Jamar "J Haleem" Washington was born and raised in Newark NJ. He is an Amazon bestselling author, award-winning, nationally published commercial photographer, motivational speaker, and corporate trainer.

J Haleem became a felon in college. When he was not able to get a job after graduating his experience led him to become an entrepreneur.  Several years ago, he developed a mantra entitled "I Won't Starve" which has become the catalyst in his pursuit of creating successful entrepreneurs. He has helped 600 businesses get started in the past three years.

In our keeping it real conversation, J Haleem shares his thoughts and beliefs about various topics related to criminal justice in America, including his upbringing in Newark, NJ, how community policing as it is done now is ineffective, what changes he would make to the criminal justice system if he was in charge, conversations he has with his young children about the social unrest taking place in the country, his love for his family and community and why he feels a mission to help more blacks become entrepreneurs.

You will hear why he believes that when dealing with our present reality, it's important that our approach is based on facts over feelings. He encourages blacks to remove the mental shackles that keep us thinking in ways that hold us back. He shares his firmly held belief, again and again, throughout our conversation about how blacks need to stop playing the country's game - it's time we play our game.

During the conversation, he shares some key nuggets for entrepreneurs. And, we had a "lively" conversation related to diversity and inclusion in corporate workplaces.

His favorite quote by Frederick Douglas "It's easier to build strong children than to repair broken men" is a reflection of his heart towards his family and the black community. He encourages parents to teach their children how to collaborate to create a brighter future for the black community.

As you will discover while listening to our conversation, J Haleem Washington is definite in a league of his own which is one of the reasons why he has been so successful.

Contact J Haleem Washington

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LinkedIn
JHaleemTV
Facebook

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

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Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

In the guest chair, today is Lasenta Lewis-Ellis, GC, CM, CQM-C, MAHRD. She is the President/CEO of LLE Construction Group, LLC located in Columbia, SC.

LLE Construction Group, LLC provides general contracting, project and construction management, and facility maintenance and management to school districts, charter and private schools, commercial businesses and institutions, and she’s expanding the business to the federal marketplace. 

Lasenta is a licensed general contractor and construction manager in the state of South Carolina and a Quality Control Manager (CQM-C) from the U.S. Corp of Engineers. She devises strategies, policies, and plans for the growth and sustainability of the organization.

In our candid and personal conversation, Lasenta opens up to share her story of how she went from welfare to becoming a black woman who has built a construction company in a male-dominated industry that generates revenues of more than a million dollars.

In This Episode, You Will Learn

• Why her mom's love for roller skating has become one of her family's favorite past time activities, and although her mom is deceased her elementary friends still remember her because of all the times she picked them up to go to the rink
• How being fired from a job and unable to find a job led her to start her construction business
• The importance of leveraging your knowledge, skills and ability to build a successful start-up business and grow it
• The importance of building and sustaining relationships through your academic and professional career
• Some of the challenges she has had to face after COVID-19 hit and what she is doing to pivot her business
• Her reason why she initially did not want to go after minority certification for her business
• How her superpowers of being a connector and resourceful has led to building sustainable success
• The importance of collaboration to build a successful business
• How her teachers and the administration at Midland's Technical College supported her after experiencing the loss of her mom so that she would complete her studies
• Her encouraging words to those who are unemployed and underemployed about this present moment and how to shift to take advantage of your skills, abilities and experiences to create and seize new opportunities
• and so much more...

Contact Lasenta Lewis-Ellis

Website
Facebook
LinkedIn

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

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Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

In this episode of the Black Men On Justice In America series, Dr. Elijah "Trey" Robinson is in the guest chair.

Trey as he prefers to be called graduated from Wofford College In Spartanburg, SC with a B.A. in chemistry. He earned his Doctor of Medicine at Wake Forst University School of Medicine in North Carolina.

Trey received the Currie B. Spivey Award for volunteerism and the "Heart of a Terrier" Leadership Award during Honors Convocation at Wofford College in his senior year.

If there was a theme for our conversation, it would be "Get Involved". Trey echoes this sentiment throughout our conversation. 

In addition to his professional responsibilities as EMS Resident Rotation Co-Director at Grady Memorial Hospital and Assistant Professor at Emory University School of Medicine both in Atlanta, GA, he made the time to get involved with leading a peaceful protest in Atlanta, GA after the murder of George Floyd earlier this year.

