Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kerry (00:12):
Hey, hey, hey, tribe, and
welcome back to the Melanin
Unicorn podcast, the podcastwhere we are celebrating the
resilience, brilliance and powerof Black women as we navigate
life, success and everything inbetween.
I'm your host, Kerry, and todaywe're diving into a topic
(00:35):
that's not only close to myheart but vital to our
collective future, and that ishow Black women are minding our
businesses, literally andfiguratively, in 2025 and beyond
, and we are concentrating onbuilding and broadening our
(00:56):
horizons.
And in a world that'sconstantly evolving, black women
are leading the charge inentrepreneurship, mental health
and financial literacy.
Well, we are also communitybuilding as well, so we're also
creating spaces to honor ourunique voices and redefining
(01:21):
what it means to thrive.
So grab your tea, water, coffee, green juice, whatever Get your
notepad or your journal andlet's get into this episode.
Let's begin by talking aboutthe rise of Black women
(01:48):
entrepreneurs.
Did you know that Black womenare the fastest growing
demographic of entrepreneurs inthe US?
That's just not a stat, it's amovement.
In 2025, we're seeing Blackwomen-owned businesses thrive in
industries like tech, beauty,health and wellness.
(02:10):
Platforms like the Honeypot,slutty Vegan, the Tabitha Brown
brand and Baddies and Budgetshave paved the way, but the new
wave is bringing even moreinnovation.
Black women are doing great andmighty things, and we are also
(02:32):
leveraging technology like neverbefore.
Social media, e-commerceplatforms and AI tools are
helping us scale businessesglobally.
And let's not forget about theimportance of collaboration.
Black women are partnering witheach other, whether it's
co-hosting events,cross-promoting products or
(02:54):
launching joint venturestogether, because we know
there's more than enough roomfor all of us to win.
But here's the thing we're notjust building businesses, we are
building legacy.
And that brings me to our nextpoint the need for prioritizing
(03:39):
our mental and emotionalwell-being.
You can't pour from an empty cup.
I don't know how many times Isay this daily.
I've said it to friends,colleagues, relatives you cannot
pour from an empty cup, andAyanla Vanzant said it best
(04:07):
what's in the cup is for you,the overflow of that cup is for
everyone else.
So if your cup is empty, thatmeans there's no overflow.
And we must keep our own cupsfull and overflowing, because if
(04:31):
people are constantly drinkingfrom our cup but there's no
overflow, then guess what?
We have nothing, we aredepleted, and we are not in a
time, an era or a space where wecan afford to be depleted, so
please make sure that your cupis not only full, but it's
(04:52):
overflowing all the time.
Black women, we have beenpouring into everyone else's
cups for centuries into everyoneelse's cups for centuries.
But 2025 is the year that wehave all said enough is enough,
and, if I'm really beingtransparent, it was November
(05:18):
2024.
It's time that you and I, wepour into ourselves.
We are seeing more and moreBlack women go to therapy,
practice mindfulness and embraceholistic wellness, and I am all
(05:38):
for therapy, I'm all formindfulness and I'm all for
holistic wellness.
Apps like Shine are creatingsafe spaces for us to check in
with ourselves, and let's notunderestimate the power of rest.
Yes, sis, rest is revolutionary, and one of the really great
(05:59):
books about naps is by the goodsis, Trisha Hershey, founder of
the Nap Ministry.
Okay, that is a game changer,and if you have not read it or
listened to it on audio, I woulddefinitely recommend doing so.
(06:19):
So, 2025 and beyond, we'regiving ourselves permission to
slow down, to set boundaries andto say no without guilt,
because, remember, no is a wholesentence.
When we prioritize our ownwell-being, we show up as the
(06:47):
best versions of ourselves Forourselves, for our families, our
businesses and our communities,peace building, wealth and
(07:24):
financial independence.
Let's talk about that bag, sis,because Black women aren't
securing it.
Financial literacy is no longeroptional it's essential, it is a
must, it is the key tosurviving.
