How I Got Here with Dreena Whitfield

Description Counseling psychologist Dr. T.M. Robinson-Mosley shares how she went from growing up in a home where psychology and sports were inseparable to founding The Playbook, an award-winning mental health performance platform trusted by the NBA, NCAA, NWSL, and the U.S. Air Force. Dr. Mosley talks about her mother and twin aunt being among the only Black psychologists in Alabama, her uncle catching the last out of the 1969 World Series, boxing and rugby as an athlete, building a consulting practice she never planned, and scaling 36 providers across pro sports during COVID. This episode covers the mental health crisis in elite sports, quantifying wellness the way a Fitbit tracks physical health, building winning team cultures, and why ready is not a feeling but a decision. Key Takeaways Ready is not a feeling, it is a decision. Waiting to feel ready may mean never starting. More than 50% of elite athletes report depression and anxiety severe enough to affect their ability to function. The crisis is now. You cannot fight tall. Lean into your actual strengths, even the ones that feel like weaknesses. Building a winning team culture is everybody's everyday work. Seeing people who looked like her doing the work gave Dr. Mosley the belief that nothing was unattainable. Who Should Listen Women building at the intersection of multiple industries. Founders moving from consulting to scalable tech. Sports professionals and clinicians exploring athlete mental health. Anyone who has waited to feel ready before making a move. Learn more about Dr. Mosley and The Playbook at playbookperformance.co Host: Dreena Whitfield, WhitPR Executive Producer, Writer, and Creative Director: Keena Williams Music: Kinita G, "How I Got Here (Official Podcast Theme)" Subscribe for more conversations on purpose, leadership, and reinvention.

Amber Guyton left corporate financial services, built Blessed Little Bungalow into a full-service design brand, and learned that pricing your worth and protecting your peace are the real work. Today she's one of only 2% of interior designers who are Black, with licensing partnerships at Home Goods, TJ Maxx, and Mitchell Black, celebrity clients, and a design philosophy rooted in soulful maximalism. Key Takeaways: You do not have to scale to be successful; a boutique business built on alignment, creative freedom, and strong values is a powerful model. Only 2% of the interior design industry is Black, and showing up authentically in that space is both representation and strategy. Pricing your worth starts with tracking your time; undercharging does not just hurt you, it affects the entire industry. An ADHD diagnosis, anxiety, and depression do not disqualify you from building something meaningful; they just mean some days the building looks different. In this conversation with Dreena Whitfield, Amber opens up about the leap from corporate to creative entrepreneurship, the imposter syndrome that comes without formal design training, and how soulful maximalism became her signature. She talks about what happened when a hobby started feeling like work, why she chose a boutique model over empire-building, and the invisible battles of entrepreneurship, including a recent ADHD diagnosis. This episode covers: decorating her first home in a single week, growing from $250 e-design mood boards to thousands, how licensing partnerships found her before she went looking, navigating an industry where representation barely exists, the heartbreak of a client relationship gone wrong, choosing creative freedom over brand scripts, designing spaces for first-generation wealth builders, and the legacy she hopes to leave behind. If you're a woman navigating the leap from corporate to creative entrepreneurship, a designer wrestling with imposter syndrome or pricing, an entrepreneur building while managing mental health, or a first-generation wealth builder who wants spaces that reflect your identity, this episode is for you. About Amber Guyton: Designer, creative director, and founder of Blessed Little Bungalow. University of Georgia MBA. Former corporate marketing executive. Her work has been featured in Architectural Digest, HGTV Magazine, and Forbes. Licensing partnerships with Home Goods, TJ Maxx, and Mitchell Black, with a bedding line on the way. Speaker at High Point Market. Follow Amber Guyton at @blessedlittlebungalow Watch the full video episode on Substack: howigotherewdreenaw.substack.com Subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@howigotherewdreenaw Subscribe to How I Got Here with Dreena Whitfield for more conversations on purpose, leadership, and reinvention. (00:00) - Meet Amber Guyton: The Interior Designer Building Blessed Little Bungalow With Soul (01:36) - How did Amber Guyton know it was time to leave corporate and pursue interior design full-time? (04:14) - How did the pandemic push Amber Guyton from side hustle to full-time design business? (05:47) - Why did Amber Guyton choose a boutique design business over scaling? (07:43) - What happens when a creative side hustle becomes a full-time business and stops feeling fun? (09:52) - How did Blessed Little Bungalow start from decorating one house in a week? (12:34) - What is it like being a Black interior designer in an industry that is only 2% Black? (14:37) - How did Amber Guyton build a design career without formal interior design training? (15:42) - What is soulful maximalism and how does it center Black art and identity in interior design? (18:25) - How does designing for first-generation wealth builders differ from traditional interior design? (20:32) - How should interior designers price their work when there is no industry blueprint? (26:24) - How did Amber Guyton land licensing deals with Home Goods, TJ Maxx, and Mitchell Black? (29:44) - What is the long-term vision for Blessed Little Bungalow beyond interior design? (34:23) - How do interior designers manage ADHD, anxiety, and depression while running a business? (39:07) - How do you protect creative standards when clients cut budgets or projects fall apart? (41:26) - What does Amber Guyton want her legacy in interior design to be? (43:40) - Quick-fire questions and closing

