Your Unapologetic Career® Podcast

Kemi is not sugarcoating it. Building more income and agency may require a season of extra effort, but this episode helps you make an active decision about that. 

Join in as Kemi talks directly to women of color in academic medicine who want more control over their income, but feel exhausted by the thought of working harder. 

She pushes back on the idea that the real question is whether you will work harder. Her point is sharper than that: the work is already increasing, so the question becomes where that effort will go?  

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

P.S. If you’re a current or past KD Coach client, we have something special for you in 2027.  

This is a moment to think differently about what it means to liberate ourselves — from our institutions being our only source of opportunity, from our paychecks being our only source of income, and from the idea that there’s only one way to build a meaningful career. 

If you’re ready for more agency over what comes next, I want you with us. Current clients, check your inbox. 
Alumni, keep an eye out — your invitation is coming soon. And if you’ve never worked with us but want to, join the waitlist.  

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

Join Kemi as she talks about what it actually takes to build a side hustle while still working in academic medicine or public health. 

This may not be what people want to hear, but it matters for faculty who want more say over their income, more freedom with their skills, and more options outside of a university paycheck. 

Kemi also shares her own experience building a coaching business while working as junior faculty, running a research program, seeing patients, writing papers, giving talks, and raising young children. 

This conversation is for the faculty member who wants to build something new and needs to be honest about what it may require. Press play. 

Mentioned: 

Listen to “How This Full-time Academic Researcher Got Booked Out & Banked Over $12,000 in Less Than 3 Months With Kemi Doll” on the Jereshia Said podcast. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

P.S. If you’re a current or past KD Coach client, we have something special for you in 2027.  

This is a moment to think differently about what it means to liberate ourselves — from our institutions being our only source of opportunity, from our paychecks being our only source of income, and from the idea that there’s only one way to build a meaningful career. 
 

If you’re ready for more agency over what comes next, I want you with us. Current clients, check your inbox.  

Alumni, keep an eye out — your invitation is coming soon. And if you’ve never worked with us but want to,join the waitlist.  

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this episode, Kemi shares the story of receiving a $6 million research grant and being asked by her corporate-based friends whether it came with a raise - only to explain that academic medicine does NOT work that way! We've gotten so used to this – that our work quality is divorced from our earnings – that we forget it doesn’t have to be this way.  

Kemi pushes back on the idea that wanting to make money outside your paycheck is greedy, selfish, or somehow less pure.  

Join in as Kemi talks about how to think seriously about how our work can support both our mission and our lives. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

P.S. If you’re a current or past KD Coach client, we have something special for you in 2027.  

This is a moment to think differently about what it means to liberate ourselves — from our institutions being our only source of opportunity, from our paychecks being our only source of income, and from the idea that there’s only one way to build a meaningful career. 
 

If you’re ready for more agency over what comes next, I want you with us. Current clients, check your inbox.  

Alumni, keep an eye out — your invitation is coming soon. And if you’ve never worked with us but want to, join the waitlist. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this episode, Kemi continues the conversation about money, agency, and what it means to build a career in academic medicine and public health that still works for your real life. 

She talks about the tension many women of color feel after years of training, work, leadership, and achievement, especially when the paycheck does not fully reflect the skills, experience, or value they bring. Kemi also names the complicated reality of wanting more financial room without necessarily wanting to walk away from the work, the structure, or the impact of academia. 

This episode is for the woman who is not ready to leave, but also knows something about the current setup needs to shift. Tune in for an honest conversation about money, choice, career satisfaction, and the questions that start to surface when the life you are building requires more room than the system currently gives you. 

 Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

Join in as Kemi opens an honest conversation about money, career satisfaction, and the quiet frustration many women of color experience in academic medicine and public health. 

She reflects on what it feels like to be years into a career, deeply skilled, highly trained, and committed to the work, while still questioning how much control you really have over your financial life. Kemi also shares how her own path into public speaking and coaching began with a desire for more flexibility, more options, and more say over what her work could make possible.  