There are too many resourcesavailable to us now where we can
(07:51):
no longer offer the excuse likeoh, I don't know, I don't know,
I don't know.
And granted, many of us, myselfincluded, did not grow up with
our parents discussing money.
You know, for many of us, moneywas like taboo Either you know,
(08:20):
it wasn't enough or it was justenough, meaning they were
breaking even, right.
But now we are seeing a surgeof black women investing in
stocks, real estate and evencryptocurrency.
So programs like Girl Track andinitiatives from financial
experts like Tanya Rapley aremaking sure we have the tools to
(08:41):
build generational wealth.
So let's learn better moneyhabits for financial freedom.
So here's a tip you can automateyour savings, right, whether
it's $10 or $1,000 a month.
One thing I have learned isconsistency is key.
(09:05):
And don't sleep on passiveincome streams either, right,
because I know that you havegreat ideas to generate passive
income.
You are just not acting on it.
It is time, sis, it's time foryou to start acting on it.
(09:29):
It is time, sis.
It's time for you to startacting on it, whether it be
affiliate marketing, digitalproducts, rental properties,
maybe writing for publications,whatever.
Listen, the sky is the limit.
And if you need help in savings,I highly, highly, highly
(09:50):
recommend the good sis Jasmine,who is the creator of baddies
and budgets.
You can look her up onInstagram under baddies and
budgets, youtube baddies andbudgets.
When I found sis, it probablywas in 2022 and I watched her
(10:14):
story and I was just like wow,because I never could subscribe
to the envelope method insavings, but watching her,
watching that episode, it reallyopened my eyes.
And then, all of a sudden, Icouldn't find the video anymore,
and so you know what they sayout of sight, out of mind.
(10:37):
Then Ms Jasmine showed up on myYouTube in 2024, the beginning
of 2024.
And sis got me all the waytogether when I watched her
journey, from when she started,when she really didn't have
(10:57):
anything, to where she is now.
I am telling you it is possibleand go look up the good sis
Jasmine, because she makes it soeasy to understand and really
help you with whatever amount ofmoney that you are able to save
(11:22):
, and I think what puts peopleoff with saving is that they
feel like, oh, but I can't savebecause I don't make that much
money.
Listen, listen, you can startsaving $5 if that's what your
budget allows for you.
$5, $10, whatever it is.
(11:42):
You have to start, becausethat's the key.
The key is starting and then tocontinue is consistency, and
I'm telling you, it's a gamechanger.
And once you have saved yourmoney right, and this is another
(12:03):
tip Don't even count it.
Don't even count it, just putthe money away.
Just put the money away, don'teven count it.
Come to the end of the yearwhen you take the money out of
the envelopes.
That's when you can count itand you will be blown away with
(12:24):
how much you have saved.
Now, one of the things thatthey talk about is having an
emergency savings of $1,000.
, and that's great.
Again, you can save towardsthat.
Right, if you live in anapartment, the $1,000 should be
good, but if you own a house,that emergency should at least
(12:48):
be six months to a year, becauseyou never know, things pop up
in your home.
Yes, you have insurance andthings like that, but for other
things that you may just need topurchase.
Just need to to purchase.
You got that emergency fund andthen you can go into that.
(13:10):
All right, community andadvocacy let's talk about the
(13:40):
power of community Black women.
We have always been thebackbone of social movements,
and 2025 is no different.
We are, more than ever, usingour collective voices to
(14:00):
advocate for change, whetherit's pushing for policy reforms,
fighting for pay equity oruplifting our sisters through
mutual aid.
We've also been building onlineand offline communities that
nurture us, from book clubs tonetworking groups.
These spaces remind us that weare not alone.
We are stronger together, andthat is a fact.
(14:26):
I find community in book groups,black women book groups on
Facebook.
I try not to be on Facebookthat much anymore, but sometimes
you know you need to be thereand on not so much on Instagram.
(14:54):
I haven't really seen that, butI have seen it on um TikTok, so
I've watched um a number of theblack book talk videos.
So those are.
