WEBVTT - How Black Talent Imagines and Builds the Future w/ Janeen Uzzell 0:00:01.760 --> 0:00:10.039 Afro Techies seventeen, San Francisco, California. Marlon Nichols, partner in 0:00:10.119 --> 0:00:12.320 MC venture Capital, is on the main state. He's talking 0:00:12.320 --> 0:00:15.760 about startup cap tables. He has asked the question by 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:19.239 someone in the audience about how startups are valued by vcs. 0:00:20.400 --> 0:00:23.560 We've seen several black owned startup valuations get some serious 0:00:23.640 --> 0:00:26.960 love in recent months. Here's how Ventia capitalists decide what 0:00:27.040 --> 0:00:29.840 a company is worth when they're placing their bets to 0:00:30.000 --> 0:00:34.400 the questions how how is the valuation set? Right? Um, 0:00:34.440 --> 0:00:38.319 it's kind of ambiguous. Actually, um it it can be. 0:00:38.560 --> 0:00:41.519 You know, an entrepreneur feels that their their company is 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:45.519 worth this amount um from an investor's perspective, if they 0:00:45.560 --> 0:00:48.919 are tangible things like revenue, right, I'll look at that 0:00:49.479 --> 0:00:53.000 um and then apply a multiple towards that that revenue. 0:00:53.040 --> 0:00:56.840 So let's say other companies in the space are let's 0:00:56.840 --> 0:00:59.920 call it trading at a COREX multiple. I would apply 0:01:00.200 --> 0:01:02.720 that four rex too to that revenue number, and that's 0:01:02.720 --> 0:01:05.080 how I get my my valuation. But then there are 0:01:05.120 --> 0:01:07.720 other things you gotta consider too, like, you know, is 0:01:07.720 --> 0:01:11.560 this a return founder um? Has she sold a company 0:01:11.560 --> 0:01:13.280 before for a lot of money? Has she taken a 0:01:13.360 --> 0:01:15.759 company public before. Is it's the same team. You give 0:01:15.840 --> 0:01:17.760 them some credit for that. So the valuation starts to 0:01:17.760 --> 0:01:20.399 inch up, right, Is it a UM? Is it a 0:01:20.440 --> 0:01:23.839 really new and hot space? Is this deal really competitive? 0:01:24.240 --> 0:01:27.479 Is UM you know Bryan overack k for Capital trying 0:01:27.480 --> 0:01:29.720 to steal the deal from me and I gotta and 0:01:29.760 --> 0:01:31.920 I gotta out price him or something like that, right, 0:01:32.319 --> 0:01:34.840 So UM, A lot of things go into it, but 0:01:35.160 --> 0:01:40.199 generally try to find markers and and uh industry markets 0:01:40.240 --> 0:01:44.440 to help you figure it out. I'm will lucas Mrs 0:01:44.480 --> 0:01:48.120 Black Tech, Green Money. I'm gonna introw this you to 0:01:48.200 --> 0:01:50.360 some of the biggest names, some of the brightness minds 0:01:50.400 --> 0:01:53.680 and brilliant ideas. I feel black and building simply using 0:01:53.680 --> 0:01:56.360 tech to secure your back. This podcast is for you. 0:02:01.600 --> 0:02:05.480 Janine Zealous an American global technology executive and CEO of 0:02:05.600 --> 0:02:09.920 NEBI National Society of Black Engineers. She previously served as 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:12.840 Director of Healthcare Programs in Africa and Head of Women 0:02:12.919 --> 0:02:15.600 in Technology for GE and s c o oh of 0:02:15.680 --> 0:02:20.400 the Wikimedia Foundation, which runs Wikipedia. As Janine about the 0:02:20.400 --> 0:02:23.960 global perspective and if traveling abroad is imperative for the 0:02:24.000 --> 0:02:27.800 success of a black engineer. Let me say that for 0:02:27.880 --> 0:02:31.840 a world class black engineer, it is a game changer, 0:02:32.400 --> 0:02:35.320 and I want to put it at the forefront of 0:02:35.400 --> 0:02:42.560 the way, um, black techies, black engineers prioritize their decision making. Um. 0:02:42.600 --> 0:02:46.360 My father, who is deceased, was a guy from the South, 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:48.959 came up to New Jersey as a part of the 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:52.960 Great Migration, saying some doot and then you know, hustled 0:02:53.000 --> 0:02:55.600 his way to raise a family, and he was like, 0:02:55.880 --> 0:03:00.280 I cannot afford to give you this world, but I'm 0:03:00.320 --> 0:03:02.680 going to give everything I have to educating you and 0:03:02.720 --> 0:03:05.920 you get yourself there. The career that I had at 0:03:05.960 --> 0:03:09.400 General Elector gave me an opportunity to say yes to 0:03:09.560 --> 0:03:12.720 things that black people traditionally we don't say yes to. 0:03:13.560 --> 0:03:17.320 And as a result, it took me around the world 0:03:17.520 --> 0:03:21.960 multiple times. Doing that as a black person makes a 0:03:22.000 --> 0:03:24.400 world of difference because you do not see us in 0:03:24.480 --> 0:03:30.680 those spaces internationally, We're not there. Yeah, so it changes, 0:03:30.760 --> 0:03:35.160 it changes everything, and so I mean it's different. I 0:03:35.160 --> 0:03:39.120 would imagine being a resident being from you know, domestic 0:03:39.200 --> 0:03:42.240 United States, and then you know, having the experiences we 0:03:42.360 --> 0:03:44.840 have here, you know, growing up and wherever whatever we 0:03:44.880 --> 0:03:46.840 grow up, you know, we deal with certain issues, and 0:03:46.880 --> 0:03:49.560 I wonder, you know, for black people who are working 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:52.280 abroad and do get those opportunities that the kind that 0:03:52.360 --> 0:03:55.920 you've had an experience, um the privilege to experience, how 0:03:55.920 --> 0:03:59.840 do we prepare for those global assignments? I imagine you know, 0:04:00.160 --> 0:04:03.120 being in foreign lands. You know, how do you control 0:04:03.120 --> 0:04:05.680 your safety? How do you prepare before you get the opportunity? 0:04:06.160 --> 0:04:09.440 You know, I'm going to say that, Unfortunately, there's there's 0:04:09.480 --> 0:04:12.640 no training ground for us in that space, right, the 0:04:12.640 --> 0:04:15.120 average black person, we probably don't. You know, my parents 0:04:15.160 --> 0:04:17.680 were members of any country club, and you know, we 0:04:17.720 --> 0:04:20.080 went to church and that was our social life, right. 0:04:20.240 --> 0:04:22.039 We went to church, we went acquire her sol and 0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:26.000 we had some family you know, some family events in 0:04:26.040 --> 0:04:29.400 the process. So there's there's not a way, honestly, to 0:04:29.520 --> 0:04:32.280 learn that unless those of us that experience it make 0:04:32.320 --> 0:04:34.960 ourselves available. And that's that's why I talk about it 0:04:35.000 --> 0:04:38.320 whenever I'm in our community. I'm like, you all need 0:04:38.360 --> 0:04:40.320 to say yes to some of these assignments and then 0:04:40.360 --> 0:04:42.719 you start to teach them, you know, how to go 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:45.520 about it. One of my greatest mentors, who was one 0:04:45.520 --> 0:04:48.280 of my my dear friends to this day. Paula Madison. 0:04:49.480 --> 0:04:52.280 She the things that she coached me on when I 0:04:52.320 --> 0:04:55.440 was a leader in GE were things that I'd never 0:04:55.480 --> 0:04:58.520 heard before and I've never known we should learn. And 0:04:58.520 --> 0:05:01.240 those are things like how to ride on a corporate jet, 0:05:01.640 --> 0:05:04.440 the things that you're supposed to do, you know, be 0:05:04.520 --> 0:05:07.960 paying attention to, but you know, listening for ways to 0:05:08.320 --> 0:05:11.600 address as a woman in leadership, um, how to respond 0:05:11.640 --> 0:05:14.400 and act in different spaces. Those things did not happen 0:05:14.440 --> 0:05:17.320 for me until much further along in my career, and 0:05:17.360 --> 0:05:19.560 I'm very grateful that that she's been a part of 0:05:19.560 --> 0:05:22.920 that development. But we have to bring those into the 0:05:22.960 --> 0:05:25.520 conversations that we have. There's not many of us that 0:05:25.600 --> 0:05:28.000 get to do that, and so there's not many having 0:05:28.040 --> 0:05:31.680 the conversations. But what will need to happen is that, Um, 0:05:31.720 --> 0:05:34.479 whenever I speak, whenever I'm in front of audiences, I 0:05:34.640 --> 