Derek Horn
Welcome back to In These Uncertain Times, a podcast about creating and connecting in the midst of uncertainty. I’m your host, Derek Horn.
Today’s guest is a powerhouse in every sense of the word.
Charlene Izere (she/her) is a Black Luxe Creator and three-time entrepreneur. She is the founder and CEO of Melanin & Money, a comprehensive hub for entrepreneurially-minded Black women; Soulful Systems, a boutique online business management agency supporting high-level entrepreneurs with sustainable systems; and Wellness Delivered, a self-care and community care brand. Her mission is to leave the world Blacker than when she entered.
Charlene has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, Thrive Global, and Disrupt Magazine.
We have a great conversation about how Charlene built her personal brand and several ventures, we strike down the notions that guilty pleasures need to be guilty, and she some great advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, thought-leaders, and well-meaning non-Black allies.
Since our recording, Charlene not only got married to her longtime boyfriend, Kevin, but also gave birth to their beautiful baby daughter, Laila. Congratulations to them both on their beautiful growing family.
Charlene is currently fundraising for her We Own Our Legacy Impact fund with a goal of reaching $50,000 by this May to fund essential financial resources, business coaching, and tech support for Black and Brown women founders. If you’re in a position to, please consider donating at the link in the show notes.
Thank you to Charlene and enjoy the show.
-
Well, welcome Charlene. How are you doing today?
Charlene Izere
I am awesome. Super excited to be here and chat. It's a beautiful day and I am like ready to enjoy my weekend. But I'm super excited to be here. Thanks for having me.
Derek Horn
Thank you for joining. So to get started, can you please tell our listeners about yourself in your own words?
Charlene Izere
Yeah. So my name is Charlene Izere and I’m a Black Luxe Creator and serial entrepreneur. I definitely coined the term Black Luxe Creator, which I'm sure we'll discuss later. But I'm the founder and CEO of Melanin & Money, a comprehensive hub for entrepreneurial-minded Black woman. I'm also the founder and CEO of Soulful Systems, a boutique Online Business Management Agency, where we support high-level six and seven-figure entrepreneurs with creating sustainable and scalable systems and Wellness Delivered a self-care community care brand, which is an extension of my personal brand. And my overall mission with all the ventures and activities that I involve myself in is to leave the world Blacker than when I entered and a lot of that is through my messaging, positioning myself as an authority, the things that I invest in and reframing conversations around money to conversations about wealth and building a legacy.
Derek Horn
So sounds like you have a lot of free time.
Charlene Izere
Oh, yeah. You know, I just like this casual I still funny people ask me, like, what are your hobbies? And I'm like, I'm still trying to figure that out. Because a lot of the time I spend, you know, doing business stuff, and I love it. It's definitely gives me a lot of joy. And I think that's the Virgo in me just loving to be really in my business. And yeah, I just, I love what I do.
Derek Horn
I love that it's been so great seeing you build your businesses and your personal brand over the past couple years, you've really become such a shining star. And it's been really great to see.
Charlene Izere
Thank you.
Derek Horn
I want to talk about how you define yourself as a Black Luxe Creator, because I think that's such an elegant and potent way of describing who you are and what you do. So can you tell us a little bit about your journey in defining that personal brand? And what types of things has that clarity unlocked for you?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, so I have always been someone who definitely enjoys the finer things in life. And not necessarily, you know, materialistic, but more so experiences and just like high quality, high level, Luxe, if you will. However, when I, over the years, when I've looked into luxury brands or any luxury experiences, or things of that nature, it was always very whitewashed and never really felt connected to that. And the only time where I would see luxury and where I was represented, it was always behind this messaging of being bougie. Right. And that's something that I'm still kind of working through, like how to really either redefine that term, or completely just get rid of it for myself personally. But for me, I've always battled with thinking like, why do I have to seem extra for liking the finer things in life? Why can't that just be normalized? And the other piece of that, too, within content creation and content creators. You know, there's a lot of content creators that look like me, but not a lot of content creators who look like me are always securing the bag. And they're not always the ones who are chosen for these luxury brand sponsorships and things of that nature. So, for me, I didn't want to just come into this world, this influencer world as just a content creator, I wanted it to be very, very clear that I'm a Black Luxe Creator. I like the finer things in life and want to normalize luxury in Black lives and not it not be a thing where “Oh, she has to be bougie.” No, I like luxury. I love being I love wealth and amassing wealth, and that's okay.
