If you think this episode advocates taking ill advised leaps of faith on your journey to becoming boss, you would be mistaken.  I believe we use God as an excuse when we don't do enough of the pre-work in life and simply wing it as we 'hope' for the best. That's my opinion, I'm sticking to it. Anywho, the pre-work is what makes the leap of faith feel right. Take a listen and you'll understand what I mean. Music sampled by Joe Bagale via YouTube Free Music Library

#startup #motivation #smallbusiness #entrepreneur #lifehack #freelance #womeninbusiness #businesswomen #girlboss #faith #startupandthrivepodcast #startuplife #businesstips #podcast #newbusiness #businessadvice #reflection #soulwork #sidehustle

Lillian Charles is one of several guests who lent their voice to a special StartUP & Thrive podcast series about self-care awareness. In this episode, I converse with Lillian, an Atlanta based stylist and client confidant, about how she's created the space to forgive her past self, appreciate her present self while planning for her future self. Lillian expresses how an authentic life is most important to her and coaching women is all she wants to do with her life... but in her way. While what Lillian refers to as 'Style Therapy' may not be the first thing one thinks of in terms of coaching, her approach to helping women find and glow (not just grow) into their confidence has changed the lives of many of the clients Lillian's worked with.

Lillian believes how you show up in the world outwardly directly impacts what you manifest to show up for you. Take a listen to the full episode and Lillian's take on self-care. Lillian Charles is currently an ambassador and lifestyle evangelist for both Lululemon and #ChooseATL. Follow Lillian @lilliancharles and @intentionallygray or visit her at lilliancharles.com.

#lilliancharles #styletherapy #intentionallygray #fashionstylist #personalstylist #fashion #lululemon #chooseATL #fashionweek #selfcare #therapy #metoosurvivor #femaleentrepreneur #womensstudies #agnesscottalum #meaningfulmindfulness #brandimage #imageconsultant #womeninbusiness #womenempowerment #selfcareawarenessmonth #startupandthrive #beforeyouquityourjob #eventualentrepreneur #entrepreneur #beyourownboss #workfromanywhere #successtips #socialinfluencer #girlboss

When the Corporate America experience no longer works for you, what do you do? Mash on life's emergency brakes and backpack through Southeast Asia naturally right? Well that's just what Rachel Hill of RachelTravels did and for her, the gamble turned out to be the right move. From six figure salary earner living in posh apartments in New York then Philadelphia to world traveler, accidental travelpreneur and influencer Rachel shares her unexpected startup story that arguably began with being diagnosed with anxiety disorder and depression. With her backpack (and I imagine a map) in hand, Rachel sought answers to the burning question this podcast continues to pursue...."what does my fulfilled life look life"?

In this episode Rachel and I talk about her travel experiences, new life as an expat living in South Africa, getting past her embarrassment to seek therapy, working with brands seeking multicultural influencer collaborations, helping future travel industry influencers break into the industry and her unwillingness to not try among other topics. If you are interested in leaving your job to create a more fulfilling version of your life and start a business, you'll learn a lot from Rachel's story and conversation with host Charlene Sanders. Enjoy this episode!

P.S. If you've heard that done is better than perfect, please keep this in mind as we did experience a bit of audio quality issues at times while conducting the interview on the go. If you are REALLY tuned in, you'll barely notice it. Hey at least I'm honest!

#RachelHill #Travel #Travelpreneur #Entrepreneur #AnxietyDisorder #Depression #ExPat #WomenInBusiness #FemaleEntrepreneur #EmployeetoEntrepreneur #Startup #TravelIndustry #IndieTravel #IndieTravelPodcast #TravelPodcast #TravelTips #DestinationTravel #Backpacking #LiveAbroad #TravelNews #BlackEntrepreneurs #FAMURattler #TravelBlogger #TravelBlog #DigitalMarketer #WorldTraveler #SocialMediaMarketer #Influencer #EventualEntrepreneur #StartUPandThrivePodcast

Charlene discusses what the eventual and new entrepreneur should know about UX (user experience) design and the customer experience withUX Designer, Jenn Downs. Downs is also founder of Atlanta Tech Citizens. Listen for the organizations Jenn feels is getting UX right. Jenn proclaims her entry to technology with the then small startup, #Mailchimp helped her find the career she didn't know she would love. To further her efforts in technology Jenn founded Atlanta Tech Citizens to help non profit organizations with tech related issues allowing these organizations to become more productive and function better to serve their communities. Aside from her love of technology, Jenn is also an indie rock band member who plays the drums and bass guitar. ROCK ON! Take a listen and connect with Jenn on Instagram and Twitter @BeParticular

Find me @CEOCharlene. NOTE: This episode has an accompanying simplified UX Infographic on our FREE TOOLS +  RESOURCES page. Download it today.

