This week’s guest is Sacred Walker, founder at Kuumba Health International Coaching Institute based out of New York. She is also a mental health and mind, body, and soul health enthusiast.

At Kuumba, Sacred and her team work with ambitious leaders focusing on their mental, emotional and mind-body health often focusing on addressing issues in their past so that they are empowered to move forward from a place of strength.  

We chat about:

• Framing experiences as moving from “pain to superpower” and what this means for Sacred
• Her approach of LOVE Medicine Coaching. Find out what the acronym of LOVE means
• Meeting someone where they are in terms of readiness to seek professional help

Note from Rabiah (Host): 

Sacred and I had two wonderful conversations. In the first, I was on her podcast which you can checkout online. The result of the second is this episode of More Than Work. We ended up meeting in person later on as well and she was as genuine and kind then as she was in our remote conversations. I felt empowered after our encounters and think you will feel empowered too after listening!

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Find Sacred

Website: https://sacredwalker.net/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asksacred 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/asksacred 

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sacredwalker 

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Mentioned in this episode:

Octavia Butler: https://www.octaviabutler.com/ 

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More than Work Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @morethanworkpod Please review and follow anywhere you get podcasts. Thank you for listening. Have feedback? Email morethanworkpod(at)gmail.com!

This is More Than Work, the podcast reminding you that your self worth

is made up of more than your job title.

Each week I'll talk to a guest about how they discovered that for themselves.

You'll hear about what they did, what they're doing, and who they are.

I'm your host, Rabiah.

I work in IT, perform standup comedy, write, volunteer, and of course, podcast.

Thank you for listening.

Here we go.

Hello, welcome back to More Than Work podcast, or if this is your first

time joining, thanks for being here for the first time and I hope that

you enjoy this episode and you check out some other episodes I've had.

A couple weeks ago I said I wasn't gonna do this intro anymore.

I wasn't just gonna kind of go right into the podcast and I decided that

now I really miss doing this part of the podcast cause I think it's a

good time for me to just talk about something I need to uh, share with

people or maybe if I wanna do promos of other podcasts, like promo swaps.

And if you do hear noise, by the way, like honking horns, it's because I have

not been able to get a quiet moment here in London where I live because people

are just constantly honking their horns.

As we all know.

That makes traffic move, so, um, anyway, you may not hear it and then you wonder

why I even mentioned it, but I can't tell right now if you'll hear it or not.

So, um, basically I wasn't gonna do the intro thinking I could save myself a few

minutes a week on the podcast, and now I'm trying to do the podcast every other week.

I don't really like that too much either but the fact is, I work

full time, do standup comedy and do volunteer work, and I want to make sure

I'm delivering quality episodes and getting really great guests, but also

having time like downtime for myself.

And, I think in the spirit of More Than Work, I am just trying to make

adjustments that that work for me and that will work for the listeners.

So thanks for your patience.

I may do episodes weekly sometimes, and I may do every other week, and

just depends on how many guests I have lined up and how much time I have too.

So, I'm really excited to bring you this episode with Sacred Walker.

I won't talk too much about it other than tell you that I did meet her in person.

So we talk about it on the podcast at some point.

I'm going to New York and she's in New York, but I did get to meet her.

She actually, she, she's a person of her word.

She showed up at one of my gigs in New York when I was

performing at The Tiny Cupboard.

That was really awesome.

So I don't really get to meet people from the podcast in person too often,

and that was really awesome and special.

So anyway, thanks for listening.

Thanks for being here.

And if you take away anything from this beginning part, it's just that

setting boundaries takes work and figuring out what those boundaries are

takes work and so that's why there's a little bit of flex on the podcast

right now, and thanks for understanding.

I'll let you get to the episode now.

So everyone today, I have a guest who was actually recommended by a previous

guest and we got along really well.

So Naketa Ren Thigpe n was on the show quite a while ago.

And we've been in touch here and there and she's brought me Sacred Walker.

So I'm happy to welcome her.

She's CEO of Kumba Health International Coaching Institute and mental health

and mind, body, soul health enthusiast.

And that was a lot for me to get through, but we'll talk about all that means.

So how are you doing, Sacred?

I'm wonderful.

It's good to, good to see you Rabiah.

How are you?.

Good.

Good.

Thank you.

So where am I talking to you from?

I'm calling in today from Brooklyn, New York.

And I'm so excited to be connecting with people tuning in from all over today.

Awesome.

I think just really, we'll start out with what your Institute is and just

talk about that and, and, and how you founded it and what you're doing there.

Yeah.

Sure.

