Marry Your Talent, Not Your Title (Part 1) | Black Womaning in Corporate America®

Nicole S. Palmer talks with guest Lynnae Brown, a consultant and strategist specializing in workforce navigation to help people make work sustainable. Brown shares her background training people in mental health recovery to work in social services, and explains her concept “Marry Your Talent, Not Your Title,” warning that titles can’t capture full value and that layoffs for profit make tying identity to a role risky. She recounts leaving a decade-long position after pandemic burnout, concerns about returning in-person with vulnerable populations, and receiving student loan forgiveness, then consulting nationally before grant cancellations disrupted the field. The conversation also distinguishes self-accommodation from self-advocacy and touches on the long recovery from toxic workplaces, teeing up a deeper discussion in part two.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:44 Meet Lanay Brown

02:21 Marry Talent Not Title

02:37 Origin in Social Services

05:36 Titles Worth and Layoffs

06:47 Burnout Turning Point

08:23 COVID Work Shift

10:40 Leaving After Loan Forgiveness

11:22 Consulting Then Funding Cuts

12:28 From Social Work to Corporate

12:47 Trauma Informed Management

13:29 Self Accommodate vs Advocate

14:44 Code Switching Survival

17:37 Healing After Toxic Jobs

21:07 Abusive Relationship Mindset

22:17 Exit Strategy Playlist

24:06 Part Two Teaser and Wrap

Nicole S. Palmer continues her conversation with Crystle Johnson, founder of Kinory® and creator of Underbelonging: the hidden experience of being included in corporate spaces without ever feeling fully seen.

Crystle defines Underbelonging and explains why so many Black women spend their careers shrinking themselves, overperforming, and carefully calibrating how they show up at work. Together, Nicole and Crystle examine how Underbelonging manifests in corporate America, including within DEI roles, where practitioners are often caught between executives and employees without meaningful decision-making authority.

The conversation explores why organizations must move beyond performative commitments toward greater clarity and accountability, and how Kinory is creating spaces where Black women can experience genuine belonging through community dinners, workshops, retreats, and courageous conversations.

00:00 Podcast Welcome

00:41 Part Two Intro

01:46 Defining Underbelonging

03:04 Why It Resonates

04:41 Origins Through Kinory

07:19 Taking Up Space

09:42 Kamala As Case Study

12:15 DEI Caught In Middle

15:58 Corporate Honesty

17:26 What Comes Next

19:05 Protecting The Work

21:32 Make Your Own Table

23:58 Where To Find Crystle

25:53 Retreat And Resources

27:47 Closing And Outro

To learn more about Crystle:

Visit Kinory: https://kinory.co/

Follow Her on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/crystlejohnson

Connect With Her on Instragram: https://instagram.com/kinory.co

Find Her on TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@kinory.co

Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. It happens one compromise, one expectation, and one “I’ll just push through” at a time.

In this episode of Black Womaning in Corporate America®, founder of Kinory® Crystle Johnson joins host Nicole S. Palmer for an unfiltered conversation about burnout, belonging, and the moment she realized her job was something she did—not who she was.

From corporate leadership to building a global community for Black women in Mexico, this conversation explores identity, rest, and the courage to imagine a different future.

Whether you’re questioning your next career move or simply trying to remember who you were before work consumed so much of your life, this episode is a reminder that your value has never been defined by your title.

00:00 Welcome

00:44 Meet Crystle Johnson

02:13 An Origin Story of Belonging

04:47 Why Kinory Exists

05:44 The Courage to Center Black Women

08:45 Recognizing Burnout

09:50 FMLA, Recovery & Finding Mexico

13:49 Your Job Is Not Your Identity

17:03 The Truth About Corporate DEI

20:06 Racism, Visibility & Obsession

22:45 Building Kinory in Mérida

25:32 Casa Kinory & A New Vision

28:14 Why Every Exit Needs a Plan

30:25 Don't Leave Your Benefits Behind

33:46 Coming Next Week...

34:17 Outro

Dr. Chelsey Green on Leading The GRAMMYs, Finding Your Voice & Protecting Creators

What does it mean to find your voice—and trust it enough to use it?

In this powerful Black Music Month conversation, Nicole S. Palmer sits down with Dr. Chelsey Green: artist, educator, advocate, and the first Black woman and youngest person ever elected Chair of the Recording Academy® (The GRAMMYs®).

From her early roots in church and classical music to leading at the highest levels of the music industry, Dr. Green shares how creativity, courage, and community shaped her journey. Together, Nicole and Chelsey explore what it means to lead with purpose, advocate for equity, protect creators in the age of AI, and remain connected to joy in a culture that often rewards burnout.

More than a conversation about music, this is a conversation about visibility, voice, wellness, faith, and the courage to believe in yourself before anyone else does.

Whether you’re an artist, entrepreneur, executive, educator, or simply someone trying to navigate life with authenticity, this episode is filled with wisdom you’ll want to revisit again and again.

In This Episode

00:00 Podcast Welcome00:41 Meet Dr. Chelsey Green02:17 Music Roots and Calling04:53 Village and Mentors05:35 Path to the GRAMMYs Board09:06 Equity and Representation10:47 Black Music Month and Voice12:50 AI, Music, and Creator Rights18:29 Inspiring the Next Generation19:17 Rebuilding Community20:44 The Power of In-Person Connection21:34 Choosing Joy Over Burden23:08 Workplace Breakdown and Perspective25:54 The System Versus Self29:13 Presence, Therapy, and Gratitude32:09 Living an Abundant Life Now33:11 Believe and Trust Yourself35:43 When the Inner Voice Wins36:40 Where to Find Dr. Green37:20 Final Thanks and Outro

Connect with Dr. Chelsey Green

Website: https://www.chelseygreen.com

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

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

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/ChelseyGreenProject

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gYJdJNkyrYyocVfI9LZUM

Continue the Conversation

What resonated most with you from this episode?

Was it the conversation around AI and creator rights? The reminder to prioritize joy? The challenge to trust your inner voice? Or Dr. Green’s reflections on leadership, community, and purpose?

Join the conversation in the comments and share this episode with someone who needs the reminder that their voice matters.

And if you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and follow Black Womaning in Corporate America® for more conversations at the intersection of leadership, visibility, wellness, and navigating systems not built with us in mind.

Want to go deeper? Explore the book that inspired the podcast, Playing the Game While Black Womaning in Corporate America®, available wherever books are sold.

Learn more at BlackWomaning.com.

Travel as Self-Care: Dr. Lisa Pittman on Boundaries, Burnout Prevention & Black Women’s Wellbeing

When Delays Become Data

In this episode of Black Womaning in Corporate America, host Nicole S. Palmer continues April’s focus on burnout and self-regulation by revisiting a past “story time” that reveals burnout patterns through chronic unresponsiveness.

Host Nicole S. Palmer shares a short 2026 reset for Black women navigating corporate life, starting with a firm “nope, not today” to resolutions, people-pleasing, shrinking, and contorting to be palatable. She discusses the exhaustion of always being “on,” code-switching, and conforming to workplace norms.

Clip Credit: @LyneeMonae (on YT and TikTok)

In this episode Black Womaning in Corporate America™, host Nicole S. Palmer and guest Lauren Dike, CEO of Harmon Inclusive Wellbeing, discuss burnout, self-regulation, and nervous system safety.