Mary Pat Hector started organizing at 12, advised President Obama at 18, and ran for office at 19 — losing by just 22 votes. That loss reshaped her entire path. Today she's CEO of Rise, a national organization fighting for free college and student basic needs across 10+ states, and the founder of Equity for All, a platform helping young people of color in the South gain political power. Key Takeaways: She advised President Obama on criminal justice reform at 18 and has since helped mobilize over 4 million voters through Rise. When a Black woman takes over from a white male founder, the funding dynamics shift overnight. The most impactful skill a young leader can learn is fundraising — without it, you'll always work for someone else. Progressive organizations are facing a post-2024 crisis as foundations pull back out of fear of political retaliation. In this conversation with Dreena Whitfield, Mary Pat opens up about the real cost of being the youngest, the first, and the only in the room. She shares what happened when she stepped into the CEO role after a white male founder — and how fundraising, dynamics, and expectations shifted overnight. She talks about building sisterhood as a leadership survival tool, balancing being a new mom and CEO, and what she's hearing from young people who are losing faith in democracy. This episode covers: growing up in a service-driven household in Atlanta, what it was like in the Oval Office at 18, the emotional toll of running for office as a teenager, founding Equity for All after her election loss, leading a hunger strike at Spelman, her path to leading Rise, navigating progressive fundraising after 2024, the personal sacrifices young leaders make, and the legacy she hopes to leave behind. If you're a young person figuring out how to lead, an organizer navigating burnout, or someone who wants to understand what it actually takes to build civic power — this episode is for you. About Mary Pat Hector: CEO of Rise, Founder of Equity for All. Spelman College and Georgia State University graduate. Rise has mobilized over 4 million voters nationwide. She helped register over 500,000 Georgia voters through Black Youth Vote. Led hunger strikes that gained 75,000+ meals for HBCU students. Youngest board member of Headcount.org. Featured on MSNBC, CNN, NYT, Hulu's 1619 Project, Forbes, and more. Subscribe to How I Got Here for more conversations on purpose, leadership, and reinvention. Host: Dreena Whitfield / WhitPR Executive Producer, Writer & Creative Director: Keena Williams

Dreena sits down with Aniesia Williams, a brand strategist, venture architect, and ecosystem builder who understands how power actually moves. In this conversation, Aniesia reflects on navigating leadership spaces where high-performing Black women are often brought in to fix broken systems without real authority or protection. She shares what it cost her to speak up, the psychological toll of being pushed out, and the lessons she learned building and exiting a service-based business. Together, Dreena and Aniesia explore integrity, ownership, and what it looks like to build systems that truly protect the people inside them. This episode is a powerful reminder that success without alignment still comes at a price.

Laila Brock joins Dreena Whitfield for a powerful conversation about leadership, representation, and learning who you are beyond the job. From her early days as a college track captain to shaping some of the biggest stages in sports, Laila reflects on what it means to lead in rooms that were never designed for you. She shares lessons from mentors who poured into her, the responsibility of opening doors for others, and the moment she realized success without rest is not sustainable. This is Laila Brock. And this is how she got here. This episode is a thoughtful reflection on identity, boundaries, burnout, and redefining purpose beyond titles. Listen and follow How I Got Here with Dreena Whitfield for more stories of purpose, resilience, and the moments that shape who we become.