musk wants to give every child in America a share of SpaceX. Sounds generous, right? Well, Mandi has some questions! We're talking about the fine print, the risks of tying a child's financial future to one company, and why building generational wealth should be about more than billionaire promises.Then, we're getting into why your 401(k) is NOT a ballot box! With investors making major money moves ahead of the midterm elections, Mandi explains why panic-selling could cost you more than you think and why she's standing ten toes down on her tried-and-true, set-it-and-forget-it investing strategy.

Plus, what exactly is a K-shaped economy, and why does it feel like wealthy Americans are thriving while everybody else is just trying to make it to payday? Mandi breaks down the growing wealth divide and reminds us that you can't budget your way out of every systemic problem.

We're also talking about the corporate ladder and why, despite a record number of women leading Fortune 500 companies, Black and Latina women are still being left out of the executive suite. Because being excellent at your job is one thing, but having somebody willing to open doors for you? That's a whole different conversation.

And on a more serious note, Mandi calls for justice and transparency for baby Kohen Wiley and his family, reminding us why accountability matters and why we cannot afford to look away.

Finally, we're ending with some much-needed joy! Mandi is giving her Brown Boost to the Atlanta Dream, celebrating the power of women showing up, showing out, and making everybody around them shine a little brighter. 🏀

IResources & Links:

• Justice for Baby Kohen Wiley — Visit Benjamin Crump's Justice for Baby Kohen Wiley campaign page to support the family's call for transparency.

• Mississippi Attorney General's Office: 601-359-3680

• Pre-order Mandi's book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Career and Money When Life Knocks You Off Track, at BrownAmbitionBook.com

• Follow Brown Ambition on Instagram: @BrownAmbitionPodcast

• Follow Mandi on Threads: @MandiMoney

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This week, Mandi Money is joined by Paula Pant, real estate investor, entrepreneur, and host of the Afford Anything podcast, for a conversation that's equal parts money masterclass and millionaire mindset check.

Paula went from earning just $21,000 a year as a newspaper reporter to building a $3.7 million net worth by age 42. And no, she didn't get there by chasing the hottest stocks or trying to become an overnight millionaire.Instead, she focused on increasing her income, investing consistently, and making intentional financial decisions. She's breaking down how she bought her first triplex for $225,000, turned it into a property now worth more than $1 million, and built a portfolio of seven paid-off rental properties.

But don't get it twisted. Paula is the first to admit that building wealth comes with mistakes, expensive lessons, and some serious money mindset work.

Mandi and Paula get into the real numbers behind real estate investing, why renting isn't always throwing money away, and the difference between being self-employed and actually building a business. Plus, Paula introduces her Double-I FIRE framework, explains why your financial psychology matters just as much as your investment portfolio, and shares why she's still investing in herself and her business even after reaching millionaire status.

And because this is Brown Ambition, we're asking the bigger questions: What's the point of financial independence if you never let yourself enjoy the money? And when you've already built millions, what keeps you ambitious?

In This Episode, We're Talking About:

• How Paula went from a $21K salary to a $3.7 million net worth
• House hacking 101: buying a multifamily property and letting rental income offset your housing costs
• The price-to-rent ratio and how to evaluate whether buying or renting makes financial sense
• Why $11,400 in gross monthly rental income doesn't mean $11,400 in profit
• Building wealth with index funds, retirement accounts, and real estate
• The difference between investing, speculating, and straight-up gambling
• Breaking free from scarcity mindset and learning when it's okay to spend
• Paula's Double-I FIRE approach to financial independence
• Why estate planning and family money conversations can't wait forever
• The power of optimism, adaptability, and continuing to grow after reaching financial freedom

Connect with Paula Pant:

Podcast: Afford Anything

Website: https://affordanything.com

Stay Connected with Brown Ambition:

Subscribe, rate, and review Brown Ambition, and share this episode with somebody who's ready to stop just thinking about building wealth and start making moves.

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On this week's Brown Buzz, Mandi Money is breaking down the stories affecting our money, our careers, our communities, and our everyday lives. First up, the WNBA is making history, with the Atlanta Dream heading to the finals and fans showing up in record numbers. But with all that momentum comes a bigger question: Will the investment, respect, and compensation finally match the talent these women bring to the court?