In our conversation, he shares how as a black man who is a doctor - initially people are always going to see him as a black man first which is why the murder of George Floyd was devasting to him. It was seeing the video of George Floyd's murder that seemed to light a fire in him. 

He's using his voice and encouraging others to use their vote to elect political leaders who are committed to doing the work to transform our criminal justice system.

As a healthcare professional, we discuss the challenges he and his team have faced and overcome as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. He shares key leadership insights he's gained as a result of being on the front line during this pandemic.

He's even considering taking on a medical research project to identify conscious biases in the healthcare industry.

At this end of our conversation, he leaves us with words of encouragement and empowerment to fire us up so that we get involved in our community and be the change we want to see.

Tune in to listen to our insightful, delightful, and thought-provoking conversation.

If you had an opportunity to sit down with a white friend to discuss white privilege and racial injustice, what would be some of the questions that you ask to seek first to understand his or her thoughts about these topics?

Well, this soulful conversation that I had with my new friend and writer Marie Gettel Gilmartin. aka Marie GG will shed some insights on how many of the white people who seek to ally with the Black Lives Matter movement think about white privilege and racism in the U.S.

Marie and I met on LinkedIn after I read her "real talk" article that she published which she discusses how white women use their tears as a weapon against black men such as Amy Cooper's reaction, the white woman who called the police on a black man in Central Park earlier this year and the inhumane treatment of George Floyd by police officers who are now charged with his murder.

Before you think that Marie is jumping on the bandwagon, she isn't. She's been a social justice activist for years. Her concern is genuine. She doesn't just talk about social justice, she takes action while inspiring others to do the same.

Here's a little more about our guest today.

Writing engaging content is one of Marie’s superpowers. As a writer and marketing communications coach, she helps people and organizations discover what makes them special and helps them share that with the world.

After working as a leader and communications manager in the corporate world for 29 years, she founded Fertile Ground Communications to help others bring their ideas to life. Because nothing gives Marie more pleasure than helping others tell their stories and get recognized for their accomplishments, She launched her podcast "The Finding Fertile Ground Podcast" soon after being a guest on this show.


Contact Marie Gettle Gilmartin

Website
Podcast
Facebook
LinkedIn

Also Mentioned In This Episode

Book: White Frugality
Poem: Mary Oliver

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

Website

Facebook

Linkedin

Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

Aaron Ashford is a husband and father. He graduated from S.C. State University with a B.S. in psychology. He received his M.A. in Counseling Psychology at Webster University.  He's the business owner of Trancendence, Inc. which offers counseling, coaching, and consulting services. He is the author of three novels, Closure, Getting Closure and In the Moment.

In this episode, Aaron provides us with his perspective about justice in America for Blacks from his personal point of view as well as his clinical point of view. 

Some of the topics that we discussed included, historically black folks have been sharing stories about racial injustices in the criminal justice system for years but people didn't see it, so they couldn't identify with it. No one who could see and have a heart could watch the video of George Floyd being murdered and not be affected by what they saw.

He shares that one of the reasons why racism remains a problem in this country is because no one wants to talk about it. He provides us with clear steps for Blacks and those who seek to be our ally's as to how to go about striking up these conversations.

He shares his experience of counseling prisoners at the Lee County Prison in Bishopville, SC, and how his conversations with these men many of whom had been imprisoned between the ages of 17-19 years old were some of the most intellectual conversations he has had which had a major impact on him.

We discuss the business of the prison industry and the correlation of the fact that 80% of those who are incarcerated are blacks when we only represent 13% of the U.S. population and how this fact is another form of slavery that is legal based on the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

In this conversation, we take listeners on an insightful voyage as we dig deep, come up for air with experiences from back in the day to the funny moments and the challenging moments. It's one you're going to want to listen to more than once, so make sure you download it wherever you listen to podcasts. And while you're at it, subscribe to the podcast and leave a review.
 

Contact Aaron Ashford

Business Facebook Page

Personal Facebook Page

Aaron's Books

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

Website

Facebook

Linkedin

Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

Are you a multi-passionate individual with diverse interests? Have you ever wondered how people are able to utilize their passions toward helping others in multiple ways without burning out? Would you like to learn how to navigate a new direction in your life?

If you answered YES to either or all of these questions, you're going to receive some wise insights and actionable strategies to create solutions to your dilemma while listening to the conversation I had with Elizabeth "Liz" Crawford.

