For years, Alencia Johnson was the definition of “booked and busy.” A political strategist and activist, she constructed a profession working with main campaigns, together with Elizabeth Warren’s presidential run. However on the peak of her success, she discovered herself questioning whether or not the grind was value the associated fee.
That reckoning turned the inspiration for her new e book, Flip the Tables: The On a regular basis Disruptor’s Information to Discovering Braveness and Making Change, out March 11. Johnson examines the pressures of grind tradition — particularly for Black ladies — and redefines what success ought to really appear like.
“The extra I used to be catching flights, the additional away from my very own desires I used to be working,” she remembers. “I began getting bored with listening to family and friends and family members saying, ‘Properly, we all know you are busy. We all know chances are you’ll not be capable of make it.’ I am like, ‘I really do not wish to be that lady.’”
Like many, Johnson’s perspective shifted throughout the pandemic. She realized that her fixed hustle wasn’t simply exhausting — it was damaging. From persistent well being points to repeating unhealthy relationship patterns, the indicators had been there, however she had ignored them in favor {of professional} ambition.
Black ladies, specifically, are conditioned to equate worthiness with productiveness. “Our ancestors had been actually introduced right here to both be labor or give delivery to labor,” Johnson says. “That may be a onerous system in society to battle again towards. I share that as a result of the onus will not be absolutely on us to get out of this.”
Her e book doesn’t simply critique the system; it provides a roadmap for change. Johnson challenges the concept success requires self-sacrifice. As a substitute, she argues that true energy comes from prioritizing pleasure, relaxation and significant relationships. “I misplaced an Alencia who was limping by way of the world, exhibiting as much as different folks’s expectations,” she says. “And I gained an Alencia who’s actually at her divine function that has deeper friendships and relationships, that has a greater relationship along with her funds, that has a greater relationship along with her physique, that has a greater relationship total with the issues that matter.”
For Black ladies who really feel trapped by the relentless pursuit of success, Johnson encourages them to type a more healthy relationship with guilt. “I need Black ladies to begin to really feel snug with feeling the guilt of claiming no to sure conditions. Once I really feel responsible, I am like, ‘Properly, I am human. I’ve feelings. That is really factor that I really feel responsible about this.'”
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