Just Chai

Women and Leadership

We are focusing on women and leadership, speaking with the incredible Julia, a high-powered executive who leads with authenticity. How can we grow our careers and find purpose and power in our work journey? How can we bounce back from a challenging performance assessment? What lessons have served us in leadership? Your two favorite brown girls are discussing all that and more with Julia in this transformative conversation. 

In this episode, we discuss:

• Julia’s career journey
• The value of a good mentor
• Not feeling represented
• The qualities of a good leader
• How Brené Brown has helped encourage vulnerability
• The double bind that women face in careers
• Showing emotion at work
• A shift in the workplace
• The role of personal values
• Recognizing a toxic environment
• The immigrant mentality and how we show up
• The process of unlearning
• The difference between men and women in applying for jobs
• The impact of the workplace environment
• Finding your personal values and how those intersect with your career
• Knowing what lights you up and why you want a particular job
• “You can learn from any situation as long as you are being open and flexible”
• How to grow from feedback
• “The whole point of life is to grow, evolve, mutate”
• Dealing with fear of failure
• X-women!
• How women and men may define success differently
• Our messages to our younger selves

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

The Mind-Body Connection

In our second season, we are bringing some popular guests back. Crystal joins us in this episode to discuss how what you think and feel play a big role in your physical health as well. We share some good stories, tips for going to the doctor, and how to tune into your body and experience greater wellness. 

- Catching up on binge-worthy TV shows
- University of Michigan study
- Empowered patient
- Back to the basics
- Amy shares a story on using food as medicine
- Using neurofeedback loops to heal 
- The body knows what it needs
- Addressing physical and emotional injuries
- The deeper meaning of what ails us, and Louise Hay
- What happens when Amy is reading hands
- Getting the body in flow
- Embracing play
- Medicine embracing mind-body connection
- Amy's tip for the next time you visit the doctor
- The power of curiosity in the power of healing
- Focusing on one area can help another
- Being your own health advocate
- "Everyone benefits when we share our health stories"
- An affirmation for healing

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

February Refresh

We start a new season with this episode and are taking a look at the new year in February. New Year’s resolutions or goals may feel like they are in the rearview mirror already, but don’t lose heart. Your two favorite brown girls are here to help you reassess your goals and plans for 2022, and tap into energy to head in the direction of your dreams. Join us for a re-energizing conversation. 

In this episode, we discuss:

• Reconnecting and the weather
• When does the new year start?
• Relieving ourselves of the pressure from setting goals a certain way
• The Four Tendencies (from Gretchen Rubin)
• Being okay with changing your mind
• Establishing the attitudes to reach our goals
• Old lists and vision boards
• Visualizing your dreams 
• Course correct “bad” behavior with incremental changes
• The winding path to success
• Having space for your dreams
• Knowing what you need
• A recent yoga experience as analogy for life
• Sharing our words for 2022
• Keep moving
• Amy opines on moodiness
• Going into a place of lightness
• Being led by how you feel

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

 

Adulting 201

We heard a lot from you about your questions, and advice, on “adulting”--from career to marriage to therapy. It was too good to not share, so we are bringing you a second conversation. This episode also concludes our first season, and we hope to come back to you with new episodes soon. Stay tuned and make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss anything. 

In this episode, we discuss:

