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Black Woman Leading

Black Woman Leading

Written by: Laura Knights
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 This podcast amplifies the needs and experiences of Black women leaders in the workplace with a holistic focus on three core areas -- leadership development, mental wellness, and relationship management. Our ultimate aim is to help Black women learn, heal, and grow in their leadership capacity.2025-2026 Careers Economics Personal Success Self-Help Success
Episodes
  • S8E13: Embracing Your Gifts with Alanna Thomas

    S8E13: Embracing Your Gifts with Alanna Thomas
    Jan 22 2026
    In this episode of Black Woman Leading, Laura Knights welcomes Alanna Thomas to discuss the importance of embracing your gifts and what it truly means to lead from the fullness of who you are. Together, they explore how Black women leaders can reconnect with their God-given gifts and talents, especially in environments that may have misunderstood, minimized, or even shamed those very qualities. Alanna shares insights on how gifts often extend far beyond what's listed on a résumé, showing up instead in patterns of curiosity, intuition, discernment, creativity, and care. The conversation also names a common tension many Black women experience: carrying invisible labor, being overextended, or feeling pressure to give endlessly without boundaries. Alanna offers wisdom on discerning when gifts are being used in alignment, and when they're being overused or misapplied, along with practical guidance for stewarding gifts with intention, clarity, and care. About Alanna Alanna Thomas is the Founder of Lighthouse Leadership Company. Over the past 8 years, she has helped hundreds of leaders increase their confidence and implement growth plans for their teams. Moving organizations from chaos to clarity with her GROW framework has led to her end goal of happier and more aware spouses and parents at home after the workday is over. Connect with Alanna Website: http://www.lighthouseleadershipcompany.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thealannathomas BWL Resources: Now enrolling for both the January sessions of the Early Career and Mid-Career programs. Learn more at https://blackwomanleading.com/programs-overview/ Full podcast episodes are now on Youtube. Subscribe to the BWL channel today! Check out the BWL theme song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l68EqEJjXq0 Check out the BWL line dance tutorial here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eui89AmJwUg Download the free Black Woman Leading Career Reset Kit - https://blackwomanleading.com/career-reset-kit/ Credits: Learn about all Black Woman Leading® programs, resources, and events at www.blackwomanleading.com Learn more about our consulting work with organizations at https://knightsconsultinggroup.com/ Email Laura: info@knightsconsultinggroup.com Connect with Laura on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauraeknights/ Follow BWL on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/blackwomanleading Instagram: @blackwomanleading Facebook: @blackwomanleading Youtube: @blackwomanleading Podcast Music & Production: Marshall Knights - https://marshallknights.com/ Graphics: Dara Adams Listen and follow the podcast on all major platforms: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher iHeartRadio Audible Podbay
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    43 mins
  • S8E12: Resetting with a Digital Detox with Dr. Nina Joy Mena

    S8E12: Resetting with a Digital Detox with Dr. Nina Joy Mena
    Jan 15 2026
    In this conversation,Laura welcomes Dr. Nina Joy Mena to discuss digital detoxing and self-care, particularly for busy professionals and Black women leaders. The discussion covers the impacts of digital overload on mental health, the necessity of establishing boundaries with technology, and practical strategies for maintaining wellness. Dr. Mena emphasizes the significance of self-care routines and the role of community in fostering joy and resilience. The episode concludes with actionable steps for listeners to prioritize their mental health and well-being. About Dr. Nina Dr. Nina Joy Mena, known as Dr. NJoy, is an Atlanta-based psychiatrist, author, podcaster, and motivational speaker dedicated to promoting mental wellness and breaking the stigma of mental illness in the Black community. Double board-certified in General Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, she serves as Chief Medical Officer at CHRIS 180, providing compassionate, trauma-informed care across all ages. As the founder of NJoy LIFE – Living In Full Empowerment, LLC and host of the Journey to Joy Live podcast, Dr. NJoy inspires resilience, authenticity, and joy through storytelling and community engagement. She is the author of NJoyNAL: Nurturing Authentic Living and Inspire Joy for the Wife Mom Boss: Balancing It All Without Losing Yourself. An avid runner, Dr. NJoy has completed 46 half marathons and 9 full marathons—her personal form of therapy and reset. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and the devoted wife of Juan Mena and mother of three boys, ages 2, 4, and 14. Connect with Dr. Nina Website: www.drnjoylife.com Facebook: @NJoy LIFE Instagram: @Dr.NJoy.Life Youtube: @DrNJoyLifeMD Tik Tok: @Dr.NJoy.Life BWL Resources: Now enrolling for both the January sessions of the Early Career and Mid-Career programs. Learn more at https://blackwomanleading.com/programs-overview/ Full podcast episodes are now on Youtube. Subscribe to the BWL channel today! Check out the BWL theme song here Check out the BWL line dance tutorial here Download the Black Woman Leading Career Journey Map - https://blackwomanleading.com/journey-map/ Credits: Learn about all Black Woman Leading® programs, resources, and events at www.blackwomanleading.com Learn more about our consulting work with organizations at https://knightsconsultinggroup.com/ Email Laura: info@knightsconsultinggroup.com Connect with Laura on LinkedIn Follow BWL on LinkedIn Instagram: @blackwomanleading Facebook: @blackwomanleading Youtube: @blackwomanleading Podcast Music & Production: Marshall Knights Graphics: Dara Adams Listen and follow the podcast on all major platforms: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher iHeartRadio Audible Podbay
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    43 mins
  • S8E11: Rethinking Resilience with Dr. Keisha Bentley-Edwards