So, we've been around for over a decade and we focus on working with those

who are excellence driven, usually ambitious leaders who want to, because

of they've had something from their past that was painful, or they've had

something in their family that was a health challenge and they wanna do

something different than the way that they kind of were raised or grew up.

So we kind of tend to work with underdogs around their mental

health, their emotional health and their mind body health so that they

can be the powerhouse they are.

And, um, we tend to work really aligned with people who are the

one of something in their role.

So they're executives or their entrepreneurs, and somewhere

along the way, they're like the became an island of one.

And so they're at the place where they're like, they hit that glass

ceiling, they broke through, but they really wanna connect with others.

And so because of that, we build online communities that are focused

in, on self love, self care, and.

So that they can connect with one another so they can thrive.

Amazing.

And so how did you get into doing this, this work?

I mean, I know I've read like, and we talked about, you're a minister,

an interfaith minister for one thing, but your coach and you do

kind of a lot of different things.

So how did you get into this specific work with these kind of people?

Yeah, absolutely.

So I started out at first to be honest, working with those around mental health,

I was doing one on one in private.

And I was combining my background of drama therapy and mental health

therapy with interfaith ministry, because sometimes people come to

healing because they're like, yes, I'm ready to get support from a therapist.

And other times they just really need something that feels very soulful.

They need something that's gonna feel like they can really get that

holistic approach, something that honors their faith background.

And so I had enough people who felt like their faith and their

healing went hand in hand that I really kind of focused in on that.

But what I kept finding was that they really were experiencing

transformation in our work.

They were sleeping better.

Their headaches were starting to go away.

They started to have less stomach issues because they were stress

eating less and noticing they were communicating clearly with their partner.

But their stress was still high because the work environment they

were in was actually really stressful.

And what they realized was, yeah, this is great that I'm, you know, transforming my.

But what happens when I go back to my workplace and that's

actually the source of my stress.

So we began to do works where we began at first to work with individual.

And then we started going into their companies and helping them function

better, helping them to understand how do you work with someone who

has a partner who is L G B T, right?

Or how do you work with someone who is of a culturally different

background or of Muslim background?

And you don't cause them stress just by them being who they are, right?

And so eventually we said, you know what, it's great that we

can transform their workplace, but how about we help them build.

So when they leave work, they can connect, they can exhale and they can

take care of themselves in a new way.

Yeah.

Well, and what's interesting about what you said about people who maybe

are working in an environment where they're maybe the only L G B T person.

Or the only person of color or something that can be a lot of pressure

and a lot of pressure in different ways that I've seen at work now.

Um, or in the last say two years when there was definitely more of a reckoning

than, than there had been before, at least among I'll just say among white people,

you know, and I, I saw it put pressure on coworkers who like maybe someone who's

black and they're the only person now.

And they are suddenly the person who's supposed to be representing

everybody for the people you work with.

And that's really, I can see how that's really hard.

There's a big difference between like inclusion and belonging too.

And I think that's like a big one that I learned was you can include people, but do

you make them make sure they belong also?

Right.

Exactly.

Exactly.

And I think that that belonging makes such a difference, but you have to first feel

like you belong in your own skin, right?

You have to first feel like you belong and you feel safe inside your head,

that the inner critic up here isn't louder than the people outside of

you that are saying, Hey, help me understand what it is to be a lesbian.

Or help me understand what it is to be Afro-Caribbean right.

If you, sometimes you have to have that inner resilience and so we're

actually about to launch something called Executives at Ease and it's

for executives and entrepreneurs so that we can be in spaces where

you don't have to explain yourself.

You don't have to tell somebody, Hey, this is what we do in the bedroom,

because it's none of your bees wax, right?

Hello.

As a black lesbian myself, right?

Like you don't have to take that time to really have to be on.

And you can really experience transformation and self-care in a new way.

So it's gonna be a self-care immersion because I just realize that sometimes you

can't focus on yourself if you constantly are feeling like the critic in the world

and the critic up here are saying the same thing, , you know, you know, sometimes you

need a little break, you know, you need a little time to just TLC and then you can

be like, okay, wonder woman, let's go.

Powerhouse, let's go back in the world.

But sometimes you need a moment to just recoup.

Yeah, no, that's true.

And I think I, yeah, definitely have experienced where I thought what I was

thinking everyone else was thinking.

And then it turns out they weren't actually.

It was just me doing it and me putting all this pressure on myself and when people.

You know, found out what I had to tell them they were fine.

And it was just me the whole time, you know?

And it's just, it's an interesting thing to go through that

and to, to reckon with that.

So, yeah, you're right.

It's, it's a matter of both, really.

Yeah, it is definitely a dance.