#uxdesign #UX  #jenndowns #atlantatechcitizens #nonprofit #technology #womenintech #girlswhocode #volunteer #techvolunteer #mailchimp#techentrepreneur  #rockband #localbands #atlantarockbands #indiemusic #technologyindustry #uxerexperience #userexperiencedesign #socialpreneur #socialresponsibility #consumerexperience #entrepreneur

Charlene speaks with tech entrepreneur Renee Barnes, founder and CEO of ComplyTrain and VeraTrain about her experience in the Founder Institute Atlanta accelerator program and being irrevocably unemployable not wanting to work for anyone but herself. Renee opens up about watching her parents' work life which helped her decide how she wanted to create her own work life aspirations. In this episode Renee and I discuss how benefits offered by employers was never enough to draw her in as an employee and her inability to reconcile that her best skills and talents being used in an employee-based role would not be in service to her family but to an employer who would limit her compensation.  Other topics we discuss include building a product-based business from, the dangers of picking the wrong partner for your business and overcoming that separation and Renee's quest to provide HR compliance and training solutions for startups, entrepreneurs and small businesses. There's a lot you can glean from in this episode. Enjoy! Connect with Renee @its_reneenicole and Charlene @ceocharlene on Instagram

#techentrepreneur #founder #complytrain #veratrain #founderinstitute #startupaccelerator #entrepreneur #femaleentrepreneur #happiness #happiness #tech #blacktech #techsofcolor #technology #blackwomenintech #blackwomeninstem #hrcompliance #hr #mompreneur #freelance #independentcontractor #traininganddevelopment #professionaldevelopment #startups #beyourownboss #technicalwriter #Atlantatech #Atlanta #womenintech

Charlene talks with fellow podcaster, Mavenly + Co. founder and CEO, Kate Gremillion about how her happy life is a direct reflection of the work she does supporting women and our professional goals. While she did not set out on a quest to start her own business, her stable corporate high-rise PR job just wasn’t enough to satisfy her need to contribute at a much higher level. Kate shares how she manages to work happy while strategically surrounding herself with subject matter experts smarter than her in their chosen field. Kate admits her transition wasn’t a clean break but a series of smart intentional actions that included having a savings fund to carry her through her transition, doing work for other entrepreneurs around in areas that would be excellent on-the-job training for what would come to be Mavenly + Co. Kate asserts finding the right mission driven partner that is the ying to her yang with trust and empathy at the forefront of their working relationship has proven to be just what she needed. Keep an ear out for Kate's business book recommendation for entrepreneurs at every level. Connect with Kate @KateGremillion or @MavenlyCo on Instagram and Charlene @CEOCharlene

#mavenlyco #womenworthwork #womenworthworkconference #femaleentrepreneur #entrepreneur #womeninbusiness #womenempowerment #branding #professionaldevelopment #selfcare #business #entrepreneurship #businessowner #conference #Atlanta #kategremillion #selfhelp #bookclub #bookrecommendation #businessbooks #startup #startuplife #startupandthrivepodcast

In this spirited episode Charlene speaks with tech veteran entrepreneur & founder, Sheffie Robinson about how to easily create your MVP, minimum viable product, teaching the lean startup method and the value of being a self-taught developer. We also take a deep dive into the shortcomings of supposed diversity and inclusion in the technology space. Sheffie speaks candidly on her thoughts about the state of the black tech ecosystem making an impassioned plea for all parties to connect more intentionally and often. Sheffie encourages us to do more work directly with small minority startups instead of ONLY choosing the Big tech silicon valley brands. An interesting admission from Sheffie is her wish to have failed far more than she did early on by taking far more calculated risks in spite of her fears of starting as a women in tech, an industry dominated by men.

