S8E9: Turn up Your Self-Celebration with Dr. Lakila Bowden
Release Date: 12/18/2025
S8E28: Resetting Your Career with Intention
Black Woman Leading
What does it really mean to reset? Not to give up. Not to start over from scratch. But to pause with intention, get honest with yourself, and realign your career with who you actually are and where you actually want to go. In this solo episode, Laura walks listeners through the Black Woman Leading Career Reset Framework, a five-area reflection process designed to help leaders regroup, restore, and realign with clarity and purpose. Drawing from the Black Woman Leading Career Reset Kit, this episode brings together head work and heart work to support leaders who are navigating transition,...
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S8E27: Moving Beyond Titles with Suezette Yasmin Robotham
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura sits down with Suezette Yasmin Robotham, bestselling author, global talent and culture executive, executive coach, and keynote speaker, to explore one of the most important and often unasked questions in leadership: who are you when the titles fade away? Drawing from her book Beyond Titles: Fearlessly Leading as Your Authentic Self, Suezette brings two decades of experience shaping leadership at some of the world's most recognized organizations, including Google, Meta, Gartner, and Salesforce, to a conversation that is equal parts practical and deeply personal. Together,...
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S8E26: Defining Your Executive Presence with Shaquanna Chappelle
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura sits down with Shaquanna Chappelle, executive presence consultant and speaker, to break down what executive presence really is and what it isn’t. While executive presence is often framed around image, polish, or performance, Shaquanna invites us into a deeper understanding: true presence is built from the inside out. Drawing from her journey from wardrobe stylist to confidence and presence expert, she shares how she realized that what many leaders were struggling with wasn’t how they looked, but how they felt about themselves. Together, Laura and Shaquanna explore...
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S8E25: Reclaiming Your Power Through the Body with Blessing Uchendu
Black Woman Leading
In this episode of Black Woman Leading, Laura is joined by Blessing Uchendu, licensed clinical social worker and somatic leadership coach, to explore what it means to reclaim your power through the body. With over two decades of clinical experience, Blessing challenges a common assumption in leadership development—that growth is simply a mindset shift away. Instead, she introduces a deeper truth: your nervous system is shaping how you lead, how you respond, and how you experience the workplace. Together, Laura and Blessing unpack the power of somatics, a body-based approach to awareness and...
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S8E24: Catalyzing Community-Led Leadership with Alysia Lee
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura sits down with Alysia Lee, President & CEO of the Baltimore Children & Youth Fund, to explore what it means to lead through community, creativity, and shared power. Alysia brings a unique leadership lens shaped by her background as a musician and composer, offering insight into how artistic practice (listening, collaboration, and responsiveness) translates into her approach as a first-time CEO. At the heart of the conversation is Alysia’s approach to Ubuntu community-led leadership—a model that challenges traditional, expert-driven systems and instead centers...
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S8E23: Casting Your Future with Dr. Cornelia Shipley Bearyman
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura is joined by Dr. Cornelia Shipley-Bearyman, Founder & CEO of 3C Consulting, to explore what it means to intentionally cast your future, not just react to your present. Drawing from her work in leadership, culture transformation, and her recent PhD in metaphysics, Dr. Cornelia breaks down how our mindset, language, and belief systems shape the realities we experience, both personally and professionally. She invites listeners to consider how the way we think, speak, and interpret our circumstances directly influences what becomes possible in our lives. Together, Laura...
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S8E22: Leveraging Strategic Self-Advocacy with Sarah Boyd
Black Woman Leading
In this timely and empowering episode, Laura sits down with Sarah Boyd, Founder & CEO of The Formation, to unpack what it truly means to leverage strategic self-advocacy—especially for Black women navigating today’s complex corporate landscape. Drawing from her experience working with C-suite leaders and building community for Black women in corporate spaces, Sarah introduces a more nuanced understanding of self-advocacy—one that goes beyond simply “speaking up” and instead centers strategy, clarity, and sustainability. Together, Laura and Sarah explore why self-advocacy is not...
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S8E21: Reclaiming Connection & Purpose with Dr. Cree Scott
Black Woman Leading
Updated: We recently learned that Dr. Cree Scott passed away in December 2025. We didn’t know when this episode aired. We recorded in November 2026, and she requested that the episode be released this spring closer to her book release. We're heartbroken and keeping this up because her words deserve to be heard. Her book, The Missing Peace, releases April 14th, posthumously. Please consider grabbing a copy to honor her legacy. Purchase the book here: ______ In this insightful episode of Black Woman Leading, Laura sits down with Dr. Cree Scott, clinical psychologist, workplace...
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S8E20: Exploring Professional Wanderlust with Dr. Crystal Moten
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura is joined by Dr. Crystal Moten, an award-winning writer, historian, and expert on Black women’s history who has spent her career amplifying the lives and labors of Black women. Dr. Moten introduces the concept of professional wanderlust, a term she coined to reframe how we think about career mobility. Drawing inspiration from the idea of wanderlust in travel, she explores how many Black women navigate their careers as spaces of learning, growth, and exploration rather than following a single, linear path. A self-described professional wanderlust herself, Dr....
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S8E19: Amplifying Your Strengths with Dr. Elizabeth Adams
Black Woman Leading
In this episode, Laura sits down with Dr. Elizabeth Adams to explore what it truly means to amplify your strengths… not just possess them. In today’s dynamic corporate and technological landscape, many Black women leaders are deeply skilled yet under-recognized. Dr. Adams challenges listeners to move beyond quiet competence and into intentional visibility — leveraging presence, strategy, and even AI as tools to elevate their leadership. Together, they unpack how Black women can confidently own their leadership identity, strategically identify overlooked opportunities, and use emerging...
info_outlineIn this conversation, Laura welcomes Dr. Lakila Bowden to explore the transformative practice of self-celebration and the role it plays in helping Black women reclaim agency, joy, and permission to lead from a place of fullness.
Drawing from key concepts in her book, The Sho’Nuff Principle, Lakila lays out a liberatory framework for centering ourselves without guilt, raising our expectations, and giving ourselves the recognition we often withhold.
Laura and Lakila unpack the guilt, shame, and cultural conditioning that often arise when Black women center themselves, and what it looks like to begin shifting that mindset with compassion. Additionally, Lakila explains why self-celebration is not “extra,” but essential. She explores the emotional and psychological roots of celebration, encouraging Black women to “brag more,” and teaching how celebration functions as a mirror, an amplifier, and a motivator.
Whether you’ve avoided attention, minimized your accomplishments, or struggled with self-recognition, Lakila offers accessible starting points to begin turning up your self- celebration.
About Dr. Lakila
Dr. Lakila Bowden is the charismatic voice high-achieving women didn’t know they were missing. A visionary speaker, company founder, and unapologetic rest advocate, she’s the COO of iSee Technologies and author of The Sho’ Nuff Principle: A High Achieving Woman’s Guide to Self-Care, Self-Promotion, & Self-Celebration.
After a thriving executive career in Fortune 500 companies like GE and DaVita—and retiring from corporate America at just 37—Dr. Bowden’s charted a bold path that’s led to her becoming a trusted voice on stage for powerhouse organizations like The Walt Disney Company, Kraft Heinz, Verizon, and JP Morgan.
Lakila embraces a multi-hyphenate lifestyle which aligns with her personal ethos to operate in flow vs force in wealth creation and living life in celebratory fashion. As a proud North Carolina A&T Aggie Alum, her academic credentials, including an MBA from Emory University and an honorary doctorate in Humanitarianism, bolster her practical strategies for balancing demanding careers with personal well-being. She resides in the Atlanta area, enjoying the adventures of life with her remarkable husband, Eric, and their brilliant and kind son, Zaire Aasir.
Connect with Lakila
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Instagram: @lakilaj
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LInkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-lakila-bowden-mba-0463272/
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Website: www.iseetechnologies.com
- Take the Guilt Detox Assessment: https://lakilabowden.com/guilt-detox/
BWL Resources:
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Now enrolling for both the January sessions of the Early Career and Mid-Career programs. Learn more at https://blackwomanleading.com/programs-overview/
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Check out the BWL theme song here
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Check out the BWL line dance tutorial here
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Download the free Black Woman Leading Career Reset Kit - https://blackwomanleading.com/career-reset-kit/
Credits:
Learn about all Black Woman Leading® programs, resources, and events at www.blackwomanleading.com
Learn more about our consulting work with organizations at https://knightsconsultinggroup.com/
Email Laura: info@knightsconsultinggroup.com
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Instagram: @blackwomanleading
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Podcast Music & Production: Marshall Knights
Graphics: Dara Adams
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