Then, Mandi gets real about career security in the wake of Netflix’s reported 1,000 job cuts. Even when a company is worth billions, your job isn’t guaranteed. She shares why we can’t rely on a company’s success to determine our own financial stability and how unexpected setbacks can change the way we approach our careers and money. Plus, it’s time to talk politics. With the 2026 midterm elections approaching, Mandi breaks down the high stakes of Georgia’s gubernatorial race, the investigation involving Representative Ilhan Omar, and Kamala Harris’s recent conversation with Keke Palmer about the importance of showing up to vote. Because the decisions made at the ballot box have real consequences for our paychecks, schools, neighborhoods, and families.

And in a deeply personal Brown Boost, Mandi shares the story behind her upcoming book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Career and Money When Life Knocks You Off Track. After navigating her own challenges with anxiety, depression, motherhood, and the pressures of being a breadwinner, Mandi realized that traditional career and money advice doesn't always account for what happens when life gets overwhelming. Her new book is about rebuilding your finances, your career, and your confidence without shame or burnout.

In this episode, we get into:

• The Atlanta Dream’s run to the WNBA finals, the league’s record-breaking viewership, and why women's sports deserve greater investment and compensation.
• What Netflix’s layoffs teach us about career security, corporate profits, and preparing financially for the unexpected.
• Why Mandi started over on her book and created a more compassionate, realistic approach to rebuilding your career and money after a setback.
• The 2026 midterm elections, Georgia’s closely watched gubernatorial race, and why local elections matter just as much as presidential elections.
• The investigation involving Representative Ilhan Omar and the broader concerns surrounding political targeting and accountability.
• Kamala Harris on Keke Palmer’s podcast, protecting your joy, and refusing to apologize for who you are.
• A heartbreaking incident involving a Black toddler at a public library, the importance of making children feel seen and valued, and the responsibility of public institutions to serve everyone.
• Brown Boost: Celebrating librarian and literacy advocate Michael Threets as he takes the lead on the Reading Rainbow reboot.

Plus: Mandi shares why pre-ordering Brown Ambition matters, how your support helps get books into bookstores and libraries, and why being knocked off track doesn’t mean you’re broken.

📚 Pre-order Mandi’s book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Career and Money When Life Knocks You Off Track, arriving June 15, 2027

Resources mentioned:

• Georgia voter information: https://sos.ga.gov
• Check your voter registration and find election resources: https://www.vote.org
• Watch the Reading Rainbow reboot on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ReadingRainbowOfficial

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if getting ahead didn’t require you to outwork, outperform, or out-hustle everyone around you?

This week, we’re revisiting Mandi's  conversation with leadership and inclusion strategist Ruchika T. Malhotra — author of Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Radical Success. In a world obsessed with winning, Ruchika’s message is a breath of fresh air: true success comes from rest, collaboration, and community not from constant competition.

Together, they unpack the toxic myth that somebody else’s win has to mean your loss—and offer a more sustainable path to ambition rooted in community, self-trust, rest, and collaboration.

They also get real about career comparison, envy, burnout, anxiety, and the pressure to keep proving yourself in a world that constantly tells women to do more. If you’ve ever watched someone else land the opportunity you wanted and immediately wondered whether you need to work harder, be better, or push yourself past your limits, this episode is for you.

📘 About the Guest

Ruchika T. Malhotra (she/her) is a globally recognized inclusion strategist, speaker, and founder of CANDOR, a consulting practice helping organizations build equitable and inclusive workplaces. Her latest book, Uncompete, challenges the myth that success must come from rivalry and invites us to build from a place of joy, rest, and abundance.

Follow Ruchika:

• Instagram: @rtulshyan
• Website: ruchikatulshyan.com

📚 Resources Mentioned

• Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Radical Success — available November 4

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Brown Buzz, Mandi Money is breaking down the headlines shaping our money, careers, culture, and everyday lives. First up, LeBron James’s reported $15 million partnership with Polymarket raises questions about the growing popularity of prediction markets and how these platforms are marketed to people who may already feel financially behind. Mandi explains how prediction markets work, why the line between trading and gambling deserves a closer look, and what you should know about protecting your money if you use these apps.