Derek Horn
Yeah, I really admire that way that you've been kind of projecting this very confident, clear and positive, I think most importantly, model of entrepreneurship because I think there's this, at least from my perspective, things I've seen on LinkedIn and stuff, there's a lot of these kind of old school business influencers that a lot of them are white men. They're really promoting this unhealthy lifestyles, or are more concerned about playing this part of an entrepreneur online. What is it been like balancing that thought leadership and influencer status with your other multiple endeavors and ensuring that you're taking care of yourself in the process?
Charlene Izere
Yeah. That's such a really great question. So I mentioned Wellness Delivered, it's like my own like a passion project, but it's really where I'm able to center myself in the self-care that I need as a Black-entrepreneur because entrepreneurship definitely looks really different for me as a Black woman, and as an immigrant. And, you know, yes, I, I do you position myself as a thought leader, I do consider myself as a thought leader, I have influence. And I also have an impact. And I think that's something else important to think about when you are positioning yourself as a thought leader, it's not you. Some thought leaders have influence, some thought leaders have an impact, the best thought leaders have influence and impact. So for me, if I'm going to be able to have and leverage that influence and impact, I also have to take time to take care of myself. So whether that is just watching reality TV, my not-so-guilty pleasure, that also helps me kind of just kind of disconnect a little bit from everything that's going on. Even though I'm obsessed with what I'm doing. And I am obsessed with the legacy that I'm building, it can be really daunting, it can also feel like there's a weight on my shoulder to build this legacy that lives and breathes beyond me. So it's definitely a pressure that I feel on a day-to-day basis. But a lot of the times that pressure fuels my fire, you know, so having those like, little moments and pockets of self-care have really helped me get more clear on what the mission is, the mission will always remain the same for me, it will leave the world blacker than when I entered, normalize luxury, it's always going to remain the same. But the way that I do that the pathways that I take in order to achieve that may change. And I have to give myself some grace through that process. You know?
Derek Horn
Yeah, I love how you said not-so-guilty pleasure. I think that phrase guilty pleasure. I I reject that. I think that anything that that brings you joy in this world, especially if it's a break from reality, or your normal grind. I think you shouldn't feel guilty about that.
Charlene Izere
Yeah, 100%.
Derek Horn
So when did you realize that you were the one that had the power to activate resources in education for black women entrepreneurs?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, you know, honestly, it's funny that you say that, because it really came to reality this over this summer, during the summer of Black death. However, a few years ago, when I started Melanin & Money, as just honestly a passion project, I had no idea what was gonna be like, you know, I definitely took a lot of messy action, I was on my way to speak at an event at my local Girls Inc. and I was just thinking about the events that I've been a part of the spaces that I've occupied, where I was not represented, and I was just exhausted honestly, about always being the other. Right, and really hated that feeling of being othered. So Kevin, and I, my boyfriend we were in the car trying to think about, you know, what, what is this gonna look like? What and we came up with the name of Melanin & Money. So at the time, I knew that I wanted to gather Black women and women of color together for just networking events and whatnot, to connect and just show it, you know, we have the power to take over the world, we have the power to change the trajectory of our lives, regardless of you know, the obstacles that we will inevitably face and it just the way that the systems are set up, but it is what it is, right.
So over the summer, and I really found my voice after George Floyd's death, I was very paralyzed by, you know, constantly turning on the news or going on Twitter and seeing Black man after Black man after Black man or Black woman after Black woman become a hashtag. Right? It was so crippling, and I did not I didn't. I struggled to find a purpose in what I was doing. I really just needed to rethink and retool the way that I wanted to live my life. And I realized, you know what, we just need to get really clear on our mission and our mission is always going to be centered Black women's economic advancement because that's where the magic happens. So over the summer, it just kind of happened by accident. And like, that's one of the great things that came about the summer of Black Death is I really found my voice. I went to a protest. And at the protest, I was just thinking like, I have such a powerful voice, I have a powerful story, and I'm in a great position to leverage my impact and influence for the better of my community. And yeah, it's I mean, I say that not, it's not light work, you know, I know that this is a lot, it's a huge mission. But again, I'm a Virgo, and I definitely take on, I like to take on big projects. And this is like my life project.
