What is it really like to be a Black business woman in corporate America? Listen to this podcast interview below with tech leader from Wall Street and influencer Krishna Davenport to find out!
Interview with Krishna Davenport
That one magic message that Black business women need to hear!
I think that the one thing that Black women in corporate America need to know is you have to be your most authentic self. You have to stop trying to box yourself into the standards that are set. It doesn’t mean going into the office and being loud and over the top. But it does mean speaking up when you wouldn’t normally. You have agency and you can’t be afraid to use it. It’s a risky move. But most times when you go against the grain, things change and things shift. And if you want to make upward moves, you have to go against the grain.
This is a lesson for all women, not just Black women. Women are taught to be thankful – thankful for a job; thankful for a career, thankful your husband allows you to work. In reality, the thankfulness should come from you. I’m thankful I have a career because I worked really hard for it. And that’s what black women, all women need to start thinking about. By taking action now, stepping into that discomfort is where those gutsy moves happen and where you could make the most change.
Be convincing without being overbearing. Black women tend to be seen as angry or aggressive. There are ways to speak to people that are clear and to the point that set boundaries.
Black business women: Make relationships across the firm
The more people who know you, the more people are going to stand up for you.
These relationships feed into other ways of advancing your career, but they also become relationships within your career space. My mentor said, people are going to give you a hard time for three reasons. You are smart, you are a woman, and you are Black.
And the Black part is going to outweigh all the other things because there are other smart women where you are. This is a message that I have carried with me and been able to differentiate between the people who are giving me a hard time because they don’t like me, or because they disagree with me. But when you are Black and female, you have to think about it three times more.
Before I forget, I want to be sure you know about my audio leadership course (it’s free) that’s designed to help you own your authority in your career and it works. It’s based on two decades of leading in Corporate America, (I’m a former Wall St. Executive) and those professionals I coach here at In Our Shoes.
Black business women: Be Assertive versus Aggressive
A common challenge women struggle with is being too aggressive versus assertive. Going in and speaking my mind and being blunt will show that I’m a leader. You want to show that strength, but it can be perceived as over the top.
When a woman strives to be like a man, that’s where a woman fails.
We come in with a script. I call it the rule of three – have three things you want to share with the room. You have to be flexible and adaptable in that conversation. You have to know the rules.
Black business women: Know how to negotiate and keep learning about others
Women don’t always have the capacity to negotiate. Women aren’t taught how to speak their mind, in a proper manner.
How do you avoid frustrations with assumptions that as a Black woman, you didn’t earn your position? Or worse, you were hired as part of a diversity initiative, or checking the boxes.
I realized that their assumptions are not my burden to bear. I got to a place where, I would challenge them. Because I knew they didn’t really have an answer.
Icebreakers are important, because you get to know whom you’re sitting next to. And that helps you to start with the judgments and the end the boxing in.
Change the perception of promoting. Black women are saying, I am not a box to be checked. And I don’t fit into any box. I create my own shape and my own authentic style.
Fitting into that box doesn’t allow you to see yourself, it doesn’t allow you to be your best self. Part of listening to your gut is listening to what you look like every day. Now, I’m not saying you have to walk in looking like a model. It comes down to your personal style and your power color. It helps people to take you more seriously when you walk in with your full self.
Black business women: Follow your gut
How do you best navigate and trust your gut when you’re making decisions in your life?
Listen, listen to your body. Feel trapped between a rock and a hard place? Rocks can be moved. You can push a rock out the way. I focus on what’s around me. I trust my instinct. I always get an upset stomach when I’m not listening to myself. Look at what your body is telling you. Because our bodies know when something is wrong. You have to trust yourself. You have to listen to yourself.
I am honored to have Krishna here in the In Our Shoes village. She is so genuine and as you can hear, ready to share what she knows to pull women forward. This is not about my shoes, or yours. It’s about OUR shoes and together by sharing our challenges, and stories, we learn from one another and grow further. The power of many, it’s a beautiful thing, gutsy leaders. Life is a beautiful thing and make no mistake – nothing is ever random. I feel in my gut these words Krishna shares here can be just the extra nudge someone can use to move the needle in their career.
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Grab a notebook, sit back with a cup of tea, coffee or glass of wine and listen in! Learn more below.