Then, Mandi celebrates some major Black business wins, including Carol’s Daughter founder Lisa Price returning to an ownership role in the brand she built from her Brooklyn kitchen. She also dives into the Ebony Power 100 list and shares a reminder for anyone who has ever felt overlooked: someone else’s recognition is not evidence that your work is small.

Plus, Mandi breaks down what rising home heating costs could mean for your winter budget, gives CultureCon founder Imani Ellis her flowers for responding to attendee feedback, and celebrates authors Tayari Jones and Julie Leung for their literary accomplishments.

In this episode, we discuss:

• LeBron James and the prediction market boom: What Polymarket is, how these platforms work, and why celebrity endorsements can make risky financial products feel more legitimate.

• When betting gets dressed up as investing: The potential risks of prediction markets, crypto security concerns, and why these apps should never be treated as a savings plan or side hustle.

• Lisa Price and the return to Carol’s Daughter: What her return to an ownership role means for the founder of a pioneering Black beauty brand and the legacy she built.

• The Ebony Power 100 list: Celebrating Black excellence without allowing industry awards and recognition to determine your sense of accomplishment.

• Winter heating costs: What projected increases in home heating expenses could mean for your household budget, plus practical ways to reduce energy costs.

• CultureCon and founder accountability: Why Mandi is giving Imani Ellis and her team credit for listening to attendee feedback and making changes.

• A Brown Boost for Black and women authors: Celebrating Tayari Jones’s literary achievement with Kin and Julie Leung’s work as a children's book author.

Resources and reminders:

• If you use prediction market apps, enable two-factor authentication, use unique passwords, and never keep rent money or emergency savings in a betting account.

• Explore ways to lower your winter energy bills, including weatherstripping doors and windows, sealing drafts, and improving attic insulation.

• Remember: your work matters even when the spotlight hasn't found you yet.

Listener question CTA

Have a money or career question for a future Brown Buzz? Email [email protected] or send a DM to @brownambitionpodcast.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when you grow up knowing what it feels like to not have enough money?

For La La Anthony, that feeling became part of the fuel behind her ambition. Raised by a single mom, La La learned early that she wanted to build a life where she could take care of herself and never have to feel guilty about asking for money. That independent spirit eventually took her from an unpaid radio internship at 16 to a career spanning radio, acting, producing, entrepreneurship, fashion, and philanthropy.

In this episode of Brown Ambition, Mandi Money sits down with La La to talk about the money lessons she had to learn the hard way, from spending her first paychecks on things that made her look successful to negotiating an $80,000 salary at just 18 without a lawyer or agent. La La gets candid about what it took to understand her worth, why she believes you have to stay involved in your finances even when you have financial professionals managing your money, and why asking questions is a critical part of becoming financially literate.

Mandi and La La also talk about building wealth as a Black entrepreneur, the importance of access and capital for Black and brown founders, and La La's growing interest in supporting innovative businesses. Plus, La La opens up about raising her son Kiyan to understand the importance of paying attention to his money from a young age, and the ongoing challenge of learning how to balance a relentless work ethic with rest, family, and actually enjoying the life she's worked so hard to build.

In this episode, we get into:

• How growing up without much money shaped La La's entrepreneurial spirit
• The lessons she learned from her first paychecks and early money mistakes
• Why knowing your worth matters when negotiating your salary and contracts
• The importance of being actively involved in your finances, even when you have a financial team
• Why financial literacy also means being willing to admit what you don't know
• Supporting Black and brown founders who don't have easy access to startup capital
• Teaching the next generation about saving, investing, and financial responsibility
• The tension between ambition, work ethic, motherhood, and making time to actually live
• Learning to give yourself grace when you're figuring it all out

La La's biggest money lesson? Give yourself grace. None of us get a roadmap for being an entrepreneur, a parent, an employee, or simply trying to build a life that feels good. We're all learning as we go.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Brown Buzz, we’re cutting through the headlines and getting into the stories that affect our money, careers, and lives.

First, Mandi discusses the allegations involving Cornell and LSU, why Title IX is not the same thing as a criminal investigation, and what students and survivors should know if they want to explore a report to law enforcement.