This episode is for the woman who still values her work, but has started wondering whether the current structure gives her enough room to build the life, stability, and freedom she wants. Tune in for a candid conversation about career, compensation, and the questions many women are thinking but have not always had space to say out loud. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this encore episode, Kemi asks why academic medicine and public health keep treating research achievement as proof that someone can lead people. 

After reading Burn It Down by Maureen Power, Kemi looks at how demanding industries can excuse harmful behavior when the person behind it is producing results. She applies that same idea to academia, where a person may bring in grants, hold power, or have a respected title while still missing the skills needed to lead people well. 

This episode is not about toxic people. It is about the systems that move people into bigger roles without teaching them how to communicate, manage staff, set expectations, plan ahead, or manage pressure without passing it down. Kemi shows the cost of those gaps and pushes us to stop treating poor leadership as the cost of getting ahead. 

Tune in for a clear, honest conversation about what happens when people are trained to achieve, but not prepared to lead. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this episode, Kemi shares her experience with holding gratitude and grief in the same breath. 

She begins by sharing her experience at the Martha’s Vineyard Black Book Festival in Oak Bluffs, where she was a featured author. The festival gave her space to feel both awe and being grounded, to make real connections, and to recognize that she belonged in the room.  

However, this joyful experience was overshadowed by the tragic news of the death of Jason Arday, a Black professor at Cambridge, following intense public scrutiny. Kemi speaks honestly about why his death hit so hard for Black academics and names the racism, double standards, and pressure that make the academics dangerous, even for those who still love the work. 

Join Kemi as she reflects on the tension of staying in academia while also protecting your life, spirit, energy, and boundaries. This episode is a space for Black academics who are grieving, processing, and still deciding what it costs to continue. It is also a reminder that staying is not wrong, leaving is not wrong, and nothing is worth your life. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this encore episode, Kemi talks about the skill that can immediately set you apart in academic medicine and public health: doing what you say you are going to do, when you say you are going to do it. 

Kemi explains that academic culture often normalizes people saying yes, offering to collaborate, or promising to follow through without actually doing it. She also breaks down why good intentions are not enough and walks through the three tools that make follow-through possible. 

Tune in for insights to become known as reliable, focused, and clear without building a career on exhaustion. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this recess episode, Kemi talks about what it means to stay yourself while becoming more visible. 

After her book release and tour, Kemi reflects on the pressure to stay on message without turning herself into a persona. She shares why it matters to be seen as a full person, not only as a physician, surgeon, scientist or even author. For Kemi, authenticity is not about being the same in every room. It is about knowing how to show up in different spaces without losing who you are. 

This episode is lighter, personal, and honest, with reminders about creativity, visibility, rest, and staying connected to who you are outside of your work. 

Recommendations  

• Book: Kin by Tayari Jones  
• Podcast: Lemme Fix It hosted by Franchesca Ramsey and De'Lon Grant 
• Book: The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron  
• Journal & Supplies: Archer and Olive  

Related Episodes 

• Episode 89: Recess Recommendations!  

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.

In this encore episode, Kemi looks at the often-overlooked challenge of self-sabotage and how it impacts our ability to adjust to new norms in our professional lives. She candidly shares her own experiences of handling the complexities of changing environments, particularly for women of color in academic medicine and public health. And she outlines practical steps to effectively adjust to new norms, from recognizing automatic reactions to embracing new interpretations of communication styles.  

Tune in for a helpful discussion that equips you with insight to handle your career unapologetically. 

Order Dr. Kemi’s Book:
A Terrible Strength: The Hidden Crisis of the Black Womb and Your Survival Guide to Healing   

If you'd like to learn more foundational career navigation concepts for women of color in academic medicine and public health, sign up for our KD Coaching Foundations Series: www.kemidoll.com/foundations. 

Text Dr. Kemi directly.