• We’re doing stuff and making it happen
• Currently four planets in retrograde---lots of things outside our control
• Amy dishes proverbs
• The importance of showing empathy to one another
• Social media gives you a window inside peoples’ lives
• Other people aren’t owed an explanation of what’s going on in your life
• Some people use empathy as a crutch
• Whose responsibility is it to employ boundaries?
• Empathy isn’t sympathy
• Ask people how they want you to show up right now for them.
• The power of therapy for trauma and how the stigma has changed
• Going through therapy gives us language and tools our parents didn’t have
• A question about strict upbringing and learning boundaries as an adult
• Defining what healthy boundaries are
• A lot of us are raised with “do’s” and “don’ts” but sometimes that was for efficiency
• It’s tough to be a parent--it’s helpful to have compassion
• Learning to be confident and trust in your dreams
• “You’re never fully formed.”
• “It’s important to follow your passions, but you gotta pay the bills”
• “You can’t always have the things you want happen at once”
• The truth about marriage?
• It’s important to learn to disagree respectfully
• “It’s a choice you make everyday to choose that person.”
• The build up and expectations are part of the problem
• The four types of trust (Jay Shetty)
• "You can’t get every need met by one person but you can talk about your needs with your partner"
• Things don’t always mean what you think they mean
• There are so many different kinds of relationships available
• Sharing listener advice
• Career advice
• The best part of being an adult

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

Adulting 101

Were you handed a manual on how to be an adult? Didn’t think so. Your two favorite brown girls are answering listener questions and addressing complaints about adulting--bring it on! And there’s so much we heard from you (including advice), that we will have a follow-up conversation!

In this episode, we discuss:

• Amy’s first name basis relationship with Jon Bon Jovi
• Madonna has the answer to everything
• Life as a musical (and….sound effects)
• Adulting while still feeling like a kid
• “Nobody knows what anybody’s doing.”
• Hard work and misery?
• The subjects on an adulting report card
• (Dance break)
• Rearranging the dishwasher -- Mom was right!
• Answering listener questions
• Wishing we were more prepared for life (life management classes)
• Basic financial lessons/buying a house and costs of home ownership
• Our experiences of money as children
• Sultana’s teaching experience 
• Amy’s financial education
• It’s important to know what money means to you
• Advice from a listener
• Fixing things (or dealing with emergencies)
• The importance of triaging problems
• “Adult life is not as exciting as you imagine it will be.”
• “Sex and the City” duped us
• Drinking at work events
• “Nothing’s really free”
• Friendships as an adult (“like a game of tetris”)
• “If I have to betray someone, it won’t be me”
• The importance of communicating expectations and learning how to listen
• Understand how you make decisions
• Know thyself
• Where’s my manual?
• “You never really have it figured out”

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

Hair!

As Brown girls, hair is a symbol of strength and a connection to our ancestral roots. And for many people, hair is also tied to identity and phases of life. We are talking with Amy’s hairstylist/hair therapist, Priya, in a special episode. When a client is in her chair, she isn’t simply trimming away split ends; she’s helping people release their worries, concerns, and stories they long to change. And we even talk hair tips! You won’t want to miss this one. In this episode, we discuss:

• The biggest bag of Bugles, ever!
• “Chop, chop!”
• Welcoming our guest, Priya (Amy’s secret keeper)
• How hair changes parallel with life transitions
• The hairstylist “radar”
• You can’t rush a great hairstyle
• Beauty and the break-up
• How Priya helped Amy get her proposal
• “Just try it out”
• Hair as a way to express yourself
• Amy’s bold hairstyles over the years
• Priya’s hair freedom
• Accidental therapy
• A client Priya helped
• “You just never know what people are going through.”
• Crown chakra
• Creating mental space 
• Hairstylists being there for the journey as a safe space
• Tips to be a better listener
• Worst parts of the job
• Everything you wish you knew about hair and getting your hair done
• Taking care of your hair

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

TV Talk

As we have spent the longest time at home since childhood, nostalgia has taken hold of our entertainment options. And we are also looking for new and interesting stories to captivate our attention. Yes, we are talking television. Your two favorite brown girls are dishing what we are watching and the throwback TV that keeps us smiling during tough times. Prepare for lots of laughter. In this episode, we discuss:

• Amy’s Zen vibe
• Making it to the end of the week
• Way back when we waited for Netflix DVDs
• Overheards from Amy’s Mom
• “Sex and the City” stands the test of time
• The show that makes Amy laugh so much, she can’t watch it during the workday
• The staples in your TV diet
• Period pieces and a moment for Rege Jean-Page
• Outlander accents and characters
• The importance of chemistry between characters
• “Some days I’m clearly Frankie, and other days, I’m so Grace”
• The satisfaction of transformational shows
• Witches, demons, and vampires
• Getting recommendations from friends and family
• The magic of Mindy Kaling and the importance of representation
• Women’s vs. dude’s shows?
• Yes to Henry Cavill
• Suspending disbelief and the escapism of TV
• Tell us your favorite shows!