0:05:38.360 always talk about the global experience and what it can mean, 0:05:38.680 --> 0:05:42.479 because the training ground needs to be as intense as 0:05:42.800 --> 0:05:45.839 the actual leadership role that you have and as simple 0:05:45.920 --> 0:05:49.839 as how you pack and respond and talk and and 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:53.560 carry yourself in in those environments. And I learned those 0:05:53.600 --> 0:05:58.000 all by default. Um, you know, but you you learn them. 0:05:58.040 --> 0:05:59.800 You know, when we think about engineering, were thinking about 0:05:59.800 --> 0:06:03.159 these these your people who build things or design systems 0:06:03.240 --> 0:06:05.600 or etcetera. And in the world we live in, and 0:06:05.640 --> 0:06:07.600 you call it yourself a globalist before I've heard you 0:06:07.680 --> 0:06:12.520 called yourself a globalists. And does having that global experience 0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:17.279 being across the world being you know, having actual firsthand experiences, 0:06:17.480 --> 0:06:22.800 is that required today of any engineer you can, like, 0:06:22.880 --> 0:06:25.360 can you make a case for if you want to 0:06:25.400 --> 0:06:27.920 be an engineer, if you're going to college, or if 0:06:27.960 --> 0:06:32.719 you're finding your first opportunity in school post school, can 0:06:32.800 --> 0:06:37.800 you make a case for traveling abroad? And why should 0:06:37.800 --> 0:06:42.920 those people prioritize getting that experience because you're not just 0:06:43.000 --> 0:06:47.640 building for domestic audiences anymore. We're building for the global world, 0:06:48.360 --> 0:06:53.520 right it is? Is it a requirement? No? Would I 0:06:53.680 --> 0:06:57.400 want to make it a requirement. Absolutely. My I have 0:06:57.480 --> 0:07:01.240 two female cousins that studied engineering, both of them. I said, 0:07:01.240 --> 0:07:02.920 you've got to go abroad. You have And I talked 0:07:02.960 --> 0:07:05.200 to their parents, who are my first cousins, like, you 0:07:05.240 --> 0:07:08.360 have to let them do this. I think it's imperative. 0:07:09.000 --> 0:07:12.840 It changes the way that you think, the way that 0:07:12.880 --> 0:07:15.360 you solved and engineering all they already gives you a 0:07:15.480 --> 0:07:19.160 very critical, strategic, different way of solving problems. So it's 0:07:19.200 --> 0:07:23.640 it's an incredible education and it's it's such a wonderful 0:07:23.680 --> 0:07:26.960 curriculum to study because you can use it whether you 0:07:27.080 --> 0:07:29.200 stay in the world of tech or not. Just the 0:07:29.240 --> 0:07:33.520 way that you think and you approach UM solving the problem, 0:07:33.760 --> 0:07:36.520 but when you take that and you partner it with 0:07:37.000 --> 0:07:41.360 UM a global perspective, the way that you lead, the 0:07:41.360 --> 0:07:43.880 way that you build and solve, I think, the way 0:07:43.920 --> 0:07:46.160 that you are as a person and a human human being, 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:50.200 your perspective changes and it could be you know, I 0:07:50.200 --> 0:07:53.040 could give you tons of examples of what it what 0:07:53.200 --> 0:07:56.600 it meant to solve problems in India and Indonesia and 0:07:56.680 --> 0:08:02.040 Africa and Saudi as a black woman from you Jersey, UM, 0:08:02.080 --> 0:08:05.400 and it makes all the difference. The other thing that 0:08:05.440 --> 0:08:08.080 it does is it puts you in a very um 0:08:08.200 --> 0:08:13.360 unique and sometimes isolated space because you become so incredibly 0:08:13.440 --> 0:08:18.360 different and sometimes that that's UM, that's a lonely and 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:21.239 sometimes difficult place to be. Let's talk about talk about 0:08:21.280 --> 0:08:25.920 what that what you mean by that? You know, it's 0:08:25.960 --> 0:08:28.400 it's you know, things change the way that the way 0:08:28.400 --> 0:08:30.280 that you might eat the things that you like. I 0:08:30.320 --> 0:08:33.920 fell in love with African fashion and design and maybe 0:08:34.000 --> 0:08:38.240 before it became popular, um, socially here you know, you 0:08:38.280 --> 0:08:41.600 may change some of your Western ways. Uh. You know, 0:08:41.640 --> 0:08:43.800 I worked in Saudi had to wear burka every day. 0:08:44.080 --> 0:08:47.640 I'm like, you know, what does this mean to my faith? 