I think that's one of the things that I loved in our first conversation.

I remember when I was listening to you and just hearing about your journey and

hearing about how resilient you are, you know, it just, for me was so refreshing

to know that you've overcome so much and then you have poured it into comedy.

Like I call them like a pain to superpower, you know, journey

to be able to see like, what are the things that we've overcome

in the past that didn't stop.

Right.

And it could have, cuz they've stopped a lot of other people and how do we

transform that and still show up and actually show up even better, you know?

So I was like, oh, this is this, this sister's badass.

I need to be on her.

I need to be on her podcast.

I just felt that.

I just felt like so refreshed by just hearing your story just off the bat.

Well, thank you.

I appreciate that.

And, um, and yeah, and there's, there's always more to the story too,

but it's just, you know, you find the ways to share what, what you can

at each time and what impacts you.

And I guess like, so for you, is there something that brought you

to understand that you could help people in these areas because of

what you've gone through yourself?

yeah, no, absolutely.

I would say that for me personally, my pain to superpower, um, story

was that like I lived through the Crown Heights riots, like growing up

Um, Hmm.

You know, the Caribbean communities that were both Jewish and

Caribbean and seeing the strife there.

And then later on, when I came out, you know, being of L G B T

and also Afro-Caribbean, It just felt like you couldn't be both and.

It felt like I couldn't find a space there either.

And then later on down the line, and even when I came out as an entrepreneur, I

felt like a lot of people didn't get that.

I remember telling someone once that I was gonna be a therapist and they were like,

are you gonna be helping people work out?

Like, are you gonna be helping people do stretches or build their muscles?

And I had to teach that well, actually it is a different muscle, right?

It's the emotional muscle.

It's the muscle that we oftentimes underestimate how we can really

transform the world when we take care of ourselves, how we show up.

So I had so many situations that I felt that.

And actually recently I was in a situation where I was being gaslighted

and I didn't even know, right?

That I going through this experience where someone who I was in collaboration

with, who I thought, you know, we were in one path, kept saying

one thing, but was doing another.

And it wasn't until I actually ended up taking them to court like literally I had

to be proactive and took them to court that I realized, oh, this is triggering my

stuff from the past where I felt like the little girl in me wanted to cower back.

And I was like, you know what?

I have a choice.

I have a choice of letting the underdog in me, stand up and say no more.

Or I can shrink back because I'm afraid of what if no one believes me, right?

And so that's, for me, that's a real thing.

So I think I've had all these moments that made me realize, you know what,

for me, anyway, my soul mission is God calling me to say, you know what?

You've been called to this.

I've put you through all these different experiences.

Use those things for your greater good and help other people do the same.

Um, so I tend to attract people who are like me; who are service

oriented, who care about the world.

But sometimes if they're not careful, they're taking care of everybody else

because they're used to being the underdog so they're taking care of everybody else

and don't often take care of themselves.

Yeah, I can see that.

And yeah, because you don't learn to do that sometimes when you're surviving,

you're trying to please everyone, or you're trying to just defend against

like yeah people even gaslighting you or whatever went on in your home

so that, that makes total sense.

And so then, um, you coined the term love medicine coaching.

So do you wanna talk a little bit about what that means?

Sure.

So love is an acronym and L stands for living your principles, meaning

that sometimes you get clear that what your principles are and what you've

been doing all along are different.

You're like, oh shoot, I'm in this job.

Like I had someone I worked with that was a journalist and she

started doing a lot of click through bait uh, kind of articles.

And she felt like she was really tired of just writing more pop culture things.

She actually really wanted to write about advocacy and human rights.

And so we were able to position her as an expert online in her niche.

So she actually got a promotion because once she got clear about

these are my principles, all of a sudden she started living out loud in

a clearer way more confidently, and then she was able to level up, right?

So I believe like living, living your principles helped you level up level up.

Then, O is for opportunity, right?

It's like, okay, I recognize that I am the.

Right.

Like, I am my own differentiator as we say in business.

So what is the opportunity that I am being presented as, and how do I step into it?

V is for turning vices to victory.

Like I'm a recovering shopaholic.

I was the queen of like putting on these power suits, showing

up in these board rooms.

And even when I showed up in some of those spaces, I literally had, I

remember once I was in I'm a, you know, a member of a certain chamber that I

will not speak the name and someone passed me their coat and said, ma'am,

can you please hang this up for me?

And even though I was in my power suit, they assumed that I was the person putting

away the coats because I couldn't possibly be the executive that was actually

the keynote for the evening, right?

