Brown Ambition

In this week’s BA Q&A Mandi answers a listener question that gets straight to the point: How do employers actually verify where we’ve worked and what information are they collecting about us behind the scenes.
We dive into the world of work verification and big data, including platforms like WorkMarket, and unpack how employers confirm employment history, income, and background details in today’s digital-first hiring process.

In this episode, we cover:
How employers verify past employment
What WorkMarket is and how it fits into the hiring ecosystem
The role of big data in background checks
How to review, protect, and correct your employment data
Because being financially informed also means being data-aware.

Stay Connected
- Email your questions: [email protected].
- Send a voice note or DM on IG: @brownambitionpodcast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Brown Ambition, MandiMoney sits down with actor, content creator, and entrepreneur Kaisha Huguley (aka Kaisha Creates) for a real conversation about layoffs, self-belief, and choosing yourself—especially when the plan falls apart. Kaisha opens up about being laid off from her 9–5, navigating seasonal depression, and the mindset shifts that helped her bet on herself and build multiple income streams. From acting and content creation to brand deals and financial planning with a partner, this episode is packed with honesty, strategy, and encouragement for anyone moving through an uncertain career season.
Whether you’ve been laid off, are considering entrepreneurship, or just need a reminder that your worth isn’t tied to a job title this one’s for you.

What We Get Into
00:00 – Introduction & personal reflections
00:37 – Welcome to Brown Ambition
00:47 – Meet today’s guest: Kaisha Huguley
01:01 – Kisha’s journey & career coaching work
02:06 – A word for listeners navigating layoffs
03:13 – Celebrating Brown Ambition’s renewal
04:14 –Kaisha s layoff story
07:18 – Choosing full-time entrepreneurship
09:43 – Balancing acting & content creation
16:12 – Seasonal depression & career uncertainty
24:20 – Teaching, social media, and staying afloat
28:52 – Pitching yourself & securing brand deals
40:47 – Corporate burnout & workplace realities
42:03 – Choosing entrepreneurship every day
43:39 – Financial uncertainty & faith in the process
44:30 – Podcasting, debt payoff & money transparency
45:21 – Financial planning as a couple
55:31 – Managing money as an entrepreneur
57:17 – Retirement, investing & long-term planning
01:09:32 – Reflecting on the entrepreneurial journey
01:13:42 – Gratitude, community & paying it forward
01:16:30 – Final thoughts & wrap-up

Key Takeaways
A layoff can be an ending and a beginning
Self-belief is a muscle—you build it through action
Multiple income streams don’t mean chaos when you plan intentionally
Mental health and financial health go hand in hand
Entrepreneurship is a daily choice, not a one-time leap
Stay Connected
- Email your questions: [email protected].
- Send a voice note or DM on IG: @brownambitionpodcast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mandi is back for a solo BA Q&A, answering a juicy listener question about balancing student loans, grad school, a possible home move, and a new car payment—all while chasing Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF). She breaks down how PSLF *actually* works, why “qualifying payments” matter so much, and when it can make sense to pause extra payments and redirect cash toward savings and other priorities instead.
What we dive into:

- How PSLF really works and what counts as a qualifying payment.
- Whether you should keep paying loans that are in in-school deferment.
- How to prioritize between:
- Building a 3–6 month emergency fund.
- Saving for moving and homebuying costs.
- Paying down a high car note.
- Why three months of savings may no longer be enough in today’s economy.
- Practical next steps to confirm your PSLF status and get your paperwork right.
Listener Question Highlight
Sydney, a 34‑year‑old nurse working toward PSLF, asks whether she should keep making a $500 monthly student loan payment while her loans are in deferment—or pause to focus on savings, a future move, and her car note.
Links:
Federal student aid and PSLF info: studentaid.gov
Stay Connected
- Email your questions: [email protected].
- Send a voice note or DM on IG: @brownambitionpodcast
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Brown Ambition, Mandi is joined by author, activist, and democracy defender Stacey Abrams for a powerful, timely, and deeply grounding conversation about where we are as a country and what we can actually do about it.
Recorded during a moment of collective grief, fear, and exhaustion, this episode centers honesty over platitudes and action over despair. Stacey breaks down her 10 Steps Campaign, explains how authoritarianism takes root in real time, and offers a clear framework for resistance, resilience, and rebuilding without pretending this moment isn’t heavy.
Together, Mandi and Stacey talk about protecting your peace without disengaging, finding joy as an act of resistance, navigating financial shame and career disruption, and why your power doesn’t disappear just because your platform changes.
If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, frozen, or unsure where to start this conversation is for you.

What We Get Into
Why this moment feels heavier and why that feeling is by design
Stacey Abrams’ 10 Steps to Autocracy and how to recognize them in real time
The 10 Steps to Freedom & Power and how everyday people can activate them
Why we can’t return to “how things were” and must demand something better
How to talk to your kids about what’s happening without passing down fear
What to do when you’re exhausted, caregiving, working, and barely holding it together
Why joy is not escapism — it’s resistance
Financial shame, job loss, and why debt is not a moral failure
Stacey’s unsexy but life-changing money habits
Building freedom funds, changing lanes, and investing in yourself and others
Government shutdowns, budgets, and why “business as usual” no longer applies
Why status is no longer safety and what collective action really looks like

Key Takeaways
You don’t have to do everything — but you do have to do something
Your position may change, but your power stays with you
Nonviolent resistance is effective — and it’s not the same as being passive
Financial setbacks don’t cancel your dreams; they may redirect them
Democracy isn’t abstract — it’s about our ability to thrive

Resources Mentioned
Stacey Abrams’ 10 Steps Campaign
Assembly Required podcast
Level Up by Stacey Abrams
Stacey Abrams’ children’s book series (Stacey Speaks Up)
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, I'm revisitng my interview with the brilliant Jasmine Marie breathwork practitioner, founder of Black Girls Breathing, and author of Black Girls Breathing: Heal from Trauma, Combat Stress, and Find Your Freedom. From surviving the corporate grind to creating wellness spaces rooted in cultural relevance, Jasmine gets real about her journey into entrepreneurship, healing work, and what it truly takes to hold space for Black women’s mental and emotional wellbeing.
We talk about everything from the power of a deep breath and surviving burnout, to funding a business on your own terms and growing a team the *smart* way. Jasmine even leads us through a mini oceanic breath session at the end — don’t miss it
We talk about:
- Jasmine’s transition from corporate beauty marketing to breathwork and mental wellness
- Why most wellness spaces *don’t* center Black women's lived experiences — and what she's doing about it
- Building a company without VC funding: how Jasmine bootstrapped and scaled BGB
- The importance of listening to your body (and your breath) when trauma speaks
- Balancing healing work with entrepreneurship and how not to burn out
- Tools in Jasmine’s toolkit: EMDR therapy, acupuncture, daily walks, and more
- Real talk on grief, generational trauma, and creating new blueprints for Black wellness

Join the Movement:
Visit https://www.blackgirlsbreathing.com to learn more and access free mental health resources
- Follow Jasmine on IG @blackgirlsbreathing
- Subscribe to *Brown Ambition* and leave us a 5-star review if this episode gave you life!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.