0:08:47.880 --> 0:08:50.200 I thought I was cheating on Jesus, you know, I 0:08:50.280 --> 0:08:53.000 was like, should I be doing this? But culturally what 0:08:53.080 --> 0:08:56.199 I needed to do, um to fit into that space? 0:08:56.880 --> 0:08:59.440 You know? Um, what it means to work in a 0:08:59.480 --> 0:09:02.400 place where when the Internet goes out, it's not just 0:09:02.520 --> 0:09:06.120 like on your block, Like, no, the entire city of 0:09:06.120 --> 0:09:08.800 across is out of the Internet a while. How do 0:09:08.880 --> 0:09:12.760 we work? You know, if I'm not trying to build, 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:15.600 I would imagine you would admonish folks. But if I'm 0:09:15.640 --> 0:09:19.600 not trying to build, you know, the next Facebook or 0:09:19.640 --> 0:09:21.600 the next Google. But let's say I just want to 0:09:21.640 --> 0:09:24.439 build a really good you know, we can call him 0:09:24.440 --> 0:09:27.040 lifestyle company. I just want to build something a great 0:09:27.520 --> 0:09:32.440 you know, or engineer systems for a small business, UM 0:09:32.440 --> 0:09:36.760 in my hometown. Doesn't having a global perspective matter to you? 0:09:38.000 --> 0:09:39.920 And that is if I'm not trying to build, you 0:09:39.960 --> 0:09:44.120 know these trillion dollar comp Well, again, I'm speaking to 0:09:44.720 --> 0:09:47.480 an audience of of of black techys, and I would 0:09:47.559 --> 0:09:51.480 say that any perspective that you bring, whether you bring 0:09:51.480 --> 0:09:56.120 it from New Orleans or Oakland, North New Jersey, it's 0:09:56.120 --> 0:09:58.200 almost going to be global too to the world that 0:09:58.280 --> 0:10:01.880 you're in because we're or from uh is all is 0:10:01.920 --> 0:10:05.640 often so very different. We're other than everyone that we're 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:10.160 usually around. I would say that, Um, if you're given 0:10:10.160 --> 0:10:14.600 an opportunity, you're going to always hear me say that 0:10:14.679 --> 0:10:17.800 globalism is a way of life, and it is a 0:10:17.840 --> 0:10:20.400 way that not only the things that we bring to 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:23.360 a place, um, the experiences that we bring back with 0:10:23.400 --> 0:10:25.880 the experiences that we take in. I was a Black 0:10:25.920 --> 0:10:29.640 American living in Africa. I was still a Black American, right, 0:10:29.880 --> 0:10:32.760 and I was home so to speak. Right, Africa is 0:10:32.840 --> 0:10:35.800 everything to me, but I was still a Black American, 0:10:36.040 --> 0:10:38.840 so I was bringing something to them as well. And um, 0:10:39.200 --> 0:10:44.280 it certainly isn't a bad thing to bring into anything 0:10:44.280 --> 0:10:47.760 you're trying to build from lifestyle. M a friend that 0:10:48.120 --> 0:10:50.840 has that runs a lifestyle business and she's focused on 0:10:50.880 --> 0:10:54.000 tease and and you know, some of her best products 0:10:54.040 --> 0:10:57.720 are international tea leaves, that she mixes with you know, 0:10:57.760 --> 0:11:02.520 American flavor. So I think that there's always UM a 0:11:02.640 --> 0:11:06.800 case for what we can bring to the world and 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:09.000 what the world can give to us. Yeah, I love that. 0:11:09.120 --> 0:11:13.320 I love that, you know, speaking UM about you know, 0:11:13.520 --> 0:11:16.320 our contributions to culture, like there are people who would 0:11:16.320 --> 0:11:19.480 be watching or listening to us who may be anywhere 0:11:19.520 --> 0:11:23.719 in the world. UM. And for black people, particularly black engineers, 0:11:24.240 --> 0:11:30.280 how can we better leverage our contributions to culture UM 0:11:30.320 --> 0:11:33.760 for our own wealth opportunity? Its specifically, like how can 0:11:33.800 --> 0:11:38.520 engineers take on like an owner's equity mentality and not 0:11:38.679 --> 0:11:47.040 just build something that makes other people wealthy? Well, it 0:11:47.160 --> 0:11:54.319 starts with an entrepreneurial mindset and as an engineer, Like 0:11:54.440 --> 0:11:57.880 when I was in school, I studied mechanical engineering and 0:11:57.960 --> 0:12:01.240 it's super hard, and I was just focused on trying 0:12:01.240 --> 0:12:04.120 to learn thermodynamics and and things like that. I wasn't 0:12:04.120 --> 0:12:07.320 thinking about what it could mean to build something that 0:12:07.640 --> 0:12:09.800 UM was going to be great for myself as an 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:15.880 independent leader. Universities now offer entrepreneurial tracks, and I think 0:12:15.880 --> 0:12:20.600 that integrating that into UM the engineering and the tech 0:12:20.640 --> 0:12:25.559 platforms are critical. You'll see it UM maybe in software 0:12:25.640 --> 0:12:30.040 engineering and computer science because a lot of those folks 0:12:30.280 --> 0:12:32.960 move into that VC space. I think we need to 0:12:33.360 --> 0:12:35.720 put that same kind of trend, in that same track 0:12:36.160 --> 0:12:39.320 into the engineering mindset. I'm I'm trying to do that 0:12:39.440 --> 0:12:43.200 here at Nesby, where I'm the CEO. It's it's important 0:12:43.200 --> 0:12:46.800 for me to have us think in ways that can 0:12:46.840 --> 0:12:52.040 bring about independent design strategies. We have so many great solutions. 0:12:52.040 --> 0:12:54.480 We know how to take things down and rebuild them 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:57.760 and bring them into better spaces for the world and 0:12:57.880 --> 0:13:03.080 for us. UM. But sometimes we as engineers can get 0:13:03.120 --> 0:13:07.880 so head down sleeves rolled up solve solve, solve soft solved, 0:13:08.559 --> 0:13:12.640 that we forget, uh to look at what this could 0:13:12.640 --> 0:13:16.080 mean for ourselves. I was very much like that, you know, 0:13:16.160 --> 0:13:19.040 and I think we we can miss that. So there's 0:13:19.160 --> 0:13:22.200 um there's an entrepreneurial training that I think would be 0:13:22.200 --> 0:13:26.040 relevant so that we can know what the opportunities are 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:30.040 for us to create structures and solutions that will be 0:13:30.160 --> 0:13:34.839 just as independent or create an independent wealth for us, 0:13:35.000 --> 0:13:38.360 which is something that I'm so committed to now because 0:13:38.400 --> 0:13:40.880 I've had a chance to build wealth in a way 0:13:40.920 --> 0:13:44.000 that I wasn't thinking about when I was in college. 0:13:44.000 --> 0:13:46.240 I was just like get this degree graduate of probably 0:13:46.240 --> 0:13:48.520 working manufacturing, and I'm gonna have a great job and 0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:51.480 a great career one day and just work, you know, 0:13:51.480 --> 0:13:54.360 because it's so interesting hearing you talk about that, and 0:13:54.400 --> 0:13:57.040 I want you to correct me if I'm wrong. But 0:13:57.080 --> 0:14:01.360 I look at people, well, I find it interesting when 0:14:01.440 --> 0:14:05.080 I talked to folks who maybe engineers or you know, 0:14:05.360 --> 0:14:08.800 maybe their product designers or elsewhere, and they work on 0:14:10.880 --> 0:14:15.520 solutions at big companies and they help those companies get 0:14:15.559 --> 0:14:18.840 rewarded patents in et cetera. And I always have wondered 0:14:20.480 --> 0:14:24.160 like that, it feels like a giveaway. To me. It 0:14:24.160 --> 0:14:26.960 feels like you did all this work and now this 0:14:27.040 --> 0:14:31.560 big organization has this reward for your efforts. And I've 0:14:31.600 --> 0:14:34.440 never under I'm an entrepreneur first, like that's what I'm 0:14:34.520 --> 0:14:39.160 first at. And so help me understand from the thinking 0:14:39.240 --> 0:14:42.120 behind it is that erroneous or was like it was 0:14:42.160 --> 0:14:47.840 there something that was missing from the conversation. There's a 0:14:47.880 --> 0:14:51.040 greatness there when it comes to patents. I can't speak 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:55.200 to how every company works, but many times there's a 0:14:55.240 --> 0:14:58.000 couple of things that happen. When you join a multinational. 