Sheffie gives props to tech titans UrbanGeekz, ThePLUG, Blavity, the Atlanta Black Tech ecosystem, Technologists of Color, Goodie Nation, Digital Undivided, Batunium Labs and Ascend 2020. Sheffie currently serves as founder & CEO of Touco Direct, managing director of Founder Institute, Atlanta Chapter along with founder and mentor of Bantunium Labs. You can connect with Sheffie on IG @SheffieRobinson or Twitter @SheffieCochran and Charlene @ceocharlene.

#techentrepreneur #blacktech #blacksintech #tech #womenintech #toucodirect #INCbuildr #mobilebuildr #founder #technology #mvp #leanstartup #blackwomenintech #nerds #blerd#blacknerds #selfcare #founderinstituteatlanta #founderinstitute #digitalundivided #saas #BantuniumLabs #Diversity #Inclusion #Ascend2020 #Urbangeekz #ThePlug #Blavity #Atlanta #Startups

The world of fashion looks glamorous but the road to becoming a part of the fashion industry isn't necessarily paved with glitter and gold. Fashion style + tech entrepreneur, Evonya Easley of Love E Fashion takes openly with Charlene about transitioning from an employment background in finance to becoming an entrepreneur. What will strike you from the onset of this interview is Evonya's unyielding hustle and commitment to believing she can and she will. During our conversation Evonya shares the realities of building a life you love with specific incidents of overcoming hardships and enjoying the fruits of her labor. Post divorce Evonya uses her desire to exhibit the attributes of a strong mother as a source of inspiration to not give up. Evonya cites her background in finance along with implementing systems, processes, reading and a great network of friends and women in business as important factors to getting to the next level as a fashion entrepreneur. Evonya's current idea of self care includes traveling the world, frugally and a few books that have proven to inform her entrepreneur journey in a big way. Connect with Evonya on Intsagram @loveevonya, Twitter @LoveE79 and Charlene @CEOCharlene.

#evonyaeasley #fashion #becomingboss #femaleentrepreneur #womeninbusiness #fashionstylist #stylist #fashionentrepreneur #startup #Atlanta #loveefashion #mompreneur #techentrepreneur #fashionindustry #fashionista #fashionweek #bookclub #atlgirlboss #employeetoentrepreneur #ceocharlene #startupandthrivepodcast #fashiontech

It's time for a ride along! Let's try something new. Because I am a constant thinker, I find the most interesting deep thoughts flooding my brain at the most inopportune times to stop and setup a podcasting session. So I've decided to capture the moment and simply do it on the fly...because that's how life works when spontaneity hits. This will be the first of how many ever times this recording solo podcasts while driving, hands-free,  occurs. This should be fun. Ignore (or enjoy) the wind and nature all around. Just pretend you are riding shotgun as we talk about the power of pivoting before you need to and the immense value in embracing and adapting to the reality of change as a norm. I will share 3 easy to implement Change & Pivot "coachable moments" for eventual entrepreneurs who are committed to the process no matter what their current circumstance may look like.  Be sure to download the FREE resource that accompany's this episode found here.  Connect with me where I am @CEOCharlene

#changemanagement #changeresistance #business #entrepreneur #entrepreneurship #mindset #womeninbusiness #lifecoach #businesscoach #beyourownboss #becomingboss #happiness #ladyboss #ceocharlene #charlenelsanders #transformation #personaldevelopment  #resilience #professionaldevelopment #mentor #accountability #positivethinking #adapt #success #fulfillment #employeetoentrepreneur #quityourdayjob

Can we talk about the myriad of rewarding and challenging issues all entrepreneurs (aspiring, new and established) are faced with? At the top of the list are self care, creating time for yourself, being present as a mother and wife, bouts of self doubt and depression, the joys of being in control of your own time, addressing issues for your clients. LaBlaq Creativ CEO, Portia Twidt, and I speak on all of these issues along with her epiphany that taking an "L" doesn't mean taking a LOSS but taking a LESSON. Portia emphatically refuses to have to be just mom but shares how we should all strive to be all of the many components that make up who we individually are. Connect with Portia on IG, FB or Twitter @LaBlaqCreativ and Charlene @CEOCharlene

#VirtualAssistance #LaBlaqCreativ #PortiaTwidt #Business #Entrepreneur #femaleentrepreneur #Startup #SelfCare #SelfLove #WomenInBusiness #Freelance #BusinessSupport #Servicebusiness #GirlCEO #Atlanta #VirtualAssistant #Solopreneur