Oprah taught me this lesson

There’s something that’s been bugging me about the coaching industry, and it wasn’t until I recalled an episode of Oprah that I realized that it was.

In this episode, Oprah brings on a financial coach to give financial advice to families. One family was an African-American family, and the coach told the mother, Mrs. Bradley, that her weekly salon visits were a luxury that should be cut out, in order to save money.

Mrs. Bradley immediately responded that salon visits to her are not a luxury, and Oprah agreed. Oprah explained that going to the hair salon for a black woman isn’t a luxury. It is a necessity that must be factored into every black woman’s budget.

So this is my problem — traditional coaching models don’t take into consideration the lived experience of people of color, and therefore cannot coach them well.

Culturally, people of color (and by POC I mean black, brown, asian, multiracial, and all who identify as people of color) have needs and considerations that just aren’t factored into traditional coaching approaches.

That’s why you need a coach who gets it. You need a coach of color.

It’s not uncommon for people who hold authority and power to dismiss the lived experience, opinions, and preferences of women of color. We know that trauma intimately.

These traditional coaching models promote transformation and healing without reckoning with the harmful effects of racism, sexism, homophobia, and oppression on everyone.

You can’t see someone if your response to that type of oppression is “change your thoughts, change your life.” That’s not helpful or empathetic. There is nothing transformative about shallow quotes or B.S.

As a woman of color and coach, it takes daily practice and dedication to reach first for understanding before judgment and mantras.

So when I coach my clients, I make a conscious choice to see my clients first and then to walk with them on the path of success that they choose.

That’s the work that I do as a black coach.

If you’re interested in seeing how coaching can help you, I’m offering a free coaching call, because it’s important to feel comfortable before you commit.

Click here to schedule your free call.