And so for me, those are vice to victory moments that I remember, I, I was spending

on the outside because I felt like a fraud on the inside because I was like,

oh my gosh, if I just had the right suit on, then they wouldn't treat me that way.

And I realized, wait a minute, that's not on me.

That's not on me.

So how could I actually show up in my power suit?

But sometimes I didn't need to buy 50 power suits and actually

feel like a fraud on the inside.

I can do that work with a therapist or a coach so that I can actually be victorious

and actually shift that spending.

And now I can spend that money on taking myself on a vacation after I

did the keynote versus feeling like you talking to me in that way was my

fault because sometimes we mistake the outside voice for the inside voice.

That is vice to victory.

And E is emerging in your unmatched potential.

Like recognizing that you are one and only you and the way I see it, that spirit in

whatever way and name you call it, whether it's Jehovah, whether you call it, you

know, Messiah, whether you call it Elohim, you know, whether you call it Baháʼí.

Like whoever you move with, whatever faith you move with, that we

get a chance to say that you are emerging in your unmatched potential.

And then that's how we stand in love.

Hmm.

Yeah, that's really cool.

And I mean, it's a lot.

I'm sure anyone listening and when, when this is posted, I mean, will really have

to think about it for a minute, you know?

Cause I'm, I was like kind of reflecting on those things and I think especially

it's interesting that journalist living in her values because I think that

that helps so much when you can, when you're brave enough to say what they

are sometimes too, because sometimes your values won't align with what

you, your beliefs about yourself are even, and, and then you have to work

really hard to change those just to be living in your truth, but, and, and

yeah, not chasing money necessarily sometimes to, to live in that.

I think the younger people are starting to do that, where they're

making decisions based on their values, not based on everything else.

And I think people my age and older, um, didn't do that for a while so it's a, it's

a learning curve, which is interesting.

Absolutely.

And depending on your family, too, like if you come from a family that says one thing

is valuable than the other- and sometimes be honest, there have been plenty of

folks that I've worked with that have gotten clear on their values and realized

they were undervaluing themselves.

That because they were so afraid of really standing in their truth, or maybe they

stood in their truth and sometimes got knocked down, they were able to call in,

well, actually this is how much I'm really worth and if I speak into it and I show

that I, you know, have that value, then I can call in more than I currently am.

And they've actually called in books.

They've been able to ask for promotions.

They've been able to start their own businesses and they ended

up making more on the other side of working through with the L.

Mm-hmm . Yeah.

Have you found there's one aspect that's just generally more difficult for people

or does it just vary by the individual?

You know what, I would say the biggest thing that I find in kind of taking

people through the love medicine method is the habits that stick.

So sometimes people come in.

The biggest thing that I find is that people know that taking care of

yourself is important and they know that self love is important, but being

an "executive at ease" means that you have regular habits that you stick with.

That's the biggest thing.

Or even identifying, yeah, I know that technically me stress eating

and two in the morning is gonna actually make me exhausted and not

have enough energy for the day.

I know that, but, uh, it's within reach and I'm tired and

I just wanna quick snack, right?

But it's like understanding the deeper issues sometimes when

we unpack it some more, we.

Oh, this is why I just want comfort food.

Like I know when I, my mom transitioned, I started craving oxtail.

Now, mind you, I'm a pescatarian right there.

Usually I'm not eating beef.

And I was craving oxtail.

And I was eating oxtail and my stomach started hurting and I was feeling

sluggish, but I was like, this oxtail was so delicious and there's nothing

wrong with eating beef for those who do, but there was something I was craving.

And when I began to do my own work, I realized, oh, I'm just missing home.

I'm missing the comfort of home.

So sometimes habits can experience a breakthrough when you understand

where do those habits come from.

And then when we begin to do the work one on one, or in Masterminds, we

realize, oh, habits can actually stick when you understand what's driving them.

So then you go back into the driver's seat.

But I would say that's the biggest thing is helping people

to create consistent habits.

And then we hold them accountable for those habits so that you can

thrive versus feeling like you're sabotaging or depleting your energy.

mm-hmm.

Yeah, cuz then you've taken away the negative thing too about.

The person who's eating at 2:00 AM or whatever.

And they're just saying how bad they are, the food's bad or whatever, but it's just

really, oh, this is why I'm doing it.

And this is where I'm not fulfilled.

And this would be a habit that would fulfill me instead.

Exactly.

So then now I have a habit of maybe I'll eat oxtail once a month, but

I'll also light a candle in her honor.

I'll also take some time to go to the water and walk alongside

the beach and give honor to my ancestors in my tradition.

And I'll take a, a moment to center myself.

And then in that all of a sudden insights will come.

That's actually how executives at ease came, right?