0:14:58.360 --> 0:15:01.680 You know, you'll sign u and say, you know, these 0:15:01.720 --> 0:15:05.600 ideas that we build and here belong to the company. 0:15:06.040 --> 0:15:10.800 There are some companies that when you are in the room, 0:15:10.880 --> 0:15:14.280 depending when you're in the room, when concepts are developed, 0:15:14.760 --> 0:15:18.640 your name becomes a part of the design or the 0:15:18.640 --> 0:15:22.000 patent that's created for that product. And in some companies, 0:15:22.360 --> 0:15:25.800 when your name is on a patent, you receive what's 0:15:25.840 --> 0:15:29.400 called a patent bonus. So you're not giving it all away, 0:15:29.600 --> 0:15:32.640 because you can receive a patent bonus for the life 0:15:32.680 --> 0:15:35.160 of how of how that technology may be used. So 0:15:35.200 --> 0:15:37.840 imagine someone that's was in the room for the design 0:15:37.880 --> 0:15:42.400 of the electronic battery that that fuels you know, the 0:15:42.440 --> 0:15:47.600 electronic vehicles. Now they're still getting rewarded for that. So 0:15:48.040 --> 0:15:51.480 there are instances where, um, you know, my college room 0:15:51.520 --> 0:15:53.800 and she's got two or three patents of black female 0:15:53.840 --> 0:15:57.680 material science engineer and I'm not sure how the company 0:15:57.720 --> 0:16:01.480 she works for does it. But other companies will allow 0:16:01.520 --> 0:16:04.320 you to receive a bonus. Here here's the tricky piece, 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:08.480 and this is where gender um and disparity and gender 0:16:08.680 --> 0:16:11.120 in the area of engineering comes into play will and 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:14.880 that is because many times women are left out of 0:16:15.400 --> 0:16:22.920 conversations where the patent discussion or design is being held. 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:25.560 We may be in the initial piece and then we 0:16:25.600 --> 0:16:27.400 may be towards the end. But that piece in the 0:16:27.400 --> 0:16:30.040 middle where the names get on that paper there and 0:16:30.120 --> 0:16:32.240 you're actually going to be a part of that design patent, 0:16:32.640 --> 0:16:35.000 there's a gap there and that sometimes comes from our 0:16:35.040 --> 0:16:38.680 inability to be brought in to discussion. Sometimes we don't 0:16:39.000 --> 0:16:42.440 push ourselves into the room um and and so we 0:16:42.480 --> 0:16:44.200 can miss out on that. So we always want to 0:16:44.240 --> 0:16:46.840 inspire and encourage women to make sure that they get 0:16:46.880 --> 0:16:49.440 in the room and stay in the room. Again, every 0:16:49.440 --> 0:16:51.800 company does it different, but there are many times when 0:16:51.840 --> 0:16:55.640 you can create a patent and you'll be given a 0:16:55.680 --> 0:16:57.880 bonus for that. The other thing that you always have 0:16:57.920 --> 0:17:01.000 to be mindful of, particularly you're an entrepreneur first, so 0:17:01.080 --> 0:17:04.119 when you build things, you're building them in your brand. 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:08.280 Depending on who you work for, anything that you design 0:17:08.440 --> 0:17:11.560 or build, even if it's outside of that building, it 0:17:11.600 --> 0:17:13.359 could be a conflict of interest, and so you have 0:17:13.400 --> 0:17:17.280 to be very careful. It's why many times m will 0:17:17.359 --> 0:17:19.720 leave the workforce if we do get kind of bit 0:17:19.800 --> 0:17:22.600 by that entrepreneurial person. We're like, I gotta I gotta 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:26.800 lead from here because this is dipping into my right pocket. Right. 