Derek Horn
Nice. I love that. Yeah, something that I've discovered over the past couple of years volunteer working with LGBTQ undergrad students is, I think that we all have the power to be the role models that we wish we had. It's kind of like, if you don't see it in the world like you have that opportunity to go and be it. I think that that really seems like that's definitely the case with your story. And you kind of saw this absence in the world. And then you just decided, I'm going to go manifest this and become it and I really love that a lot.
Charlene Izere
Yeah, I'm definitely a go getter. I don't, I am no wealth-motivated, socially conscious, and solutions oriented. So if there's a problem, I will find a solution. I'm not one to sit and wallow. With the way that my life has been over the last 26 years, I don't have the energy to sit and wallow. Like I always think about, Alright, here's the problem, let's figure out what the solution is going to be.
Derek Horn
Yeah, obviously, this past year with the pandemic and COVID, that has presented a whole array of challenges, as well as I guess some opportunities for building a better world. How has COVID impacted your personal process and approach to any of the things that you're doing?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, I think one positive thing that has come about with COVID is I've learned a lot more about me as an entrepreneur and how I went to work and how much I really do value, having, you know, the separation of as much as I possibly can separation of my workspace and my play space. So over the summer, we did, we did move into a new home, and I'm really grateful to have an office. So one thing that really has helped me kind of get through the mundane, that comes with, you know, isolating yourself is just really separating where I'm working and where I'm playing. And that has been really important to me, because my partner, he works with me, and he we work at home. And so it can be really hard for anyone who's living with their significant other to, you know, find that differentiation between what is work and what is play, and it and I definitely will be super transparent, and that has affected our relationship at times. And so one good thing about COVID is that we both were have been able to get really clear on what our needs are in terms of entrepreneurship, and then our personal interrelationships as well.
And then from a business standpoint, we have, my agency has been very blessed where we were able to scale to multiple six figures during this pandemic, which is completely out of the norm. You know, a lot of organizations, a lot of companies, a lot of entrepreneurs have been so negatively impacted by this pandemic. But however, you know, well, including the Black and Brown community. So something that also came about this pandemic is, you know, we started an impact fund over at Melanin & Money to support these Black and Brown entrepreneurs to supply them with grant and financial resources, as well as tech and business coaching resources and whatnot. So I really wanted to make sure that I took the successes that I've experienced during this pandemic, and was able to leverage that into support for my community. So, you know, my story is out of the norm, where I have been really blessed during this pandemic. And so I wanted to make sure that because the universe has blessed me, that I 100% have to pay it for it and pay it back to my Black and Brown community.
Derek Horn
That's awesome. And I think that that's something even if if and when the pandemic is over whether it seems like that will definitely have lasting impact for years to come.
Charlene Izere
Yeah, yeah, it's all about legacy building and you know, thinking about the trials and tribulations that you're in right now, how can you turn those tribulations into transformation for someone else, you know, or for yourself? Yeah, it's it's hard when you're in it because there are people dying, you know? There are people who are having to close their shops and close our doors. And they may never reopen again. And it's so heartbreaking to see the effects and to see how so ill-prepared we have been for something like this. And, you know, it just adds another thing for Black and Brown communities to fight through. And it's, it's really exhausting. And I am very blessed to be in the position that I'm in right now. And I hope that in the future that we all can, like, learn from this pandemic, and understand that we have to do better, like we cannot beat another situation like this moving forward.
Derek Horn
Of course, yeah, I think that this is definitely been a once-in-a-lifetime, to this point, event for us. But I think without all indications show that this likely won't be the last. So it's how do we build that fortitude to weather than the storms that may come in the future? So what are your primary communication methods with those that you partner with, your audience, things like that, and have those evolved at all? Because of COVID?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, so pre COVID, I was already, you know, working from home. So there was already a lot of zoom calls. So if anything, you know, it just reaffirmed that the tools that I was using were great. So some of those communication tools being like Zoom, you know, have weekly Zoom calls with my team or with my partners, I don't know, they're, they're only literally one day a week, I always leave Wednesdays open, I have no calls. Because on the other days, I'm always on calls. So it's usually Zoom, and I'm a lover of Slack, my entire team is on Slack, as well, as you know, for my agency, as well as for Melanin & Money, or for my personal brand, we all just communicate via Slack and Voxer. But I've been more present, I want to say since COVID, on social media than I was before, because that's really one of the only ways for you to connect with people these days, right? There's not a lot of like, Let's go, Well, I mean, for me, I don't go out, right, because I'm social distancing. That's, that's not the case for everybody. Unfortunately. So, you know, I've been definitely a lot more present on social, be it IG Live, or Stories or, you know, YouTube, whatever that may be. Because, again, it's important to reaffirm your messaging during this time and reaffirm my mission during this time. And so COVID really has made it more so important for me to make sure that I have this digital legacy out there. And it's not just, it's, it looks different. Now, it feels different now, because of COVID. And I, I assume moving forward that a lot of folks are now this is the new norm in the sense of being very digital and making sure that you are utilizing your digital and social currency to build your business or to even just connect with other people.