I was walking alongside the water and I literally heard a voice in my

spirit that said, I'm proud of you.

. And that's what all you needed to hear.

The oxtail wasn't gonna give me that but I needed that.

I needed to hear, "I'm proud of you."

And then all of a sudden, all these insights come, I think people forget like

laughing, play comedy, walking, centering one's self the power of mindfulness.

Sometimes we think, oh, it's just, you know, we're, we're out in the world doing

our own thing and we're running away.

It actually can give you insight.

And all of a sudden it's like, oh, this is what I'm supposed to be doing.

And I wouldn't have had that if I didn't realize that's where it was coming from.

So sometimes that's why working with a coach can help with that.

mm-hmm yeah.

And I've talked to different...

It's funny because I have some friends who, you know, I've gone to traditional

therapy, some who have used coaches and some who just say they don't need it.

I don't need it.

I'm good.

I handle things myself.

And I always question that and I wanna interrogate that because it's like,

well, you've been complaining about the same thing for the last two years but

you think you're good and can handle it?

Why?

Like just, I don't know.

I just, what do you say to people who resist coaching or resist the idea of any

kind of coaching or therapy or anything and, and think they can do it a alone.

you know, I have to admit that with due respect, I find to let

people be where they are for me person.

And the coaches that I'm fortunate to be a part of our team, because what

I have found is that when sometimes there's there's different levels, right?

Like a car, sometimes a car needs to tune up, right.?

And you're coming in and you're like, oh, I'm hearing a little something.

Okay.

All right.

Like with the body, you might feel like, Ugh, there's a little

tinge in my stomach there.

I don't know.

Every time I eat, I hear a sound, you know, and you might be someone who goes

to the doctor when you hear a sounds, or, you might be something, you know, I hear

a, a creak in my stomach every time I eat.

And it sounds like this little air, you know, coming whenever I eat, but,

you know, I'm sure it'll be fine.

I'll deal with it.

You know, I can handle it.

Right.

Because sometimes that speaks to intimacy.

That's a, that's about attachment.

How do you feel if it's okay to be vulnerable or how do you feel

like it's okay to be taken care?

And if you are not ready, I can tell you till the cows come home, that that

sound might be a gastrointestinal issue, or that might be actually a precursor

for you having a major issue down the line, but you're not ready for that.

And that's okay.

That's when you come and you get to join our Wellbeing Wednesday.

Join the group on Facebook.

You get to tag me at Ask Sacred, join the group, connect, say hi to

people, you know, send memes, do your thing, hang out, have, have fun.

Have a gag, right?

Because you're just, you're, you're not really like the, the, the car needs

little oil, but you're like, yeah.

OK.

I think I can drag it.

It's a Honda.

I can stretch it out, right.

Then maybe, maybe a couple months down the line all of a sudden you haven't

gone to the bathroom for a week.

Oh, red flag.

Cuz now the body's in crisis.

Now you're snapping at your partner.

They're like, what did I what's going on?

What did I do?

Or now you're noticing that the way you're managing your business

is, is, is under surge, right?

Because sometimes our emotions affect our financial management.

All kinds of things are intersected.

So now the car is like, eh.

it's it's, you know what I mean?

You're see the light flash.

Now the taillight is also out.

You're like, oh shit.

Like I shoulda just taken it to get the oil change.

But at that point, if you bring it to the mechanic and you say, you know,

I'm good, I actually don't need your help, the mechanic is gonna say,

okay, I'll see you when you're ready.

Right.

So fortunately, what I have found is that resistance just means that

you have different levels of what you are comfortable with and how

you are ready to receive help.

And that's okay.

There are different levels for that.

And then when you're ready, then you can join the mastermind.

And then you can come in because you are ready to get those hard questions asked,

but we get to look at our blind spots.

Whether you're somebody who comes in and you're like, oil change, let's go.

And then you might actually end up saving your internal engine

because you got that fixed early.

So you end up saving more money in the long run.

Or you're someone who waits and all of a sudden you can't go to the

bathroom for the week and we're like, oh shoot, this requires surgery.

Oh shoot.

I wish now I have to invest a couple thousand, right.

Versus investing, you know, something that could actually a little ginger that

might have helped to still my stomach early because actually it was more based

on emotions than I realized, right?

So I think it's just wherever you are great.

But I would always heed for those who are struggling if you're hearing

this you're tuning in now, and you're hearing this, just see, just know

that help is available, but similar to the mechanic, if you show up and

say, I actually don't need help, you get a chance to say, you know what?

You join the group, you connect, you interact.

You say, Hey, But don't ignore the fact that your stomach has

been telling you, poke, poke.

