Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 74 with guest Adelle Thompson. If you've ever felt limited by salary bands, imposter syndrome, or undervaluation, this short but potent episode is your call to action.

As a certified life coach, with over 12 years of experience in HR and recruitment, Adelle teaches career-driven individuals & early entrepreneurs to build a winning career strategy while working to overcome their own self-doubt. This enables them to pursue a career they love and earn more doing it.

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 74: Mastering the Art of Selling Yourself.

Key Discussion Points:

00:59 Identifying Your Key Competencies: Self-selling starts with knowing what you're uniquely good at, and sharing these competencies with confidence to build credibility.

02:19 Selling Yourself with Integrity:  Selling is talking about what you're good at and how that thing is valuable to someone else.

05:16 Redefining Negotiation: Adelle reframes negotiation as a daily skill, especially for women juggling roles at work, at home, and everywhere in between.

08:09 Permission to Pivot Softly: You don’t have to leap off a cliff to pivot. You can make incremental changes toward your bigger goals without destabilizing your life.

In Summary: Adelle Thompson highlights the power of knowing your value and reframing negotiation as a life skill. She encourages women to own their strengths and advocate for themselves with confidence.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Adelle on LinkedIn or visit her website. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Archita on LinkedIn or check out her website.

Follow Olivia on LinkedIn or check out her website.

Follow Embracing Only on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

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Produced by Ideablossoms

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 42 with guest Deepa Purushothaman. This is a must-listen for every woman of color navigating the tension between success and self-erasure in systems never built for us.

Deepa spent more than 20 years at Deloitte helping clients transform and grow. She was the first Indian-American woman and one of the youngest people to make partner in the firm's history. Deepa is an author and the founder of multiple businesses. In 2022, her debut book, The First, The Few, The Only, was published by HarperCollins to international acclaim.

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 42: 500 stories of THE FIRST, THE FEW, THE ONLY.

Key Discussion Points:

00:59 The Pressure to Conform as a Female Leader of Color: The pressure to conform often intensifies once women of color reach senior leadership, making it harder to reclaim authenticity at the top.

03:12 Choosing What Not to Compromise: Identify a short list of non-negotiables: values you won’t trade in for professional acceptance.

04:26 Confronting Internalized Guilt: Women of color often internalize blame when they experience bias, but the root cause is rarely personal. It’s structural.

08:45 The Health Toll of Conformity: 2 out of 3 women that Deepa interviewed were suffering from mysterious chronic illnesses - fatigue, migraines, infertility, and more - linked to the psychological toll of erasure.

In Summary: Deepa Purushothaman emphasizes the importance of identifying and holding firm to one's non-negotiables in the workplace and being aware of the subtle indoctrinations that can lead to self-erasure.

Resources from this episode:

The First, The Few, The Only by Deepa Purushothaman

Follow Deepa on LinkedIn or visit her website. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we delve into the cost of loyalty and the power of letting go with award-winning pharma sales executive Karen Madison. She opens up about the emotional toll of being unseen at work, the illusion of loyalty in corporate spaces, and how she found freedom by choosing herself even when the system didn’t.

Karen is a decorated sales leader with accolades like the World Champion Award (top 1% in her field), Circle of Excellence, and Market Access Preceptor Award. Beyond this, she champions representation through programs like Maryland Made and BACES. Karen is redefining what leadership looks like for women of color in high-stakes industries.

Key Discussion Points:

01:59 The Power of Mentorship: Mentorship is not limited to the beginning phases of your career; it is vital throughout your entire career, especially as an “only.”

07:21 Breaking Into Sales as a Woman of Color: There are real barriers in pharma sales for women of color, and the industry’s bias shows up in subtle yet significant ways.

13:02 Natural Hair Bias: It is not uncommon for people to make assumptions about women of color based on their hair and not their skills or results.

17:57 Surviving Microaggressions at Work: How do you stay emotionally intelligent and professionally firm when repeatedly disrespected for your appearance? 