Derek Horn
Totally. Do you have any advice for people that might be looking to start their digital footprint in a similar way and really nail down their messaging and kind of disperse that through the digital channels?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, so part of it is just, you know, ask yourself, like, what do you what do you want to leave behind? You know, what is? What is your mission and understand that it's totally okay, if your mission changes over the years, but what is your mission right now? Like, what fuels your fire? What does your audience need or your community need? What do you need, right? And then it becomes easier for you to create messaging around that one specific mission. Rather than just, you know, posting to post or just showing up to show up, find a mission, create a mission and allow yourself to own your own legacy, right. And then from there, you know, you can leverage that to, to post on social or maybe pitch to media or whatever that may be. Whenever you figure out what your mission is, take the time to leverage that message behind the mission and that will help you really create a more sustainable legacy versus you know, just posting to post or just showing up on social to just show up and that's also okay if that's what you want to do. Not everyone is you not everyone is like, you know, wants to build a business or wants to have influence and impact on social media and that's also fine. But if you do want to have influence and impact, make sure that you have a clear mission. And then from there, you're able to determine what your messaging is.
Derek Horn
That's great. Yeah, I think that that, I'm sure it's easier said than done. But it seems like such a simple thing. And I feel like may get lost on a lot of people. And I think it can be kind of overwhelming if you say, Okay, I want to become this, or I want to flex my muscles with this or learn these new skills. It's like, where do you start? Like, what is that square one. But I think that that's like a really great exercise for folks to do to try and figure out what that may be for them.
Charlene Izere
Yeah, it doesn’t have to be daunting. You know, you can just think about your mission right now, in the next year, you know, and it can change, you give yourself some grace to be able to be flexible, and the next few years and change that mission, that's totally fine. The best thought leaders, they typically have, you know, a signature mission or message throughout, you know, over the years. However, when you're first starting out, like it's, it's totally cool to just give yourself that grace and freedom to change it up or to rebrand yourself. And I've done that over the years, many times, every branded myself, and like you mentioned earlier, during this interview, I've over the last couple years is when I've positioned myself as a thought leader. And so that's taken some time for me to get a lot of clarity. And what that really looks like and over this last year is where it really has made sense.
Derek Horn
Right? Right. So I know that you have these several ventures, several teams that you're working across. And I'm sure with that comes needing to rely on other people on your team to execute things and make things happen. I know for me, and some teams I've been on, I've kind of had difficulty letting go and kind of delegating tasks to other people. Do you have any advice for leaders or aspiring leaders that have a difficult time delegating tasks?
Charlene Izere
Yeah. So one thing to keep in mind is, if you're not delegating, there is probably something that you are neglecting that only you can do. Right? So getting some clarity around, what are the things that only you can do that will really push your mission and your vision forward. And those are the things that you want to focus on. And anything else that's getting in the way of that you need to delegate that out, right. So for me, I'm not a copywriter, that's not my zone of genius. And there's no reason for me to try and be that it makes way more sense for me to outsource and delegate that. So that I can do other things like you know, be on podcasts or create a brand, proposal or whatever that may be. So when you're struggling with delegating, it definitely has a lot to do with control and the fear of what happens when you let go of that control. But there's so much freedom when you do that, because you're able to really step into YOUR role and not into other people's roles, right, stay in your lane, stay in your zone of genius.
Derek Horn
I love that. And I think that there is such power in recognizing the limit of what you can do, and recognizing that there are other people in this world that those things are their strong suits. So it's like, it's kind of like the Avengers, assembling the team of like people with different strengths to take on the big challenges.
Charlene Izere
Exactly.