0:17:27.080 --> 0:17:29.159 My dad always told me, you can't let your right 0:17:29.200 --> 0:17:31.359 pocket know what your left pocket is doing. You gotta 0:17:31.600 --> 0:17:34.679 you gotta keep them both overflowing. Yeah, because that was 0:17:34.760 --> 0:17:38.280 always my thinking. I'm like, you're creating things, like why 0:17:38.320 --> 0:17:40.600 are you doing it there? Like you could be doing 0:17:40.640 --> 0:17:46.040 it under your own Well, now we know your show 0:17:46.080 --> 0:17:48.359 talks about this often. You know how hard it is 0:17:48.680 --> 0:17:51.680 for black people to start entities and to start businesses 0:17:51.720 --> 0:17:56.200 and technology companies labs, and what it costs to operate 0:17:56.240 --> 0:17:58.639 in a lab or two. If you're working with chemicals 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:02.160 or machinery, that is expensive. So if you think about 0:18:02.240 --> 0:18:04.720 you're doing a startup and you're in a room co 0:18:04.920 --> 0:18:07.959 creating ideas, tossing stuff on the board, and imagine if 0:18:07.960 --> 0:18:11.680 you had to build a mechanical system to actually as 0:18:11.680 --> 0:18:14.240 a template for how that would work. These things are expensive. 0:18:14.560 --> 0:18:18.760 And so to say that we have the opportunity financially, 0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:20.399 and this is why we have to go back and 0:18:20.440 --> 0:18:23.000 be able to fund these types of businesses and ideas. 0:18:23.320 --> 0:18:26.199 You know, I long for the day when I'll be 0:18:26.240 --> 0:18:28.639 able to have a black tech accelerator and we'll be 0:18:28.680 --> 0:18:31.480 able to drive these engineering solutions through there and fund 0:18:31.480 --> 0:18:35.360 them ourselves and create something like that. That's the big 0:18:35.400 --> 0:18:39.040 dream for sure. And I was watching a talk you did, 0:18:39.080 --> 0:18:42.199 and you're talking about, you know, when you are doing 0:18:42.280 --> 0:18:45.080 that hard work, that's where the value like you do 0:18:45.119 --> 0:18:48.280 the work nobody else wants to do. And you spoke 0:18:48.320 --> 0:18:52.520 about when that work ultimately does then become sexy, those 0:18:52.560 --> 0:18:55.720 opportunities start to get taken away from us, and how 0:18:55.800 --> 0:18:59.639 we have to own our contributions to the creation of 0:18:59.680 --> 0:19:02.600 that value and be bold about it, be confident about it, 0:19:03.040 --> 0:19:06.680 and fight for you know, that value that we created. 0:19:07.080 --> 0:19:09.679 You know, what are some of the lessons you learned 0:19:10.720 --> 0:19:13.520 about how to show up boldly when others want to, 0:19:13.640 --> 0:19:16.280 you know, place you in or keep you in and 0:19:16.480 --> 0:19:22.760 inferior your position. You know, I had, Um, I've had 0:19:22.800 --> 0:19:28.600 so many disappointments, and honestly, I think I've I've not 0:19:28.680 --> 0:19:30.880 tried to live my life in a state of regret. 0:19:31.320 --> 0:19:34.800 But if I had to say something that I regret, 0:19:34.960 --> 0:19:38.640 it will always be not standing up for myself soon enough, 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:42.880 not um taking a bold enough step to say regardless, 0:19:42.960 --> 0:19:46.520 this is you can't have this, this is mine. UM. 0:19:46.560 --> 0:19:48.439 You know, we're just I was taught differently. I was 0:19:48.560 --> 0:19:51.440 young and I didn't know, you know, the fight or 0:19:51.480 --> 0:19:54.280 the pushback. There's a tipping point in something that happens 0:19:54.280 --> 0:19:56.560 when you just say, I'm not going to take it anymore. 0:19:57.160 --> 0:20:03.800 Um And sometimes me watching the younger generation show up 0:20:03.840 --> 0:20:07.639 in boldness around me has empowered me to to stand 0:20:07.680 --> 0:20:10.840 up very differently because I want to be something different 0:20:11.160 --> 0:20:15.199 for the generations that I speak to. And honestly, I 0:20:15.240 --> 0:20:17.480 started to take a look at what legacy was gonna 0:20:17.480 --> 0:20:20.560 look like for me, and I had to decide was 0:20:20.720 --> 0:20:24.240 legacy going to be for me an amazing career at 0:20:24.240 --> 0:20:26.399 a company, which is nothing wrong with that. I was 0:20:26.480 --> 