Hustle Grind Shine & Reignite with Jessica Hartley

Drive, focus and determination are core to Nakeya Bennett’s pursuit of excellence in life, even when things didn’t always turn out as she meticulously planned. In addition to being a seasoned and talented, digital marketing strategist, Nakeya Bennett is also the owner and CEO of TRM Designs & Co., a full service interior design firm currently focused on residential, commercial, and event design. In this episode, we journey with Nakeya from childhood through early career where she made her plans and worked those plans until circumstances left her as a solo mom with a toddler, up to the present where she’s successfully navigating a thriving corporate career in consulting with a burgeoning boutique business that merges her passion and love for design and project management.
In this episode we cover:

• The importance of having great mentors that believe in you and push your potential, even when you don’t see it yourself just yet
• The sacrifices and hard decisions that single mothers navigate between career and their children
• How you can successfully navigate two hustles that you are passionate about to fuel your technical and creative desires

Check out Nakeya’s interior design firm, TRM Designs & Co

About Nakeya Bennett

Nakeya Bennett is a digital marketing executive, and works as Senior Manager at Accenture. In her role, she partners with large, global companies around the world to help them understand the digital landscape, the strategic role of content and how they should leverage both to tell their product or service story. She’s also a passionate diversity, equity and inclusion advocate and ally. Nakeya also owns and operates The Riley Method Designs also known affectionately as TRM Designs & Co. The boutique firm currently focuses on residential, commercial, and event design. She is passionate about transforming houses into chic functional spaces her clients and their families will enjoy and love for years to come. She believes in clean, classic designs that won’t become outdated. She believes that design should add to the character and value of the home rather than take away from it. Nakeya also owns TRM Designs Home offering quality affordable furniture and décor direct to the consumer.

Tia Cummings-Hopkins is a force to be reckoned with in the world of marketing and branding. In our first episode of the season, we start at the early beginnings of Cummings-Hopkins' life up through her current role as SVP, Global Marketing Lead for the technology giant, Square.
We explore:

• How curiosity and ambition can be a powerful combination for your career
• Why slowing down sometimes is the right step you need to accelerate later
• The importance of situational leadership, and why one-size-fits-all doesn't work for inclusion and belonging

About Tia Cummings-Hopkins
An Atlanta-based award-winning marketer, Cummings-Hopkins encompasses over 17+ years of experience across the corporate sector, including fortune 500 companies like United Technologies, Johnson & Johnson, L'Oreal, Kellogg's and Intercontinental Hotels Group. She's currently serving as SVP, Global Branding Marketing Lead for the technology giant, Square.
Prior to the role at Square, Cummings-Hopkins was the Vice President of Marketing for Walker & Company Brands, which designs health and beauty solutions for people of color. Prior her background and experience, she had varied experiences in corporate philanthropy, manufacturing operations, and product development.

As a transgender, Black and queer woman - being the first is nothing new for Raquel Willis. As an award-winning writer, activist, media strategist and leader in this current human rights movement transforming the world, Ms. Willis has always harnessed the power of storytelling to share her truth and elevate the voices others. In this first episode of a two-part series, we start with her beginnings of growing up Black and Catholic in the Deep South, we learn about her struggles with self-identity and discovery at a time when there were minimal (and oftentimes harmful) representations of queer and trans people in media and entertainment, and how her outrage at the lack of awareness and action for the safety and security of Black and Brown trans people galvanized her activism.

In this first episode we cover:

• The importance of finding community no matter where you are and the powerful impact that can have on your growth journey
• The triumphs and challenges in being “the first” and breaking so many barriers before the age of 30
• Why living your truth and standing in your power sometimes means taking a leap of faith, even when the odds are against you

About Raquel Willis

Raquel Willis is an award-winning writer, activist, and media strategist dedicated to Black transgender liberation. She has held groundbreaking roles throughout her career including director of communications for Ms. Foundation for Women, executive editor of Out magazine, and national organizer for Transgender Law Center.