I need you.

That makes sense.

And it's a good way of, of looking at it and just kind

of, yeah, I really like that.

Cause it's always, whenever I do have someone who co is a coach or therapist,

something, or that I even talked to in my personal life, I always like

to know how they handle those kind of conversations with people cuz it's,

but it's like a very compassionate way, which isn't surprising really.

That's so sweet and it's also super respectful, right?

It's like, why do I need to force you to buy the car?

If you're still looking,

mm-hmm

You know when you are ready and maybe you are still learning

along the way, what it is that you need.

And when that aha moment comes, sometimes people are more in crisis mode than

they are in kind of tune up mode.

And those are different places.

Yeah, that's cool.

So as far as just your way of, I mean you're obviously pursuing what you're

passionate about and, and what you've come to know is your purpose, but still like

in doing coaching work and being involved with people's emotions, I'm sure there's

a time where you have to detach from it.

And so what do you do to give yourself space and, and get away from work?

Yeah, that's a great question.

I would say that I recently went whale watching my partner and I have

not seen whales in years, since I was a young girl and I was able to

take some time away to exhale and to just be, and it was beautiful.

And, I would say that being at the ocean is probably one of my go-to places.

I gain the most clarity from there.

And just on a day to day basis, to be honest, I'm a writer.

I love journaling.

I love taking some time to just write things out.

I love creating, I love creating vision board.

You know, whatever something feels super unclear to me and I need just an exhale

moment, I think those three things are the things that bring me the most joy.

Is taking some time at the ocean taking some time to write or journal.

When I was younger, I used to do a lot of poetry.

That was my thing.

And taking some time to create a vision board when my

vision doesn't feel so clear.

I just step back and take a moment so that I can move forward.

That's really cool.

And yeah, I just did a writing class on Sunday.

I just I'd wanted to go for like a year and I never went and it was so cool just

to sit and not have to feel pressure about what I was doing, but just to do

it and be in a space with other people, you know, who were just there for the

same thing and yeah, cuz sometimes

people put pressure on themselves about the writing, but it's

really just what you're saying, like poetry or something else.

It doesn't have to be specific.

So it's good.

Yeah, just for people to connect with like-minded folks

or just kind of looking across the room and being vulnerable, right?

Like even if you're like a closet creative, you know, like, you know, some

people are like, I'm not creative, you know, like my partner's biggest joke

is that they're like, okay, well I do a shoulder roll when we go out dancing.

It's like my shoulder, like, that's the level of their creativity,

you know what, like we all have different levels of creativity, right?

But I personally feel like for those who are tuning in, sometimes it can feel.

Like, oh, you get a chance to write.

You create, like, I write like workbooks, like for people who bring, do coaching.

They kind of get their own workbook, but sometimes it can be fun to just say like,

I'm gonna write without any expectation.

And sometimes the most be I've heard other people write and create, or

times that I've run, uh, women of color writing circles I've heard people write.

And I'm like, that just came out of you.

These like Afro futuristic things.

And it's like, I create the future where the future is bright and the

world is free of racism and homophobia.

And all of a sudden, you know, zantax the warrior breaks and it's just

like, this is powerful and prophetic.

You know, I just, I just, I have, I'm a lover of Octavia Butler and I'm

a lover of writing that just speaks something that comes from this other

place, you know, I think it's, I think it's the most beautiful thing.

Yeah.

Wow.

That's cool.

So, um, do you have any, I mean, we've talked quite a bit, but do you have

any advice or mantra that you'd like to share with people just that maybe that

grounds you, or that you just feel like it's important people hear from you.

I would say when you get up in the morning, take some time

where you, and I'm happy to send this as a love offering for anyone who direct

messages me on Ask Sacred on Facebook or Instagram, but take some time to write

out, and I do this every morning, what do you want, what do you need, what

do you desire, deserve and wish for?

I recommend doing that daily.

There can be something that gets clear like if I write,

like, I really want a smoothie.

It's like, oh, okay, you know, or I really wanna hug, you know, you know.

And I really need a raise.

Real.

Let's let's make, let's figure out how to call that in, you know.

I really desire good love making.

Okay.

Let's figure out how we tune into that in your relationship.

Or maybe you're one of have good love making with yourself.

Heal some of that, right.

It's like, well, I really deserve to be spoken to with respect at work.

And I really wish for a community where I feel seen.

It's like, okay, we'll join the Facebook group or whatever, you know.

But it's like sometimes we write those things out daily and now the truth is

now we've gotta manifest it in the day.

And I have found that, you know, that has really changed my life.

