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The Black Bridge Mindset Podcast returns after a brief break as host Mike shares he started a new role at Zipline and the hosts recap meeting in Chicago during Canadian wildfire smoke. Ken introduces guest Sonia Aline, a communications strategist, editor, author, and host of the Business First podcast, known for interviewing leaders like Oprah Winfrey and Ursula Burns and co-authoring a NAACP Image Award–nominated book on unwritten rules for minority professionals. Sonia explains her background from Birmingham, England to Brooklyn, her accidental entry into publishing, and her career lessons from decades of interviews. She discusses storytelling as an ancient tool that builds emotional connection, drives brand loyalty, and helps entrepreneurs differentiate, emphasizing listening, intuition, alignment over “grind,” and practical ways her Storytelling Business Journal helps people craft and distribute their brand story.

00:00 Podcast Welcome
00:35 Hosts Catch Up
02:56 Meet Sonia Aleene
05:04 Curiosity And Identity
06:37 Roots From England
10:42 Breaking Into Media
15:09 Career Lessons And Yes
17:27 Why Storytelling Works
22:21 Brand Stories In Business
26:30 Storytelling Journal Framework
29:18 Learning From Icon Interviews
31:15 Synchronicity in Motion
32:18 Alignment Over Hustle
35:53 Protect Your Nervous System
37:48 Breaks Spark Breakthroughs
41:09 Storytelling Starts Listening
46:24 Make Customers Feel Seen
47:44 Business First Podcast
50:46 Closing Ritual and Gratitude

Podcast - Business First w Sonia Alleyne

Instagram - Sonia Alleyne

Instagram - Book ~ Storyteller Magic

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Hosts:

• Mike
• CJ
• Ken

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From Court Reporter to 3 Childcare Centers: Tysie Milliken-Benjamin on Faith, Perseverance, and Building Agape Love

On the Black Bridge Mindset Podcast, hosts Mike, Ken, and CJ welcome Tysie Milliken-Benjamin, a woman of faith and entrepreneur who owns three 24-hour childcare centers in Paducah—Agape Love Childcare, Ruth’s Childcare, and Agape Love Bugs Childcare—plus nonprofits Safe Place and Safety Nest. Tysie shares how she transitioned from cosmetology to court reporting, opened her own court reporting business, then followed what she describes as God’s calling into childcare in 2017. She explains learning through volunteering, training, and mentorship, overcoming a failed first center, clearing her record, navigating state regulations, funding challenges, and opening additional centers through perseverance. Tysie details her mission to serve working and low-income families, teach life skills and culture, support staff development, and enforce structure, while emphasizing her sacrifices, community impact, and her guiding question for entrepreneurs: “What is your why?”

00:00 Podcast Welcome
00:35 Hosts Catch Up
00:57 Cleaning Lady Story
02:15 Meet Tysie Millican
03:45 Tysie Introduces Herself
04:30 From Court Reporting
05:36 Called To Childcare
07:48 Agape Name Meaning
09:04 Overwhelmed First Steps
10:18 Rules And Mentors
12:34 Legal Steps And Funding
15:25 Persevering Through Setbacks
18:24 Opening Second Center
20:42 Third Center Challenges
23:09 What Sets Her Apart
27:11 How Centers Are Structured
28:13 Why 24 Hour Childcare
28:53 Feeding Kids Right
29:49 Covering Essentials
30:23 Making It Sustainable
32:18 Steps To Open Center
35:10 Training Staff Growth
37:11 Strict Parent Boundaries
39:23 Pricing And Waitlist
40:37 Lessons For Younger Self
41:42 Proudest Love Bug Story
44:30 Contact And Giving Back
45:32 Hidden Sacrifices
47:03 Find Your Why
50:33 Sign Off And Collage
51:40 Paducah Podcast Invite
52:29 Final Thanks Goodbye

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Hosts:

• Mike
• CJ
• Ken

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Creativity, Grief, and Purpose: Dr. Maria Houston Beck on Mental Health, Mentorship, and Beck Boards

On the Black Bridge Mindset Podcast, hosts Mike, Ken, and CJ welcome Columbus-based licensed clinical psychologist and entrepreneur Dr. Maria Houston Beck, founder of Houston Wellness Solutions and Beck Boards. Beck shares how a high school psychology class and learning about mental illness and suicide in her family inspired her to pursue clinical psychology, with a career spanning trauma, mood disorders, grief, and work with incarcerated youth, including at Cook County Juvenile Detention Center. She explains training paths (PsyD vs PhD), building a private practice brick by brick, and early business lessons like pricing, policies, and payment procedures. Beck also расскаunts how personal grief and hosting family holidays led her to create Beck Boards, offering charcuterie boards, grazing tables, a mobile cart, and workshops that blend food styling with therapeutic topics. She previews her participation in Columbus’ Color of Summer event and shares where to find and book her services.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:35 Weekend Catch Up

02:35 Summer Plans and Festivals

03:39 Soccer Tangent

05:16 Meet Maria Houston Beck

08:20 Why She Chose Psychology

13:07 Clinical Focus and Juvenile Work

17:31 Mentors and Giving Back

20:24 Breaking Mental Health Stigma

23:52 Becoming a Psychologist

27:39 Starting Private Practice

29:03 Starting Private Practice

30:26 Brick by Brick Systems

31:39 Learning as You Go

32:52 Pricing and Policies Mistakes

35:55 Grief Sparks Creativity

40:15 Therapy Through Charcuterie

44:44 Events and Color of Summer

49:13 Where to Find and Book

52:39 Sacrifice and Self Care

55:29 Wakanda Peace Paws Finale

Instagram: @beckboards

Facebook: @BeckBoardsLLC

Morning Star Counseling

https://www.instagram.com/houstonwellness_solutionsllc/

Thank you for listening!

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Contact us:

• Email: blackbridgemindset@gmail.com

Hosts:

• Mike
• CJ
• Ken