Hiding in Our Brands – Brand Ya Flava Podcast S1E4

Brand Ya Flava Podcast Season 1: Episode 4

De Back Story

I read an article where CNN political commentator, Simone Sanders, addressed a particular ‘fan’ who decided it was necessary to provide Ms. Sanders some ‘advice’ on her ‘professional’ appearance as it pertains to television and being a political commentator. (Side note — that was a lot of dang quotes for just this one sentence. 😒 You know there’s gonna be some shade coming.)

You can read the article here if you want some background info on it.  Anyway, Ms. Sanders handled her ‘fan’ in a very professional manner and basically told them that she is and will be unapologetically herself which includes her hair, clothing, nails, and mannerisms.

This article immediately led me to think about us a  Black women entrepreneurs and even myself! I wondered why we think its necessary for us to hide our names, our culture or ethnicity to be able to fit in or to be included in the game? I know I did it and based on observations, I know that I am not alone.  In this episode, we are going to tackle this issue of us Black women entrepreneurs hiding in our brands. I’ll also talk about what I did to stop hiding and start shining.

De Nitty Gritty of the Episode

When it comes to politics, I read and listen in the mornings and during the day. My first degree is in Social Science and one of my concentrations in the field was Poli-Sci. So when I see Black people, especially women, step up into this White-male dominated arena, I’m all eyes, ears and quite proud.

The message that Simone Sanders gave to me was what I resoundingly say as I promote Brand Ya Flava. Brand Ya Flava is so much more than just bombastic graphic design for your brand.  I want you, YES YOU, to show up looking, feeling and being as fly as you want to be –or even more.

Ms. Sanders pointed out that some of us may walk around with Afrocentric name and feel ashamed to have White counterparts to learn to pronounce our names.  Now my name is Greek 😒 but I love it for what is and its a common name, but I do have family and friends who have the issue.

I think if anyone can pronounce Tschokyskfy or even worse Dostoevsky, then you can figure out a way to pronounce Twanda or Kamika.   But somehow we find a way to shorten our names to make our counterparts feel more comfortable to pronounce or even to engage with our cultural essence.

via GIPHY

Why?

I don’t recall any time when I was made comfortable to avoid learning or engaging some form of European culture or historical information. I had to learn to pronounce Tschokysfy and Dostoevesky.  So why aren’t we putting others in a place where they will have to learn and understand our cultural traditions?

Then, the article gave me ‘Ah Ha’ moment.  I thought about how we as Black women entrepreneurs have a tendency to go straight in hiding in our brands. We fear the reaction of others outside our race will have on our sales.  It’s valid because it’s the evidence history has provided us.

But what if the tides have changed?  And what if you are tired of hiding being who you want to be in life and in your business? This was me.  I was tired of hiding in my brand. I decided it was time to do something. So I pivoted and changed my brand’s messaging and started to look within.

Self-awareness is the key to unlocking the potential of your brand. Click To Tweet

Once you are able to understand who you are, embrace everything you are like Ms. Simone Sanders did, and do what you do well in your brand unapologetically, the sky is the limit.

However, if you need a step in the right direction, check out my resource below. It will help you put all the pieces together to help you craft your brand’s message just by learning and loving yourself.

Thanks for tuning in and I’ll check you on the next episode.

Resources

1. Simone Sanders Article: http://atlantablackstar.com/2018/05/10/symone-sanders-perfect-response-fan-offers-unsolicited-advice-appearance/
2. Brand Ya Flava Book: The Black Woman’s Book to Branding Your Business: http://bit.ly/brandyaflavabook