20:25 The Pressure to Perform as a Woman of Color: As an “only,” there is pressure to outperform just to be seen as competent.

29:16 Knowing When It’s Time to Walk Away: If the microaggressions in your environment are not tolerable, you can show your resistance by walking away.

35:58 The Myth of Corporate Family: Loyal employees are often underpaid, and loyalty won’t protect you from being replaced.

In Summary: Karen shares that you don’t need to prove your worth to people who refuse to see it and that reclaiming your power often means walking away before they push you out.

Resources from this episode:

The Pivot Point by Gregory L Peel

Follow Karen on LinkedIn.

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/.

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on

Ready to make a change?
→ Struggling with your corporate career but have big goals? 
Reach out to Olivia on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.
→ Ready to leave corporate or start a side venture? Archita can guide your next steps.
Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 73 with verbal identity strategist Kezia Israel. From rewriting internal narratives to learning how to evaluate decisions with strategy and grace, this is a masterclass in transitioning strategically.

With over eight years of experience in the marketing and advertising industry, Kezia has honed her skills in crafting persuasive copy that not only increases brand awareness but also drives meaningful consumer engagement across various platforms.

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 73: Owning Your Authenticity and Making Fearless Decisions.

Key Discussion Points:

00:59 Embracing Transition: Letting go of a long-held identity comes with a sense of loss. The key is to adapt those parts of yourself rather than abandon them.

03:36 Confidence From Clarity: Confident women know what they want. This clarity may not come naturally; it can be built through practice, and there are tools to help you.

08:58 The Biggest Obstacle to Transition is Ourselves: The biggest obstacle to growth is often internal. Giving yourself grace and learning from mistakes is key to moving forward with strength.

09:18 Redefining Feedback and Failure: Feedback is essential for growth, but you have to be specific about whose feedback you receive.

In Summary: Kezia Israel shows us that clarity is a habit, confidence is earned, and transitions are less about leaving and more about becoming. If you’ve been wrestling with your next step, this is your sign to reflect, plan, and move gracefully and boldly.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Kezia on LinkedIn or visit her website. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on Linkedin, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we delve into how high-achieving women can reclaim their power and purpose and break the trauma default with  globally recognized strategic advisor Christy Rutherford. Christy challenges cultural norms around endurance, self-sacrifice, and worth, and offers a powerful, data-backed roadmap for recovery, self-worth, and unapologetic earning.

As a  leadership strategist and burnout recovery expert, Christy’s work has transformed the lives of hundreds of high-achieving women. She is a Harvard Business School alumnus, the 13th African American woman to achieve the rank of commander in the United States Coast Guard, and the creator of the Trauma Default Breakthrough System.

Key Discussion Points:

02:43 Trauma Default & Survival Mode: Christy introduces the “trauma default” - the unconscious stress response formed in childhood that drives overachievement.

09:00 Burnout is Not a Badge of Honor: Women silently suffer through burnout until their bodies shut down.

16:13 Confessing You’re Not Okay: Shame keeps high-achieving women stuck and isolated in their suffering.

19:02 Struggle Addiction & Cultural Conditioning: Cultural scripts teach us to glorify sacrifice even when it’s killing us.

29:20 Rewriting Your Inner Script & Raising Your Value: Mindset, not more degrees, unlocks higher pay and more aligned leadership.

In Summary: Christy Rutherford unpacks the deep connection between trauma, burnout, and overachievement in high-performing women of color.

Resources from this episode:

90 Second Career Recovery Quiz

The Pay Raise Playbook

Find your Burnout Score.

Follow Christy on LinkedIn, Instagram & YouTube or check out her website.

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/.

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on LinkedIn, I

Ready to make a change?
→ Struggling with your corporate career but have big goals? 
Reach out to Olivia on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.
→ Ready to leave corporate or start a side venture? Archita can guide your next steps.
Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 72 with Minette Norman. If you’ve ever faced fear before a big leap or struggled with failure on your team, Minette offers a powerful reframe. What if failure is the doorway to innovation?