 Elizabeth loves helping people become the healthiest version of themselves, mind, body, and spirit!  She finds joy in seeing others healthy and thriving not just physically but mentally as well. She is a Certified Transitional Life Coach and a Financial Advocate and  Health and Wellness Representative.  Her coaching business is named Wisdom and Insights which is birthed on Godly principles.

Listen in on my conversation with the multi-passionate Elizabeth Crawford and gain some actionable insights and strategies on how to navigate a new direction in life. 

Elizabeth can be reached via Facebook at www.facebook.com/selfinvest101 

Instagram at www.instagram.com/selfinvest101

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

Find out more about Jackie and her contributions toward helping create the change she wants to see in the world at www.jackiecapersbrown.com.

Seeking to increase your sense of personal power by developing your self-leadership? Check out Jackie's signature personal development master class "Level Up Your Success" Virtual Weekend Experience.

Are you a woman of color leader working in a corporate environment in search of mentoring and coaching by a high-performance woman of color who knows what it takes to build the self-leadership skills that will expand your influence, impact and income?  Find out more about Jackie's BraveHeart Women Goal Getters Mastermind Membership.

Have you ever wondered how some people thrive in life despite the challenges they face in life?  Our guest today is Donna Williams, owner of D. Williams Consulting LLC and the CEO/founder of S2S Facts, Inc. a 5013C non-profit designed to unite girls & women by bridging the gap through diversity, friendship, empowerment, and community engagement. 

Donna is a member of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Inc. Columbia SC Chapter, Junior League of Columbia SC, Savannah Toastmasters Professional Speakers Club, and SHRM. She has received many awards, accolades, and recognitions.

In this inspirational, motivational, and empowering conversation she shares insights from her experiences about how helping others has helped her to heal soul wounds, give her a sense of purpose, and helped her to thrive in life.

Helping others is a surefire way to shift your focus and energy towards a more positive direction.

One of Donna’s favorite quotes by Maya Angelou sums of how she strives to live her life “ If you get, Give…If you learn, Teach.” 

Insightful Lessons In this Episode

•  The satisfaction that comes from volunteer work
• Why no one can tell you what authentic success looks and feels like to you
• The impact of being ridiculed because of the color of one’s skin and body shape
• The inner cleansing that occurs when you speak your truth to power
• The importance of parents and caretakers affirming a child’s worth
• Why the lack of political knowledge places Blacks at a disadvantage
• The importance of leaders showing up consistently as their best self
• How Myers Briggs can help you maximize your energy
• Why culture fit is key to building a successful career in corporate environments

 Mentioned In this Episode

 Donna’s Book:  There’s A Jewel In You, Volume 3

 
Contact Donna

D. Williams Consulting,LLC  -  www.ddwconsulting2.com 

Email: [email protected]

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/donnadwilliams 

Social Media: IG: https://www.instagram/ddwconsulting2.com

S2S Facts Inc.  - www.s2sfactsinc.com   Email: [email protected]   

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

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Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

If you have ever had a teacher or a wise soul share information with you that was not only timely, thoughtful, wise and witty, it seemed to cut to the chase and get right to the heart of the matter in question, then you know how delightful it is to have a conversation with someone like this. You're going to enjoy this thought-provoking conversation  I had with today's guest.

Dr. Napoleon Wells was born and raised in the Bronx, NY, and graduated from Binghamton University with a B.A. in Psychology. He received his Ph.D. from Fordham University.

Dr. Wells is an enthusiastic Star Wars fan. He’s known for his activism. His work as a clinical psychologist focuses on mental health and the emotional wellness of black people. 

In this episode, Dr. Wells shares his passion for supporting the well being of blacks In America while discussing insights that he’s experienced from working with black men and the topic of emotional wellness.

Our conversation is a demonstration of the level of emotional intelligence and social intelligence skills he possesses and demonstrates in his work as an advocate for the emotional wellness of black people. We touch on a variety of topics related to the health and well being of black men and how black women can help black men be more willing to share their innermost thoughts and feelings about their experience.

He presents the case of how racism is just another tool of white supremacy and the importance of those gathering together in the streets to police and politicians need to see it as such in order to begin to reduce its influence in our society.

He’s candid about his thoughts about people who refer to themselves as “allies”and some actions they need to take in order to truly be an ally.