0:20:28.919 raised that way, both my parents did that, or was 0:20:28.960 --> 0:20:32.200 it going to be an opportunity to take my brand 0:20:32.240 --> 0:20:35.040 and say that the groundbreaking work that I've been a 0:20:35.080 --> 0:20:39.439 part of has been done under the USEL watch and 0:20:39.520 --> 0:20:41.760 not every other entity that I've been a part of. 0:20:42.119 --> 0:20:44.280 And that was something I really wanted to do. I had, 0:20:44.400 --> 0:20:46.320 you know, my brother said to me once, I'm not 0:20:46.440 --> 0:20:49.000 sure why you show up every day like Daddy's name 0:20:49.040 --> 0:20:51.960 is on the side of that building. It's not. And 0:20:52.040 --> 0:20:53.960 he was and I was just like, He's like, why 0:20:54.000 --> 0:20:56.520 why are you so upset? These people aren't your aren't 0:20:56.520 --> 0:20:59.000 your parents. You know, if you're gonna do this, let's 0:20:59.040 --> 0:21:02.639 let's build something for us. And so now you know, 0:21:02.720 --> 0:21:05.359 even here at Nesby, it's because I want to bring 0:21:05.800 --> 0:21:08.119 back the information and the things that I've learned in 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:11.600 the passion that I have and do something great for 0:21:11.640 --> 0:21:14.280 black people. And I think that, you know, if I 0:21:14.320 --> 0:21:16.639 can share some of the secrets and some of the 0:21:16.720 --> 0:21:19.800 lessons that I've learned, then I'll be able to say, 0:21:19.840 --> 0:21:21.800 this is a legacy that I wanted to take a 0:21:21.800 --> 0:21:24.720 look at. And I also believe that, you know, I've 0:21:24.720 --> 0:21:27.840 had an opportunity to create a pathway to wealth. Like 0:21:27.880 --> 0:21:30.960 I said that I was. I didn't even know I 0:21:31.000 --> 0:21:33.440 could think my way through at one point. And now 0:21:34.080 --> 0:21:36.760 I'm not letting anybody get in the way of that. Yeah, yeah, 0:21:36.800 --> 0:21:39.959 I mean when I met you, um a little over 0:21:40.080 --> 0:21:43.200 a month ago, maybe two months ago, and I saw 0:21:43.240 --> 0:21:45.680 you with your blue hair, your phoney glasses, I'm like, yeah, 0:21:45.840 --> 0:21:48.119 I'm never gonna forget her, right, I'm never gonna you 0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:51.879 can't forget her, you know. And I remember, you know, 0:21:52.320 --> 0:21:55.000 listening to this talk Jay Z gave about, you know, 0:21:55.040 --> 0:21:58.120 how he shows up in every room as himself he's 0:21:58.119 --> 0:22:00.560 not putting on any airs, and he is not, you know, 0:22:00.640 --> 0:22:03.159 changing the way he talks like he's and I'm and 0:22:03.200 --> 0:22:05.080 I'm thinking the one side, and it's like, yeah, well 0:22:05.080 --> 0:22:07.320 you're jay Z, like you don't have to, you know, 0:22:07.960 --> 0:22:10.000 do that. And then I look at you and I'm like, 0:22:10.080 --> 0:22:12.399 she's got her blue hair, And I would imagine there 0:22:12.440 --> 0:22:14.920 was a Daniel career where you couldn't walk in with 0:22:15.000 --> 0:22:18.800 blue hair. And I guess my question is, is at 0:22:18.840 --> 0:22:23.600 what point is it okay to completely show up as 0:22:23.680 --> 0:22:26.880 ourselves when we're walking in these corporate spaces, when we're 0:22:26.880 --> 0:22:31.480 walking in these you know, career roles. How do we 0:22:31.800 --> 0:22:35.320 get past the idea or can we get past the 0:22:35.480 --> 0:22:38.679 idea that we have to you know code switch like 0:22:38.800 --> 0:22:41.200 at at what has to happen so that we can 0:22:41.320 --> 0:22:47.439 just be who we are and provide value. So I 0:22:47.680 --> 0:22:51.480 no longer ascribe to the model that says I have 0:22:51.600 --> 0:22:55.919 to be different in other places. Um, I'm already different 0:22:55.960 --> 0:22:59.399 in every place. Because as as Shanna Ryan talks about this, 0:22:59.600 --> 0:23:01.840 the first, the only, the different, the five she talks 0:23:01.840 --> 0:23:05.040 about that particularly Black women, in most places we ever 0:23:05.040 --> 0:23:07.520 go to, we're usually the first, the first to trail 0:23:07.600 --> 0:23:10.680