TW: From  02:21 - 11:05 this episode includes discussion of SA.

Then, we get practical:

• The career skill employers say matters most in an AI-powered workplace

• Why more buyers are considering adjustable-rate mortgages—and the questions to ask before you sign

• A listener inherits more than $100,000 from her great-aunt: Should she pay debt, save it, invest it, or spend a little to honor her aunt?

• Why $100,000 invested at a hypothetical 7% annual return could grow to nearly $1.5 million over 40 years, before taxes, fees, inflation, or investment volatility

Plus, Mandi gives Alexis Nikole Nelson—the Black Forager—her Brown Boost after Alexis’s cookbook, Happy Snacking, Don’t Die!, lands on the New York Times bestseller list.

In this episode

• Cornell and LSU: What the reporting raises about campus accountability and Title IX

• How a Title IX process differs from reporting to campus or local police

• RAINN resources for support and reporting options

• IBM’s survey on critical thinking and discernment in the AI workplace

• Fixed-rate mortgages vs. adjustable-rate mortgages

• How to handle a $100,000 inheritance without rushing into a decision

• Emergency funds, high-interest debt, investing, and getting flat-fee financial advice

• Brown Boost: Alexis Nikole Nelson, the Black Forager

Resources mentioned

• RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-HOPE (4673)

• RAINN: rainn.org

• Alexis Nikole Nelson / The Black Forager: Happy Snacking, Don’t Die!

• Listen to Mandi’s interview with Alexis Nikole Nelson in the previous Brown Ambition episode.

Listener question CTA

Have a money or career question for a future Brown Buzz? Email [email protected] or send a DM to @brownambitionpodcast.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when the thing that makes you feel most like yourself doesn’t fit neatly into the version of success you were raised to pursue?

For Alexis Nikole Nelson, aka The Black Forager, that question has shaped nearly every chapter of her life. From growing up as a curious, outdoorsy kid who learned about plants in her mother’s garden to studying environmental science and theater, working in marketing, and eventually building a community of millions around her love of foraging, Alexis has never really fit into just one box. And that’s exactly the point.

In this episode, Alexis joins Brown Ambition to talk about building a life and business that makes room for all of her interests, identities, and curiosities. She shares how her mother introduced her to foraging as a child, why she initially kept her love of plants and the outdoors to herself, and what it took to stop suppressing the parts of herself that didn’t fit other people’s expectations of Blackness, femininity, or success.

Mandi and Alexis also get into the less whimsical side of turning a passion into a business, from navigating taxes and forming an LLC to saying no to brand deals, managing burnout, and learning how to treat your creativity like a business without losing the joy that made you love it in the first place. They also talk about connecting with Black ancestry through food and the land, the importance of curiosity in adulthood, and why getting to know the world around us can make our lives feel a little more magical.

In this episode, we get into:

• Growing up with a mother who was a Black corporate leader and finding connection with her through gardening and the outdoors

• How Alexis discovered foraging at five years old and never really stopped being curious about plants

• The pressure to pursue a traditional, “successful” career and what happened when Alexis realized environmental engineering wasn’t for her

• Going from environmental science and theater to marketing and eventually becoming a full-time creator

• Why Alexis chose the name Black Forager and the importance of making Blackness visible in spaces where it hasn’t always been expected

• Challenging narrow ideas about Black femininity, identity, hobbies, and what Black people are “supposed” to be interested in

• Finding a deeper connection to Black history and ancestry through plants, gardening, and the land

• The complicated history of Black people and the outdoors and what it means to reclaim those spaces

• What happens when your hobby becomes your livelihood, including burnout and the pressure to always create

• Building a business around your personality without losing yourself in the process

• Why curiosity is a muscle we have to keep exercising, especially as adults

• Making everyday life more magical by getting to know the natural world around us

• Giving yourself permission to be playful, weird, creative, and fully yourself

• Alexis’ new cookbook, Happy Snacking, Don’t Die, and the community that helped bring it to life

Plus, Alexis shares a few beginner-friendly foraging tips, the plant she thinks we should stop calling a weed, why we might want to rethink our relationship with black walnuts, and her official ranking of some very whimsical activities.

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