The Sasha Whitney

A conversation was sparked on TikTok about the decline in customer service and why people don't say "hi" anymore which snowballed into a larger conversation about the sharp decline of third spaces, loss of village, community building, and the loneliness epidemic. This conversation is more nuanced than allowed on TikTok so I wanted to do a longer video to flesh out my thoughts and provide commentary about what I think is happiness and how we improve things before it's too late.

2022 was a challenging year filled with beautiful highs and frustrating lows. If I could describe my 2022 in one word, it would be "burnout". I thrived during the lockdown pandemic days. Going back to "normal" felt like a giant rollercoaster I did NOT want to be on and it really threw me off balance. It made it hard to focus and the things that became important fell by the wayside. I didn't feel like I could show up in an authentic way and sporadically podcasted as a result. 2023 has been wildly different. At the beginning of the year I told myself I would not be bringing that energy with me into the year, would be prioritizing, focusing, and saying a lot more. I'm here to talk about this year and in a new format: ON CAMERA!

One of my sisters always says "if you never expect anything from anyone, you'll never be disappointed." In today's episode, we're exploring that mentality from a different perspective and also how we can build/ work on our own boundaries, standards, and expectations.

Let's talk about being the squeaky wheel. Closed mouths don't get fed and no one is just going to hand you anything or what you deserved, unless of course you're one of the privileged and protected in which case lucky you! For the rest of us, this episode is a compilation of 3 tips I can offer you having over 3 decades of being the squeaky wheel under my belt. In this episode, you'll learn how to speak up and advocate for yourself smartly to get what you want out of life. Not only what you want but what you deserve. Let's get right on into it honeyyy! 

Ya girl is a Lululemon Ambassador! To say I am honored, excited, still somewhat shocked, grateful, proud, and humbled all at the same time would be an understatement. This has been a journey that's been 6 years in the making. As I reflect on this time in the fitness industry, the highs, the lows, being the squeaky wheel, and rebuilding during a pandemic, one thing that stands out is remembering your WHY and letting that guide your goals, vision, and motivations. Trust in the timing of your life, what's for you will never pass you so if it's meant for you, it's going to happen. Let's talk about it!

In my last episode I talked about being your own goals and how important being aligned with your why will help you achieve your goals however about 15 minutes into the episode I realized that was kind of like putting the cart before the horse. None of it will make no sense if you don’t know what your why is. If you don’t even know how to find it. So today’s episode is a two-parter and actually should’ve been the first episode but here we are. In this episode we'll cover: what is your “why”, how to find your why, and how leading with your why will change your thoughts, which will change your actions, your habits, and ultimately change your life. Good stuff so grab a journal, a piece of paper, get ready to get uncomfortable, and let's dive in!

Nearly a month into the new year, how are your resolutions and goals coming along? Keyword - YOUR! If not so good, maybe it's time to go back to the drawing board and reflect on why that is and dig a little bit deeper as it pertains to your motivations and intentions behind this goal. A lot of us without knowing it take on goals the goals of others thinking that if we do what they do or have what they have then that'll get us where we want to be in life or who we want to be however that couldn't be further from the truth. Yes it's alright to be inspired by others however if your goals and resolutions are not in line with your personal 'why", then your actions won't line up because you're misaligned. Let's talk about it and the importance of being your own goals! 

"It's just a preference." Right? Wrong. How many times have you heard that tired phrase that has been used to normalize, dismiss, and downplay racism, prejudice, and bias, particularly when it comes to Black women? It's time to have an honest conversation about how this "preference" excuse is over 500 years of conditioning. Conditioning that has a certain aesthetic and group at the top and another at the bottom of some racialized hierarchy of beauty. Misogynoir is as American as apple pie and when I hear people dismiss their racism and disgust of Black women as a "preference", it goes to show just how little people understand how much they've been conditioned by westernized/ European beauty standards and white supremacy. Let's talk about it!