Minette is an award-winning author, speaker, leadership consultant, and former Silicon Valley software executive who spent decades leading global teams. She  is committed to helping leaders unleash the full potential of the people in their organizations.

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 72: Unleashing the Full Potential of the People You Lead.

Key Discussion Points:

00:59 Overcoming Fear Through Experience: Confidence is earned by surviving past “hard things” and understanding what your unique superpowers are.

04:26 Reframing Failure as Innovation: Fear of failure is still deeply ingrained in many workplaces. However, there is no innovation without failure.

06:27 Creating Safe Spaces for Experimentation: Having small failures that you and your team talk about openly and learn from will help create psychological safety and avoid catastrophic failures.

07:59 The Role of Curiosity in Team Recovery: Instead of assigning blame after a failure, come together as a team to find the lessons and recover.

In Summary: Minette Norman encourages small, recoverable failures and transparent leadership, turning mistakes into learning opportunities for growth and innovation.

Resources from this episode:

The Boldly Inclusive Leader by Minette Norman

The Psychological Safety Playbook by Karolin Helbig and Minette Norman

Follow Minette on LinkedIn or visit her website. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on Linkedin, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we come together for an emotionally honest conversation about fear, bias, and what it means to be seen as suspicious simply for existing. We explore how microaggressions, implicit bias, and systemic racism continue to shape the lived experience of women of color and what it really means to advocate, to listen, and to lead with courage.

Key Discussion Points:

01:10 Real-Life Racial Profiling Experience: Archita shares a moment of racial profiling on her morning walk and how the aftershock reverberated through her sense of safety and belonging.

05:41 The Toll of Constant Vigilance: There is an emotional and physical toll that comes with constantly being on high alert for bias and microaggressions. The best action you can take is not to engage.

10:34 Stop Explaining Away Oppression: Don’t explain someone’s pain away. Believe people when they tell you what happened, even if it makes you uncomfortable.

12:07 Understanding Who Is Responsible for Your Fear: This is a challenge for adults to examine the source of their fear rather than projecting it onto others. And to help the next generation not inherit this fear.

19:26 Calling Out Bias in the Workplace: When you see bias happening in the workplace, you owe it to your employees to call it out.

23:53 The End of Grace for Willful Ignorance: People who choose not to care and not to understand bias just because it doesn’t apply to them are willfully ignorant.

In Summary: Olivia and Archita delve into the complexities of experiencing and addressing racial bias and microaggressions. They highlight the importance of recognizing and interrupting bias and educating children about diversity without fear.

Resources from this episode:

Story of Now by Shelina Janmohamed

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/.

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms

Ready to make a change?
→ Struggling with your corporate career but have big goals? 
Reach out to Olivia on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.
→ Ready to leave corporate or start a side venture? Archita can guide your next steps.
Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 71 with guest Animah Kosai. This episode is a must-listen if you’ve ever felt pressured to conform, questioned your leadership style, or struggled to stay authentic in high-stakes environments.

 Animah is a passionate advocate for ethical leadership, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace. She founded Speak Up At Work to diagnose the speak up culture in companies and assess their response to reports on wrongdoing, harassment, unsafe, and unethical practices.

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 71: Speaking Up in the Workplace with Animah Kosai.

Key Discussion Points:

00:59 Bullying vs. Strong Leadership: There is a difference between strong assertive leadership and bullying. Transformation is possible if the bully is open to learning and acknowledging what they did wrong.

03:49 Understanding the DARVO Pattern: Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender is a common corporate response to being called out. 

05:18 Toxic Leadership Conditioning: Past experiences shape behaviors. Leadership mirrors toxic systems until we consciously choose another path.

08:09 The Challenge of Disrupting Systems: We are living in a world designed by and for  cis straight white men from certain educational backgrounds.

10:32 Authenticity as Resistance: The roots of “professionalism” are deeply racialized and gendered, and it serves to erase identity.