Derek Horn
So I, I know, recently, you had appeared for an interview in Forbes, and you mentioned how you couldn't find that network that met your values and the unique needs of Black entrepreneurs so you created Melanin & Money. Do you mind sharing some tips for folks and other black entrepreneurs in particular, who are considering joining a community? What types of things that they should look for and kind of see if it's a good fit for them?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, one, if you're not represented in that community, run. Because you, you're honestly doing yourself a disservice by being in spaces where you're not represented. And I spent so much time in spaces like that and not realizing the negative impact and implications that it had on me mentally as an entrepreneur until much later when I started Melanin & Money. Right. So one, it's really important for you to be in spaces where you are represented, are there people who look like you, not just as members of that community, but at the top when those decisions makers of that community, right. Because at the end of the day, you're only doing them a service to be in that space. versus yourself, right? So you don't want to be in spaces and serve at a deficit of self. So one, one, I always recommend, just, it's totally okay to ask or to, to inquire about the demographics of that specific community, whether you're joining a mastermind, or you're joining, whatever that community may be, feel free to use your voice, and flex your financial power and be in spaces where you're actually represented, right? Because if you're struggling to find the spaces where you're represented, create your own. I mean, that's what I did. I was like, I'm not going to waste any more time trying to, you know, trying to be in a space where I'm one not represented, but to I feel like I'm shrinking in that space, because I'm not represented, right? So, you know, definitely use your voice and, and ask like, Hey, What's the makeup of your community? What's the makeup of this mastermind or this group program that I'm about to join?
Derek Horn
Yeah, that's such great advice. I think like with many things, including, like job interviews, and things like that it is in many ways, like dating, it is kind of a two-way street, where obviously, your not your needs are not going to be met by this community or group, if you're not able to be your best. And just the same as like, they're probably the folks in that community aren't going to get any benefit from you if you're not thriving or being your best self.
Charlene Izere
Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And it's, it's not, um, it's hard. Because you sometimes you feel as if there aren't, those spaces are that you HAVE to be in those spaces in order to be successful, where you're not representative, but that's not the case, you can be successful in places that are intentional, right, make sure that you are represented. So that's a huge myth, you don't need to, you know, put yourself in a position where you have to shrink, you know, and if that's if you're getting that vibe, run!
Derek Horn
So in your view, what is something that even the most well meaning allied non black person may not be understanding about the challenges faced by Black women entrepreneurs? And how do you think they can be more supportive?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, over the summer, I, you know, I went live to discuss my experience as a Black woman in the United States and as an immigrant, and also as an entrepreneur, and it went viral. And from there, I received a lot of DMS from very well meaning non-Black allies. And a lot of those messages were, what can I do? What can I do? What can I do? And those messages were so overwhelming for me, because then it put the onus on me to figure out what they should do. Right? So it's up to you to figure it out, the resources are out there, you know, don't lean on your Black community, to provide you with the resources on how you can help the Black community because trust and believe we've already talked about it somewhere, right? So engage in our content. Read, read up, you know, there's a lot of great resources out there.
And then the second thing is, like, so many want to also, they want to bring in more Black folks into their communities, right and want to, you know, partner and collaborate, but put your money where your mouth is, right? You, we are experts in our field. So come with that same energy. So don't assume that because I am, you know, a Black woman in entrepreneurship that I'm just going to, you know, go hop on a live with you for free, like, you know, always come with energy as if there because I'm an entrepreneur, you know, this is what I do on a day to day, this is my business. Right? So I think it's important that even if you're well-meaning and you want to amplify their voice, you can also pay them for that, right? Any not everyone charges for things of that nature. However, don't assume that that's not the case. Right? Because economic advancement is very important for Black woman. That's how we win. And that's how we're going to win. So we need to make sure that, you know, our allies come with that same energy and understand that, you know, if you're leaning on us or looking to us to partner with you, whatever it may be, just bring that same energy that you would for another entrepreneur who may not necessarily look like me, you know?
Derek Horn
So, As we record this, you are in the homestretch of your pregnancy. What is it been like to navigate that the pandemic as an expectant mother?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, it's been a little lonely, I'll say it would be, I would love to be around my family more. So it's this is I never imagined being pregnant at this point. And also not during a pandemic. So a lot of things have changed. And then also during a season of, you know, social unrest, which honestly has something that's has always been relevant, regardless of the fact that it just became more publicized over the summer. But with it being so publicized, and me also going through my pregnancy, it has been something that I think about every single day, you know, about having the talk with my mixed baby, and my daughter, and you know, having the discussion with her about, you know, how do you interact with police? How do you interact with racist classmates? Or how do you navigate these systems that weren't really set up for you to succeed? Right? Like, what do you need to do in those spaces?