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

 

Spring Cleaning

We all have a relationship with our stuff, but as we spend more time than ever living amongst our stuff in pandemic times, the change of seasons welcomes a refresh in the form of spring cleaning. Your two favorite brown girls are discussing how to deal with sentimental attachments to your things, our approach to cleaning, and how to reinvent your space from inside out. In this episode, we discuss:

• Cinder-Amy
• Child of the 80s and free weekend labor
• Not having one’s own “stuff” or space
• The fear of scarcity
• Amy’s sacred utility box
• The great purge of notecards
• Holding on to things for the sake of holding on to them
• Marie Kondo has changed our folding forever
• Sentimental items
• Making rules about acquiring new stuff
• “Money was spent on this, and therefore I must keep it!”
• Giving things away
• Swap parties for unused, unloved stuff
• Sultana’s struggle with books
• Dealing with someone’s stuff after…
• Merging lives with someone’s stuff
• The power of Feng Shui in understanding the energy of your space
• The legacy of our stuff
• Reinventing your space
• Our steps to spring cleaning

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

The Release of Forgiveness

We have all said or heard “I’m sorry” before, but forgiveness goes beyond an apology. In this conversation, we are going deep on forgiveness--how to do it well and why it matters (that includes giving yourself grace on the things you didn’t accomplish during quarantine). Your two favorite brown girls dish the advice and stories on forgiveness, with a dose of laughter.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why do we have lawns in the first place?
• Finishing projects you start
• Movie and a song
• What we didn’t accomplish during the pandemic
• Sound effects
• Sultana’s music and Amy’s crouton-making adventure
• It’s easy to spiral into shame
• How we learn forgiveness (forced sibling apology?)
• The barriers in the way of forgiveness
• The environment we grew up in
• The adage of “forgive but don’t forget”
• Spiraled growth and healthy detachment
• Going to the site of impact and getting clear for yourself
• “True forgiveness is when you can say ‘thank you for that experience’” - Oprah Winfrey
• Learning from ending relationships and getting clarity
• Limiting beliefs that are holding you back
• The influence of family
• “We can see two versions of a situation and they can both be right”
• Repeating patterns from childhood and generational trauma
• Amy’s love language quiz with her parents
• The power of asking open-ended questions
• Your "forgiveness starter pack"
• How to know if you need to forgive someone
• Ho’oponopono healing technique (from Hawai’i)

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.

 

Spring Forward

Feeling ready, or not ready, for a change? As the seasons change and we move into Spring, your two favorite brown girls are talking about all the things: mercury retrograde (a little woo-woo for you), finding closure (or not) as seasons shift in life, avoiding burnout, meditation, letting go of perfection, and examining our thoughts.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Checking in
• Mercury retrograde (and its effects)
• “Take it all back!”
• “I’ve got the power”
• Vaccine update
• The illusion of control
• Inspiration of gardening shows (and a good nature analogy)
• What the pandemic is teaching us
• Dealing with unexpected change
• Giving ourselves permission to rest
• Cultural influences on being “all the things”
• The benefit of a meditation practice
• The spiritual matrix
• The power of suggestion
• Metacognition
• Checking implicit bias
• “Your thoughts are optional”
• Email anxiety
• Letting go of perfection and embracing the beautiful mess

Find us at justchai.podbean.com

Friendly disclaimer: This podcast and its hosts are not endorsing any of brand names you may hear. Any product names mentioned are simply to add fun, lively color for the conversation. Opinions reflected are our own.