As a thought leader on gender, race and intersectionality, her writing has been published in numerous publications, books and anthologies. Her writing has been published in Black Futures by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham, Bulgari Magnifica: The Power Women Hold edited by Tina Leung, The Echoing Ida Collection edited by Kemi Alabi, Cynthia R. Greenlee, and Janna A. Zinzi, and Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 edited by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha Blain. She has also written for Essence, Bitch, VICE, Buzzfeed, The Cut, and Vogue. During her time at Out, she published the GLAAD Media Award-winning “Trans Obituaries Project.” In 2023, she will release her debut memoir, I Believe in Our Power, about her coming of identity and activism with St. Martin’s Press.

In 2020, Raquel was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 and The Root 100 for a second time. In 2021, Raquel was named to the University of Georgia’s 40 Under 40 and Fast Company’s Queer 50.

“How much of your values are you going to lean into every step of the way?” As a transgender, Black, and queer woman, Raquel Willis harnesses storytelling through her work as an award-winning writer, activist, media strategist, and public figure. In this second episode of a two-part series, we pick up where we left off, journeying with her across the country as she shifted not only into the non-profit space but also leaning into grassroots activism which would become core to her purpose and mission in life, and continue with her as she shifted again into media and ultimately becoming the CEO of her own destiny.

In this second episode we cover:

• The crushing impact of the 2016 elections and the long-lasting impact on marginalized communities
• Learning about healing and restorative justice and how rehabilitation works for Black transwomen
• Making a major career pivot and leveraging your principles and integrity to stay grounded and centered

About Raquel Willis

Raquel Willis is an award-winning writer, activist, and media strategist dedicated to Black transgender liberation. She has held groundbreaking roles throughout her career including director of communications for Ms. Foundation for Women, executive editor of Out magazine, and national organizer for Transgender Law Center.

As a thought leader on gender, race, and intersectionality, her writing has been published in numerous publications, books, and anthologies. Her writing has been published in Black Futures by Kimberly Drew and Jenna Wortham, Bulgari Magnifica: The Power Women Hold edited by Tina Leung, The Echoing Ida Collection edited by Kemi Alabi, Cynthia R. Greenlee, and Janna A. Zinzi, and Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 edited by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha Blain. She has also written for Essence, Bitch, VICE, Buzzfeed, The Cut, and Vogue. During her time at Out, she published the GLAAD Media Award-winning “Trans Obituaries Project.” In 2023, she will release her debut memoir, I Believe in Our Power, about her coming of identity and activism with St. Martin’s Press.

In 2020, Raquel was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 and The Root 100 for a second time. In 2021, Raquel was named to the University of Georgia’s 40 Under 40 and Fast Company’s Queer 50.

Even as a child, Kailei Carr could never fit into one box or only be focused on just one thing. All of her experiences along her journey have prepared her for many of the biggest roles in her life, including being a champion and coach focused on empowering women of color in leadership. Kailei Carr is CEO of The Asbury Group, host of the Beyond the Business Suit Podcast, and Executive Director of the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) Emerge Women’s Academy. In this episode, we start early on in Kailei’s life as a bit of a nomad as her family followed her mother’s corporate career rise, to her early corporate career journey, to finding her passion and purpose as a champion of women in leadership, and having the opportunity to lean into her creative energy every single day.

In this episode we cover:

• The profound impact that role models can have in empowering and also impacting the direction of your career
• Why career coaching and supporting women in their leadership journeys, especially women of color, is “healing work” and an opportunity to give back
• Tips and advice for budding and even season entrepreneurs in navigating your first few years to gain traction with your small business

Check out Kailei’s website to learn more about her speaking, workshop, and coaching services

About Kailei Carr

A champion for women in leadership, Kailei Carr is the CEO of The Asbury Group, an organization specializing in developing leaders from the inside out. Her signature approach to leadership presence — which is grounded in one's personal power — has helped high potential leaders around the globe thrive and advance to the most senior ranks. When she’s not coaching clients or speaking at conferences and corporations, Kailei can be found hosting her podcast, Beyond the Business Suit, which has over 250+ episodes and has been downloaded in 100 countries.

Kailei’s advice to executive and executive-bound women has been featured in numerous media outlets including Forbes, Fortune and The Oprah Winfrey Network. Kailei holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA from Emory University.
Kailei is on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram