In the finale of season 1, we dive into a tutorial I've been getting asked to make for almost a decade - how to choose your word for the year.  It's a quick episode, but a valuable one, and I hope it helps you move into 2021 with the kind of energy you want to bring.

I’m going to share with you the most important lesson I’ve learned over the past decade of doing this, I am going to share what my words have been each year and what they invited in, and I’m going to provide some suggestions on how to choose the word that’s right for you. 

At the end, I’m going to share my 2021 word and a few very special guests are going to share theirs too. 

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat. Enjoy the show!

Today we're talking to Amanda Villarreal, a Texicana, business-minded powerhouse who works in human-centered design. Amanda grew up in a Mexican-American family surrounded by brothers and worked across social work, politics, academia, tech, and business before landing at frog, the legendary 50+ year-old strategy and design consultancy that worked with Steve Jobs in the 1980’s to design the first Apple products.

As I mention a few times during the show, it's fun to watch how fast Amanda's mind moves. This episode is for you if you've been wondering how to connect the dots and find the superpowers in what feels like your own patchwork career - as Amanda shows, those varied backgrounds give us strength and the ability to approach challenges in creative, multi-disciplinary-informed ways.

For Amanda - this ability to connect seemingly disparate things came from two places: 1) growing up as an artistic kid and 2) the superpower of an ADHD mind when given the tools to thrive and let go of the judgement of a non-linear path.

In the second half of the show, you'll hear about Amanda's amazing dad Jesus, who grew up a mile from the Mexico - US border, ended up at Boston University as an engineering student, then got his Masters from MIT, where he founded the first Latino Students Organization. Amanda credits not only his academic intelligence, but his immense emotional intelligence and empathy for all he's been able to accomplish, and all he's been able to do for their family.

Learn more about Amanda and her work at amandanvillarreal.com - check out this post about entering the design field as a non-designer.

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat. Enjoy the show!

Today we're talking to Desi, the Brooklyn-based powerhouse, lifestyle creative, storyteller, and hospitality pro who believes you deserve to live well (and sets an amazing example of self-investment and self-love for you to follow).

She has a multitude of creative and business projects that support and advocate for Black, Brown, and other marginalized communities, and uses her skills to constantly uplift others. Be sure to check out her IGTV series Bomb Brands & Beyond, enjoy her #haikusinthemorning, and head over to LifeByDesi.com for more gems.

In the episode, you'll hear the story of how she first came to NYC at the age of 19 looking to replace Free on 106 & Park, and how she hustled her way back to thriving in Brooklyn.

You'll also hear about Desi's grandmother who raised Desi on the south side of Chicago. Jean was a powerhouse herself who had adopted Desi's mother and aunt, learned to lead by example, and always kept Desi creatively occupied.

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat. Enjoy the show!

In Episode 7, we talk to Casey Gueren, author of a forthcoming book all about managing health anxiety (#2020Relevant), currently the editorial director at kinship, previously Health Director then Executive Editor at SELF Magazine, and Health Editor at BuzzFeed News.

We talked about what it was like to work as an executive editor at a wellness media brand, as the pandemic was hitting, and as she was finishing writing her book about living with and managing health anxiety (spoiler: really f*cking hard). 

We also talked about the vital role of responsibly packaging and sharing health information that can positively impact other's lives, and how reading magazines like Seventeen and YM growing up influenced her career trajectory. You'll love hearing about the person who made her great - his work ethic is unmatched, and it helped Casey become who she is today.

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat.

This week, we're talking to Danni Washington, the very first ever Black woman science TV show host 🎥  You've seen her on Emmy-nominated Mission Unstoppable, as well as on Xploration Station and all over the Science Channel.

She is the co-founder of the Big Blue and You (with the person who made her great, hint hint), a fellow University of Miami alumna, and our very first two-time guest, having been a part of the original WhoMadeYouGreat.com in 2010 (check out her first interview here!). You also may recognize her as the Mocha Mermaid.

We hit on so many gems in this episode, from the power of the divine feminine and operating from a place of love as opposed to fear, to the most amazing experience Danni has ever had with an ocean animal (a giant manta ray!). We talk about how Danni maintains her pace without burning out, and her best pieces of advice for people looking to come into their own. 

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat. Enjoy the show!

We're back! We have a new President-elect and a new WMYG? episode 🎉This week, we're talking to Eritrea Mussa Khan, an absolute gem of a human from whom you're going to love hearing the stories of who made her great.

Eritrea has a quick-moving mind currently being put to work in tech, while also playing a major role in the diabetes community through her work at Diabetics Doing Things. Fair warning, you're going to hear some continuous glucose monitor alarms in this episode SO YOU KNOW IT'S REAL #diabeteslife 

In this episode, we chat about how Eritrea's work in education tech makes her feel like she's helping family members and how she works to uplift the many vitally important voices in the diabetes online community. We talked about how hard it was to be a mixed kid growing up in Texas but how that informed her empathy and ability to pay attention to so many important things happening across the globe. 

Right before the 14 minute mark we start talking about who made Eritrea great. I was honored to hear their story again, as Eritrea's parents go far beyond special and resilient. Her father, who was an Eritrean war refugee, and her mother, who was born and raised in Mexico in an intensely hard-working family, fell for each other without speaking the same language, and have raised their children to be true citizens of the planet. 

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat.

Today's episode features CJ, founder of Yoga with the Redhead. CJ is a teacher, yoga instructor, and entrepreneur whose business offers individual and group yoga in a safe, supportive, and inclusive (virtual or safely in-person!) environment. 

We talked about extending ourselves grace, leading with empathy, and how kindness and non-judgement is central to everything CJ does. Here's the key though - while that sounds super yoga-y and woo-woo, don't be mistaken because CJ shows up as her full, playful, hilarious, call-some-shit-out person in all the spaces she exists in, which makes us appreciate her even more. 

Becoming a theme in this show, CJ broke my rules about only choosing one person who helped make her great, but I allowed it because - as anyone who is a member of a Greek organization knows - your line moves as one. So shout out to CJ's line sisters of Sigma Lambda Gamma.

Thank you to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music. Find more episodes and interviews at WhoMadeYouGreat.com. Find us on Instagram at @WhoMadeYouGreat.

Suezette is an opener of doors and champion of Black and otherwise underrepresented voices across tech and business. Founder of #BlackTechBeauty, currently at Facebook, previously at Google, TEDx speaker, and 40 under 40 honoree, Suezette is a powerhouse and advocate for creating spaces for and fostering the confidence to show up as your authentic self.

We chatted about the difference between the confidence to speak in public and be yourself versus the confidence it takes to be vulnerable in our interpersonal relationships, the importance of watching her parents become good friends after they got divorced, and how her family owning the only Caribbean store in Roanoke, Virginia taught her to foster community. We also talked about having the right people around us, and how vital therapy is for becoming who you were meant to be.

You can find Suezette on LinkedIn or Instagram. Thank you as always to Lionel T. Djaowe for our music!