So those are the things that Kevin, I, my boyfriend had been talking about together about, like, you know, when do we have this conversation with her? How do we have these conversations with her, so it's really important for us to make sure that she's educated because silence will not help her. Silence will not help her succeed in life. And she will need to know that because of the color of her skin, you know, she may be treated differently. In fact, she will be treated differently in some spaces. So it's been it, this pregnancy has not necessarily been what I had thought it would be in the past when I was thinking about being pregnant. Like, I it's been very heavy at times, and I also experienced like some, you know, racist encounters, at the very beginning of my pregnancy, when it came to my doctor, I had to switch doctors at the very beginning. So it was, it's been a wild ride. I'm so blessed. Absolutely blessed, though, that I am. She's healthy, I'm healthy. But it has been a little bit hard. I've enjoyed it. But I haven't enjoyed every single moment of being pregnant. And, you know, that's just the reality of being a Black mother during a pandemic, and these are facts. You know, I can't really sugarcoat it, you know,
Derek Horn
Right, right. No, I think that you and Kevin are going to be excellent parents. And I'm very excited for both of you.
Charlene Izere
Thank you. Thank you. We're, yeah, Kevin is very, very excited. He's, he really wanted a girl. And I mean, and that's what we're having. Honestly, he didn't really care either way. But for some reason, I think, a month and he was just like, you know what, it'd be really nice if we had a little girl like that. I'll have two leading ladies in the house. Oh, he's so corny, I love him.
Derek Horn
I love them. That's adorable. So I know, one of the core tenants of your Soulful Systems course, is this idea of legacy building. And I know that you say that you want to leave the world Blacker than you found it. But even beyond that, what? When you think of your, the legacy that you want to leave in the world, what does that broader vision look like?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, it definitely looks like my daughter and her future kids, if she decides to have kids, that they have a life that my mother always dreamed that I would have growing up, and, and that they're able to leverage their successes, to support our community, and with who may not necessarily be as successful as she will be, because we've built out this legacy right of generational wealth for her. So I also think about, you know, what it will look like for not just her or her kids, but the people who are around me. So even like the non-Black folks, my allies, I want that legacy to also be a space where they understand this is how you can utilize your privilege to support our community. This is how we can all work together to ensure that we no longer have these summers of Black Death, that we no longer have these periods of time. When there's social unrest, that's so highly publicized, right? So the legacy is just so… it's huge. It's something that I, even today that I just take some time, and I think about it, and I get overwhelmed when I think about what the legacy is going to be, or what it's going to look like. But it’s an overwhelming feeling of gratitude, the fact that I can even dream that big. So as a refugee coming to the United States, that's something and growing up on food stamps, and as an immigrant, you don't realize that your life becomes about survival, and not necessarily about thriving. So dreaming is not a thing when you're in survival mode. So part of my legacy is to make sure that my community, my family, and the people around me that they are in a space of dreaming that they're able to dream bigger than what their stories have been in the past.
Derek Horn
That's beautiful. Well, thank you so much for joining. This has been such a great conversation. Where can folks find you online? And is there anything specifically you'd like to plug?
Charlene Izere
Yeah, so you can find me on Instagram at Charlene Izere, I'm definitely my DMs are open. So feel free to slide into my DMS, if you would like to inquire about any of my agency services, or how you can support Melanin & Money and our impact fund. And I am, obviously I'm having a baby soon. So I will do my best to respond back to messages via DM, but I am definitely present over on Instagram.
So in terms of what I'd like to plug is, if you're in a space right now in a position where you're able to donate to the We Own Our Legacy Impact fund, that would be amazing. We are currently going through a round of donations, we're looking for $50,000 by May, so that we can start our first cohort of recipients in June. So if you're in a position to donate, that'd be wonderful. If not, please share our graphics, please share our mission. This is something that will change the trajectory of very many, many, many, many Black and Brown entrepreneurs. So I would love it if you would support.
Derek Horn
That's awesome. Yeah, I'll be sure to link that in the show notes.
Charlene Izere
Thank you.
Derek Horn
Well, thank you so much. This was an excellent conversation. And I hope to talk to you again soon.
Charlene Izere
Wonderful.