So if you want that in the form of a journal, I'm happy to send that to folks.

If you direct message me.

I do that for anyone who is connected to those in my extended network.

And now that you and I are friends and whoever's listening are friends, you

know, um, but I have found that, that, that wish every time I've put a wish

down over the years, whether it's taken me a day or years, it's always come.

Hmm.

Nice.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So my last set of questions is called the fun five.

And I just ask, ask everybody these questions and it's led to some, an

interesting, um, Spotify playlist for one thing, but, uh so what's the

oldest t-shirt you have and still wear?

The oldest t-shirt that I have is ironic because I work

with people and for those who are listening, I need you to know that

that doesn't mean I love you any less.

But what it says is, " some of my best friends are animals."

So it's pretty much insinuating, like, uh, people, not so much.

And it's a shirt that I've had since high school.

And it has all these different animals on it.

And I kid you not it's a little tight, but it still fits.

And it's one of my favorite shirts.

Some of my best friends are animals.

That's cute.

All right.

Good.

And it's good.

I mean, as far as still fitting, it's very weird though.

Some of the clothes, I don't know how big we wore them back then too.

Right.

That part, cause I'm like 20 years ago, it, I was still coming into myself.

and I was a little, you know, I was a little bit and you know,

our bodies morph but we still can hold onto the little pieces.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's good.

So if every day was really Groundhog's Day like it seemed for quite a while

when we were all more in our homes than we have to be now, what song would you

have your alarm clock play every morning?

The current song that I listen to every day that plays at 5:55 AM,

literally is "I Am Light," by India Arie.

Oh,

And it's so beautiful.

It's like, I am not my past.

I'm not what you've said about me.

I am light.

I'm like, I'm once I hear heard it, I was like, and this is me.

So all about that for those who don't know India Arie, amazing singer.

Check her out.

You'll thank me later.

Second song.

I feel like everyone is like waking up, like to it now is

Beyoncé, "You Won't Break My Soul".

Oh,

And I that's, the, the I ending is like

break your soul or something.

And I'm like, that is, that is everything.

I, I'm pretty sure my teenage self that was into R and B and punk

rock would probably throw on a punk rock skirt and a flower top.

And like, you won't break my soul, like going into high school.

So I feel like that song is probably gonna be with me for a long time.

It's um, it's so good.

And my friend was telling me about too, I didn't realize, but he was

telling me that cuz when you listen to the remix with the Vogue, um, stuff

inserted and just how she names all the designers, all the fashion houses that

were appropriated basically, and even Madonna had appropriated vogueing from.

All the houses back, so it was, it was interesting to, and he watched Pose

and so Pose covers a lot of that . And so I don't know, it was just made me

love it even more, just learning that about it, but it's a, the album's great.

And I, I will admit, like, I'm not someone who's probably ever listened to Beyoncé

that much just because I listen to other artists and I think she's good, but

then I listen to the hits and that's it.

But this one I've been like, it's, there's no skips.

You just go through the whole

Yeah, no, absolutely.

It's like part one of three or something like

Yeah.

And I was like, like and counting down.

Yeah, no, absolutely.

I, I recently was in a black pride NYC commercial.

And, I was able to be, I mean, I'm a big fan of the ballroom scene, in general,

cause before this, I was working in L G T adolescent medicine prior to stepping

into my private practice full time.

And I have to admit like the vibe and the energy, and then being in this commercial

and being in community, I just have a real love for the songs that remind you.

You are like on the runway and you are embodying fierceness and

you are feeling included because you made yourself feel included.

So I agree with you, like for her to honor, that legacy

for me was pretty awesome.

Yeah, it's really cool.

So, yeah.

All right.

So coffee or tea or neither?

Tea.

Chai, half and half, three pumps of caramel delicious.

Nice.

Oh my goodness.

Yeah.

I discovered Chai like real Chai, like when I lived in India, when

I was studying mind body medicine and I have to admit that once you

taste the robustness of the flavors.

Yeah.

I actually don't drink coffee at all.

That's probably good just being someone who drinks, what

I would say is too much coffee.

That's probably good.

Can you think of something that just like cracks you up or a time you laughed

so hard you cried or just anything that kind of gets you going in that way?

Just I and I, this question, I don't know why it's just, I like to know.

Cause I think it's funny to know what makes people laugh.

Yeah, no, absolutely.

And I have a thing about laughter that I'm like, okay, this has

gotten really, really deep.

And can we also bring in some humor?

Like, so I'm a, I'm a big fan of the fact that you've access question.

Childhood thing that still exists.

Two things.

Probably the thing that still exists is put me on a swing.

I crack up so hard that you would think that someone is tickling me.