Those are good Cause that's acommunity um there as well, and
they have them not only whereit's virtual, but it's in person
(15:15):
also.
Where I live, unfortunately,there's no in-person book club.
I wish that it was person bookclub.
I wish that it was, but maybeno, not even maybe, because I'm
claiming it In my next movethere will be a book club, even
(15:42):
if I have to start it myself.
So so, make sure that you aresurrounded by your sisters,
right.
Make sure that you are buildingcommunity, joining communities,
because in this time that weare in, it is imperative.
(16:04):
This is not the time to want tobe a lone wolf and I know
sometimes it's very enticing butbelieve you me, this is not the
time for that, because we needeach other.
We need each other, especiallythe way that we are choosing to
(16:30):
move now.
So that community is key.
It is so key because we have towe literally have to lock arms
and be together Because, again,you see what's going on.
(16:55):
You really have to be blind,deaf and mute to not know what's
going on.
But one thing I know about myfellow sisters is that, although
we see what's going on, we havechosen and this is a choice we
(17:20):
have chosen to lock in and build, because that's what the enemy
wants.
The enemy wants us to become sounfocused on what we should be
focused on by throwing all ofthis stuff at the wall, that we
(17:40):
see to see what sticks.
And he wants us to just bestaring at that.
But I implore you, turn the TVoff.
As Kendrick said, turn the TVoff.
Turn the TV off.
Go on social media breaks.
(18:01):
Okay, take yourself out forwalks, take yourself out to eat,
take yourself to a play, to amovie, take yourself to the
library, take yourself intoplaces and spaces where you know
(18:28):
that you will have peace andthat it will be cultivated.
Because the problem is that doomscrolling, which many of us
have fell victim to, and youscroll, scroll, scroll, scroll,
scroll right, and then you go tosleep at night and then you're
(18:49):
dreaming about all the mess thatyou've seen through scrolling.
So, again, this is not the time, because in 2025, this is our
time this is our time to buildand to create and to dominate.
We have no time to fall in towhat is going on outside of your
(19:18):
window, and I know it's hard toignore, god knows.
I know it's hard to ignore,right?
But in order for you to do whatyou know you're supposed to be
doing, to do what those hiddendreams that you have within you,
those dreams need to come out,those dreams need to come into
(19:45):
fruition and into your reality,and you cannot do that when you
are so focused on what thesedemons are doing.
So I am saying to you and I amimploring you and this is for me
too, okay, don't think that I'mjust, you know, speaking to my
(20:10):
sisters and but I'm excludingmyself.
No, absolutely not.
This is for me as well, and Ihave shut it down.
I've shut it down.
If I do go on social media, itis for a short period of time,
and then I am off and I can tell, because when I get my pop-up
(20:35):
stats on my phone, I see how thehours have gone down right.
So I know we all have it,whether you have an iPhone or
you have an Android.
You see it.
You see it.
You'll see your numbers go down, and when your numbers go down,
(20:57):
that means that you are lockingin to what you should be
locking into, and that is takingcare of business, because 2025
is the year for us if you arenot already is to become
financially independent.
(21:21):
I want to see even more, evenmore black women.
I want those numbers to shootup, and I am including myself in
that.
Where we are running our ownbusinesses, we are creating our
own empires.
(21:41):
This is what I want for us andthis is what I want for you.
Okay, and there you have it.
Black women, we are minding ourbusiness in every sense of the
word.
We are building our empires,protecting our peace, stacking
(22:03):
our coins and uplifting eachother.
And as we look to the future,one thing is very, very clear.
It's very, very clear.
The world better keep watching,because we are just getting
started.
Whoop, whoop, listen.
(22:30):
Thank you so much for tuning into another episode of the
Melanin Unicorn Podcast, and ifthis episode has inspired you,
please share with a friend,leave a review and don't forget
to subscribe so you never missan episode.
And until next time, keepthriving, keep shining and keep
minding your business.
(22:51):
And remember, have the mostamazing, remarkable and magical
day, because that is what youdeserve.
I love you and until next time,bye.