    S8E11: Rethinking Resilience with Dr. Keisha Bentley-Edwards
    Jan 8 2026
    In this powerful episode, Laura is joined by Dr. Keisha Bentley-Edwards, Associate Professor at Duke University's School of Medicine and Co-Director of Duke CTSI Center for Research, Community Engagement, Social Impact and Trust (CREST Center), for a timely conversation on rethinking resilience. Inspired by Dr. Bentley-Edwards' article "I Am Not (Your) Superwoman, Black Girl Magic, or Beautiful Struggle: Rethinking the Resilience of Black Women and Girls," this episode explores the cultural narratives that celebrate Black women's strength while often ignoring the profound physical, emotional, and psychological costs of relentless resilience. Together, Laura and Keisha unpack the tensions between pride in endurance, cultural expectations like the "Strong Black Woman," and the growing body of research showing how these narratives contribute to health inequities across the lifespan. Dr. Bentley-Edwards offers insight into how expectations of resilience often begin in childhood for Black girls, shaping adult experiences of stress, coping, and wellbeing. The conversation moves beyond critique toward possibility—imagining models of resilience that center sustainable wellness, community care, and structural accountability, rather than individual endurance alone. Dr. Bentley-Edwards also reflects on what Black women can do in service of themselves and Black girls, and what we must collectively demand from systems, institutions, and leaders. Anchored in Season 8's theme, "Leaning Into Joy," this episode invites listeners to consider how joy, rest, alignment, and community are not indulgences, but essential counterweights to harmful expectations of strength. About Dr. Keisha Dr. Keisha Bentley-Edwards is an Associate Professor at Duke University's School of Medicine and Co-Director of Duke CTSI Center for Research, Community Engagement, Social Impact and Trust (CREST Center). She is also the Associate Director of Research for the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity. Dr. Bentley-Edwards' research focuses on how racism, gender, and culture influence development throughout the lifespan, especially for African Americans. She is the Chair of the Society for Research in Child Development's Black Caucus. Her research emphasizes cultural strengths, including religiosity, and eliminating structural barriers to support healthy development in communities, families, and students, and in birth outcomes. Her research has been supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, IBM, and the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Bentley-Edwards shares her expertise on the causes and consequences of structural racism and bias on health, education and social outcomes with families, schools, policymakers, practitioners, and the media. Connect with Dr. Keisha Website: https://www.drbentleyedwards.com/ LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kbentleyedwards BWL Resources: Now enrolling for both the January sessions of the Early Career and Mid-Career programs. Learn more at https://blackwomanleading.com/programs-overview/ Full podcast episodes are now on Youtube. Subscribe to the BWL channel today! Check out the BWL theme song here Check out the BWL line dance tutorial here Download the Black Woman Leading Career Journey Map - https://blackwomanleading.com/journey-map/ Credits: Learn about all Black Woman Leading® programs, resources, and events at www.blackwomanleading.com Learn more about our consulting work with organizations at https://knightsconsultinggroup.com/ Email Laura: info@knightsconsultinggroup.com Connect with Laura on LinkedIn Follow BWL on LinkedIn Instagram: @blackwomanleading Facebook: @blackwomanleading Youtube: @blackwomanleading Podcast Music & Production: Marshall Knights Graphics: Dara Adams Listen and follow the podcast on all major platforms: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher iHeartRadio Audible Podbay
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    1 hr and 8 mins
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