I mean, definitely.

And I, and I want, whoever's listening to know this doesn't mean that

you now get to put me on swings.

This is not what I'm inviting, ma going on a swing on my own.

Yeah, I laugh.

I laugh like it's nobody's business.

Number one, number two, I pull affirmation cards.

Every time I meet with a client or I'm doing a mastermind and I

usually have somebody like pull a, a card and they, they they're

like, oh my gosh, I want that one.

Every single time.

And somebody's gonna laugh a lot because I don't want it to be like, I

don't want you to feel uncomfortable.

You I'm like, cuz I naturally am a giggler, right?

Every single time.

They're like, how did you know?.

Perfect.

you know, like the reaction who told you?

Cause the cards are always on point and they're like Oracle cards too.

So it's just like that one, oh my gosh.

That for me, like tickles my whole stomach, cuz I'm like never fails.

I'm a mystic.

Can't help it.

Of course you chose the card.

You're powerful too.

What're you going to do?

So that for me is a combo like, and I don't think, I think I actually laugh

just as hard as I do when I'm on the swings, when that happens, but on the.

On the

Yeah.

Yeah.

cool.

All right.

And the last one who inspires you right now?

Hmm.

In addition to my mom, who was my ever inspiration, who else inspires me?

I would say, I mean, I, as I said before, your story definitely inspired me.

So that was one.

And my mom, and then who else?

I would say to be honest, I would say Octavia Butler.

I have to go back to her.

That book that she wrote Parable of the Talents, where she

was just like, God is change.

You are change.

It just really, for me, like just reminds me of the power of change.

And she wrote in the eighties.

Like she was writing in the eighties and nineties about stuff like flat screens and

all kinds of things that were not around.

So for me, it just, I don't know, I just have a real respect

for visionaries and creatives.

And I just really, really, really respect and appreciate Octavia Butler.

So every once in a while, I'll kind of go back and reread one of her many books.

And if you don't know her, those who are tuning in, you will also

thank me later for check, you know, introducing you to her.

Yeah.

Oh, that's really.

good.

So then as far as if people wanna find you, they wanna join your

Facebook group, any of that stuff, where do you want them to go?

Sure.

So I would say the most direct way is if you go to Facebook and you check

out, Ask Sacred, like asking a question.

And you can on the Facebook page request to join the group.

Right?

So we have a "Love and Level Up" group that I think is awesome.

And every Wednesday we have something called Wellbeing Wednesday.

So we do watch parties in there, people interact.

Jump in, say, hi, take a picture, show your face, say hello, meet

and greet all that good stuff.

So that would be a one good place.

And then I'm also on Instagram at the same place.

So I would say that's another good place at Ask Sacred (@asksacred).

And then you can also connect on LinkedIn at Sacred Walker.

So, um, I would say those are three good places.

And then for those who are interested in the Executives and Entrepreneurs

at Ease Mastermind that's gonna be coming up the retreat that we have,

that's focused on like transformation and the self care immersion.

If you feel like you're someone who kind of broke the glass ceiling, and

sometimes it can be lonely at the top and you wanna connect with some other

visionaries who make an impact and

take the better, good care of yourself and really kind of gain some tools.

But also if you have a team or you don't, just model the

self care that the world needs.

We are gonna be announcing that.

So if you request us on either Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn,

and you send me a direct message, then that I'll connect you to that.

And then either way, I'm gonna send everyone who tunes into fabulous you and

is tuning in right now, if you direct message me, I'll send you a love medicine

journal with the tools that I gave and some other secret surprises your way.

So if you direct message us, then my team will respond and connect to you.

Okay, cool.

Yeah, so if you're listening, you should definitely do that and, and get

the tools and I'll be doing it too.

So, Sacred, it was wonderful talking to you.

It's just, it was a lot of fun and I'm glad we got to connect again.

So thanks for being on More Than Work.

Amazing.

Amazing.

And thank you for having me on this was probably one of the best podcast

experiences I've had, so thanks for those who are listening in.

Thanks for listening.

You can learn more about the guest and what was talked about in the show notes.

Joe Maffia created the music you're listening to.

You can find him on Spotify at Joe M A F F I A.

Rob Metke does all the design for which I am so grateful.

You can find him online by searching Rob M E T K E.

Please leave a review if you like the show and get in touch

with feedback or guest ideas.

The pod is on all the social channels at At More Than Work Pod

(@morethanworkpod) or at Rabiah Comedy (@rabiahcomedy) on TikTok.

And the website is more than work pod dot com (morethanworkpod.com).

While being kind to others, don't forget to be kind to yourself.