In Summary: Animah Kosai encourages self-awareness in leadership, especially in addressing and transforming bullying behavior. She discusses the need for authenticity and systemic change in corporate cultures to promote inclusivity and challenge existing biases.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Animah on LinkedIn or visit her website. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on Linkedin, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we sit down with Kim Crowder, transformational leadership expert and founder of Courageous Crowd. Kim is known for helping Fortune 500 companies transform crises into catalysts for growth, and she brings both her extensive corporate experience and entrepreneurial wisdom to this conversation. We explore how high-achieving women of color can hold boundaries, navigate toxic environments, and trust their values when stepping into alignment and away from overwork.

As a LinkedIn Top Voice, Kim has been featured in Forbes, the New York Times, CBS, and Business Insider. She now leads a team of experts creating sustainable leadership culture in the most complex workplaces.

Key Discussion Points:

02:50 Defining Boundaries While Holding Influence: There are stark differences between being a boundary-holder in corporate America vs. consulting. 

09:43 The Importance of Living Your Values: Showing up as yourself and staying true to your values will help you attract the right kind of clients & team members.

15:31 Finding Alignment With Yourself and With Work: Finding moments of quiet is the way to find alignment within yourself, which will then flow into your work.

20:01 Sacred Work vs. Strategic Work: Not all passions are meant for capitalism. There are some things that you may be extremely passionate about but would prefer to keep sacred.

27:30 What Alignment Actually Feels Like: Alignment often comes in small moments. There is power in recognizing the value of these.

30:58 Turning Chaos Into a Superpower: The chaos that you are currently living through could later on become the foundation of what you can build on your own.

41:17 Being a Black Woman in the Boardroom Today: Cultivate and honor what makes you unique as your superpower. You may not be able to ignore how other people feel about it, but you don't have to internalize it. 

In Summary: Kim Crowder emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries, leveraging experiences as superpowers, and maintaining mental health and creativity through journaling and finding quiet moments.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Kim on LinkedIn.

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/.

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Embracing Only on

Ready to make a change?
→ Struggling with your corporate career but have big goals? 
Reach out to Olivia on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.
→ Ready to leave corporate or start a side venture? Archita can guide your next steps.
Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Episode Highlight: On this episode of the Embracing "Only" podcast, we are featuring one of the most impactful moments from episode 26 with guest Monique Ball. What does it take to rise above stereotypes and rewrite the narrative? Monique shares how identity, education, and self-belief can become tools for empowerment.

Monique is a licensed real estate agent and previously worked in broadcasting and digital advertising. Throughout Monique’s life, she has continued to break societal stereotypes, and through education, she has been empowered to rise above the expectations placed on her. 

This episode is just a short snippet that highlights the best and most powerful learning moment from a past episode. You can listen to the full episode (filled with more wisdom) here: Episode 26: Breaking stereotypes and leading with curiosity.

Key Discussion Points:

00:58 Ignorance and Misinformation: We have to think critically about the information we consume, especially in times of crisis. 

01:59 Navigating Stereotypes: People choose to accept stereotypes and misinformation rather than educate themselves. Use this as motivation to supersede whatever judgment society has placed on you.

07:05 Understanding Historically Black Universities: Historically black colleges and universities are institutions that were founded on the principle of helping minorities have higher education.

08:08 Empowerment in Belonging: There is empowerment that comes with being part of the majority.

In Summary: Monique encourages us to challenge stereotypes, use adversity as motivation, and invest in education as a path to empowerment. She urges us to seek environments that affirm our identity and build self-confidence.

Resources from this episode:

Follow Monique on LinkedIn. 

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/ 

Ready to make a change?

→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals. 

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.

Connect with your hosts:

Follow Archita on Linkedin or check out her website.

Follow Olivia on Linkedin or check out her website.

Follow Embracing Only on Linkedin, Instagram, and Facebook, or check out the website.

_________

Produced by Ideablossoms