I'm curious: do your passions and hobbies — seemingly unconnected to your career — give you an unexpected professional edge?

When you plant a seed, you wait to reap the benefits.

In some cases, you don't see it for years. But does that mean you shouldn't plant that seed? Jennifer disagrees.

“Never give up on yourself” – 

These were the words Angela Ashawasegai repeated to herself for years. They became her mantra, helping her find and build her inner strength.

Angela was removed from her mother at birth and was placed into the child welfare system. Throughout her tumultuous childhood, she had no safe place to call home. From surviving abuse and homelessness, Angela emerged as her hero, crediting her survival to education, spirituality, and art.

In a landscape where barriers often overshadow opportunities…

Mary Yazdani is curious about impactful results.

Drawing insights from those who have successfully carved paths before her, she studied their strategies and implemented the advice that worked. At the age of 32, she started a new life in Canada with her family. Leveraging her expertise and resourcefulness in navigating unfamiliar terrain, she established a business aimed at propelling others.

Recognized as a “fixer” in the business world, Susan has played a significant role in the lives of leaders grappling with complex problems through hands-on transformational change. How? By adopting the Successful Change Mindset. With a gift of discerning patterns in a business and amplifying what works, Susan’s latest entrepreneurial venture, 8020CS, and her book, Successful Change, are examples of her mission in action.

As Daniel beautifully states, "When one is able to create space, whether virtual or in real life, they are, in fact, catalyzing creativity, which I believe leads to real solutions. That's what I want my life's work to be about.” Daniel P. Calderon, Brooklyn native, holds the roles of President of Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow (EOT) sand owner of #WFHStudio.

Adeola Adejobi moves mountains and touches hearts with her vision and efforts to create long-lasting economic impact. Her mission is clear: to connect Black individuals with information that has the power to reshape the trajectory of their economic mobility and that of their families.

Sherrell Dorsey is the founder and CEO of The Plug—a digital news and insights platform covering the Black innovation economy.

To drive meaningful change, we need equitable representation among the leaders driving its evolution. That's why Solmaz Shahalizadeh, Shopify's former Head of Data Science and Engineering, became a Founding Partner of Backbone Angels. She joins us to share why great career paths aren't linear, what you need to know to impress investors, and the difference between sponsors and mentors (and why you should have both).

With her diverse team of experts, Co-founder and CEO of Archipel Research and Consulting Inc. Sabre Pictou Lee is harnessing them to help organizations change for the better. Today, Sabre shares why anti-colonial ways and concepts aren’t radical, how she built her business from the ground up, and the frameworks you can apply to make yours more inclusive.

Touching the most complex organ in the human body, concussion treatment continues to evolve as experts learn more about the workings of our brain—to mitigate the debilitating, long-term consequences of mistreatment. That’s why Dr. Ashleigh Kennedy co-founded health-tech startup Neurovine AI: combining deep tech, machine learning and the art of neuroscience to empower concussion patients and optimize their recovery process.

Stacey joined us to share the greatest lessons she’s learned as a serial entrepreneur: from overcoming failure and channeling your purpose, to finding the right people for guidance, and raising money during a pandemic (with the power of crowdfunding).

Anthony Frasier (@anthonyfraiser) is the CEO and founder of ABF Creative (www.abfc.co) – a data-driven podcasting production company that leverages machine learning technology to reach very specific audiences. Anthony is also the author of Don’t Dumb Down Your Greatness, a young entrepreneur’s guide to thinking and being great. Anthony is a global speaker on topics related to technology, media and entrepreneurship.

Murdock (@amurdock_ii) is a purpose-driven, action-oriented, servant-leader and proud product of Indianapolis, Indiana. He’s passionate about leveraging the power in his story and other Black stories to create opportunities for economic & community development. He's in the business of becoming the greatest "powerpreneur" Indianapolis has ever seen.

She’s the President & Co-founder of Hyperion Global Energy — a world-leading climate tech startup up developing the world’s first carbon recycling system. But this impact-focused entrepreneur wasn’t always a carbontech leader.

In the midst of losing her job, Bobbie Racette set out to build a platform that would economically empower others. As the Founder and CEO of Virtual Gurus, this Cree-Metis champion for Indigenous and the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities is doing just that through her inclusivity-first talent and services solution.

With an eye to ushering a new generation of financially empowered youth, Tecla K. Kalinda, a Senior Analyst at the Bank of Canada, founded ZalaSmart: a financial education company geared towards teaching kids and teens financial literacy by helping them develop personal finance skills to better manage their money.

She raised $1.4 million and co-founded Black Women Talk Tech along the way. Today, Esosa Ighodaro-Johnson wants to help you get out of your own way.

Makini Smith is an award-winning entrepreneur and the founder of A Walk in my Stilettos. As a mindset coach and Proctor Gallagher certified consultant, Makini helps you turn your goals into accomplishments.

Erin Blaskie is a fractional CMO and marketing advisor to startups and scaleups. In 2004, Erin founded one of the first virtual assistance businesses in Canada, served over 300 business across North America and entered into the technology space. As a voracious learner, Erin made a name for herself in the industry, took on many challenges and built a brand as a marketing expert.