VIRGIN.BEAUTY.B!TCH

Are you the master of your money, or is money the master of you? April is Financial Literacy Month — at VBB it's Women & Money Month. We could talk about the six components of financial literacy — earning, spending, saving, investing, borrowing, and protecting, or using financial skills for personal financial management, investing, and budgeting, but what about your feelings about money? Are you intimate with your money, or is money a necessary evil? Jessie Susannah Karnatz, aka The Money Witch, will tell you that your finances don't need willpower; they need love. So it's to your advantage to be more responsive and intimate with your money. Jessie Susannah wrote the book MONEY MAGIC: PRACTICAL WISDOM AND EMPOWERING RITUALS TO HEAL YOUR FINANCES. She brings capitalism-critical, shame-free education to healers, hustlers, and creatives to catalyze change in their financial lives. She's not messing around. But it's your money!

Throughout March, International Women's Month, it’s been one conversation after another with inspirational women born, living, or working globally in China, India, Iran, and Puerto Rico. Today a visit to Ghana, Africa. Gifty Serbeh-Dunn is co-founder of Baraka Shea Butter and owner of Shea Butter Market in Victoria, Canada, but what she has created for the women in her home village epitomizes what International Women's Month is all about — women standing up for women.

Michelle Hrycauk Nassif is a loving mother and a wise matriarch whose business is being a powerful Feminine leader. Her deep and genuine passion is to build and nurture Communities that support women and girls in their journey to fulfill their dreams and ambitions. We feature Michelle during International Women’s Month.

In her professional role inside the corporate world, Canadian-born Michelle stewards STEM education programs for underserved youth communities in Puerto Rico. In her words, “Community building is so deeply woven into the fabric of who I am; it’s in my DNA. I have a strong sense of urgency that no girl is left behind, and no woman will be unsupported.”

Dr. Sousan Abadian was raised in Washington, D.C., but was born in Tehran, Iran. She shares a uniquely cross-cultural view the rest of the world might consider.

Dr. Sousan Abadian was born in Tehran, Iran, and raised in Washington, D.C. She holds a Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government and an M.A. in the Anthropology of Social Change and Development from Harvard University and an M.P.A. in International Development from Harvard's Kennedy School. She served as a Fellow at M.I.T.'s Dalai Lama Center for Ethics & Transformative Values as well as at the Harvard Center for Public Leadership. She's also served as a Franklin Fellow at the U.S. State Department's Office of International Religious Freedom, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, focused on preventing violent extremism. Sousan's also the author of Generative Cultural Renewal - An Effective Resource in Ending Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting & Other Harmful Practices. As we recognize International Women's Day 365 by speaking to women from all corners of the globe, we get a perspective on the plights of Iranian women from Dr. Sousan.

Ahilya Mehta is not yet 30 years old, but she is a former co-founder of Aara woman’s health clinic and is currently an entrepreneur-in-residence at Nua women’s wellness start-up in Mumbai, India. Ahilya graduated from Wellesley College in the US and worked as an IT consultant in San Francisco before completing an entrepreneurship fellowship program for female and non-binary first-time founders. “My interest in women’s health and women, in general, started when I spent four months working in a tribal village in Rajasthan helping victims of domestic abuse. That experience exposed me to the inequalities among women in India.”

Dr. Candise Lin was born in Guangzhou, China, a port city northwest of Hong Kong on the Pearl River. Candice earned her BA in Psychology and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology in America. Recently, she has focused on mentoring Chinese students in languages while utilizing Instagram and TicTok as her classroom. We welcome Dr. Lin to help teach us about women in Chinese culture. Join our conversation as we expand International Women's Day into a month-long celebration of women's achievements as we learn from women born, living, or working outside the bubble of the West.

Kimberley John-Morgan is a strong, unapologetic voice for historically excluded communities subjected to social isms — racism, sexism, classism, ableism, heterosexism, and other forms of oppression. Through her writing and equity education sessions, Kimberley advocates increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), especially where people spend most of their time — at work. Kimberley’s professional journey began with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and family and child studies, but her passion for working in DEI education stems from being first-generation and witnessing her parents struggle to navigate a new country and systemic discrimination. “Throughout my career, I’ve had to overcome multiple isms from people who did not think I was qualified because of my age, sex, or race, but after the murder of George Floyd, I decided I needed to put myself out there and let people know that what I love the absolute most is empowering people who face isms imposed on them.”

Elizabeth Leiba is a college professor and a passionate advocate for Black businesswomen. Elizabeth authored I'm Not Yelling: A Black Woman's Guide to Navigating the Workplace" as a resource to encourage savvy Black businesswomen navigating a predominantly white corporate world and to empower those women to find their voices inside an often toxic work environment. Elizabeth boasts over 130,000 followers on LinkedIn, earned recognition as a LinkedIn TOP VOICE in Education in 2020, was featured in the New York Times, and launched the online e-learning platform Black History & Culture Academy. In addition, Elizabeth's writing includes an Op-Ed piece on racial profiling for CNN, which had more than 2 million views on their news website. "I'm Not Yelling the book is my advocacy for supporting black women. It's about creating space for black women to understand that they're not alone in this world.”

Porsha Stennis signs off her literary work with, Another badass black woman of literature. She refers to her work as the narration of a black millennial woman’s journey through life, highlighting wellness, self-love, and evolution. She authored The Black American Identity Quiz, which appeared in multiple publications, including The (y) syndrome Magazine. “I consider myself a versatile writer, having had a history in journalism, poetry, and fiction. Lately, I’ve been forced to speak up, to use my voice even when I’m not comfortable doing so. But if I’ve learned anything, it has been that I’d rather be uncomfortable speaking the truth than be uncomfortable and silenced.”

Rissa Miller has been practicing tasseography, i.e., a tea leaf reading since finding loose tea in her teacup as a teenager. Over the decades, Rissa has honed her methods and refined her language to tell stories in her clients' teacups. For Rissa, tasseography is a very personal divination art. "I learned young how to look through chaos to find order. I call my client seekers because most seek something from me that I'm happy to give. Even when visitors aren't ready to share or are doubters who don't want someone rooting around in their energy, I ask, what keeps them up at night? Tasseography helps me offer insight and guidance." Whether it's reading teacups, smoke trails, or tarot cards, Rissa sees a deep reflection in who you are in the moment as your life exists in the now.