He shares his vision of what criminal justice reform would look like if he had the power the make sweeping changes and he encourages the hearts of black people and those who support black people with man inspirational and motivational insights.

He’s a black man that prioritizes JOY. This fact in and of itself makes this a must-listen podcast episode because it piques your curiosity.

Don't miss an episode in this amazing series. Subscribe to the Level Up Your Life Podcast with Jackie Capers-Brown wherever you listen to podcasts.

Contact Dr. Napoleon Wells

Instagram

LinkedIn

TEDX Talk The Cure for Racism

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

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Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

Have you ever had someone that matters to you not believe in your potential? Have you ever questioned if you were capable of achieving a dream that you really want? Would you like to know and understand what it takes to realize your potential in the face of these and other challenges? This episode covers all that and more. 

Today’s Level Up Your Life guest is Jacqueline Kaba-Harrison, CEO & Founder of Realizing Your Potential, LLC.  She is the host of A Queen's Round Table Show, Quarterly Symposium, and The Mindset Mastery Incubator Group Coaching Program. And, she is a licensed social worker in Detroit, Michigan.

Jackie (her nickname) helps coaches and consultants create effective strategies to address negative self-talk and self-sabotaging behaviors that prevent them from taking their business to the next level.

This conversation goes from laughter to deep diving into touchy subjects to a lighter, funnier side of some of those same topics. It's going to inspire and empower you with insights that you can apply immediately to level up your life in ways that matter to you.

 Lessons Learned from this Episode:

•  How going outside of your comfort zone increases your self-trust
•  Why new experiences often help us to overcome our insecurities
•  The importance of re-scripting the limiting stories you started to believe about yourself as a child that continues to influence self-sabotaging behavior
•  How adversities can inspire you to embrace a personal self-love journey
•  Why self-love is important, especially for black women
•  The healing of soul wounds that are the result of embracing self-love
•  Why it's important to have a toolkit of activities that you engage in order to maintain your faith and joy during difficult times

Contact Jacqueline Kaba-Harrison

FB: Facebook.com/realizingyourpotential123

 IG: Instagram.com/realizingyourpotential123 

 LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/realizingyourpotentialllc 

 Website: www.realizingyourpotential123.com


Also Mentioned In this Episode

Book: The Four Agreements

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

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Facebook

Linkedin

Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio

Mary Lynn Young delivers an inspiring, motivational, and informative conversation for the first episode of Season 2 of the Level Up Your Life Podcast with Jackie Capers-Brown.

Mary is a pastor at the Perpetual Praise Ministries located in Columbia, SC. She ministers with her husband Roy Young. Mary is a registered nurse and the business owner of an in-home health care service. She is a nurturer and builder of people with purpose, power and praise. She cheers on the underdog.

In our conversation, she opens up to reveal how fear caused her to compare herself to others and she acknowledges feeling insecure in her new roles and how she manages feelings of insecurity.

She speaks her truth to power in a way that will encourage the minds and hearts of listeners to believe in themselves even if they are experiencing fear and wrestling with insecurity.

She encourages us to nurture faith and hope in our heart even more so during the challenging times we are facing with the reality of COVID-19.

Mary eagerly embraces her vision, voice, and value as a wife, pastor and business owner.

Some Questions I Asked

•  What is it about journaling that appeals to you and how does it benefit you?
•  What fuels your passion for leveling up your faith and ministry?
•  What does living fearlessly mean to you?
•  What rituals or practices do you engage in on a regular basis to help you stay grounded in your personal power and faith?
•  What is the one thing you’ve learned about yourself and the power of faith during the COVID-19 pandemic?
•  What are a few things that listeners can do to nurture hope and faith in their heart?
•  and many more

 Some Lessons You’ll Learn

•  How having passion for the underdog can accelerate the development of your faith
•  The importance of the process of “becoming” to “being”
• The mindset necessary to overcome the fear of what other people think
•  The importance of maintaining a morning ritual to start your day
•  What you should do to prepare and position yourself for future promotions
•  Why watering down the truth of our reality only diminishes our personal power
•  The benefits of being a forward thinker as a leader
•  …and much more

Contact Mary Young

Facebook

Contact Jackie Capers-Brown 

Website

Facebook

Linkedin

Amazon Books

Jackie's Courses

Music Credit:

Purple Planet Positive Motivation 

Subscribe to Podcast: Apple Itunes | Spotify | Amazon TuneIn | iHeartRadio