Not 4 Prophets Podcast

When ‘Progressive’ Workplaces Protect the Status Quo

Sometimes it’s not you, it’s the system.

In this episode, we’re calling out the deep dysfunction inside nonprofits, institutions, and “progressive” spaces that claim they want change but quietly resist it at every turn. From the myth of meritocracy to the hollow rituals of “inclusion,” we’re asking: What happens when the mission sounds right, but the culture stays wrong?

We dig into:

• How to spot when your org is resistant to change, no matter what it says publicly
  
  
• Why white leadership often escapes accountability while clinging to the optics of DEI
  
  
• The emotional toll of advocating internally, especially when you're met with “we’re a family” energy instead of real standards
  
  
• What it could look like to professionalize nonprofit leadership with real accountability: transparency, ethical hiring, and oversight
  
  

Key Takeaway:
Black leaders don’t owe loyalty to broken systems. You have every right to ask hard questions, and to walk away when the answer is silence.

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's 5-part limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to schedule a 1-1 consultation with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

 

Please be sure to subscribe, share, and leave a review.

Beyond the W2: Lessons from Life After the Corporate Grind

We’re told to make it in systems that were never built for us. But what happens after the resignation, the burnout, the pivot, or the layoff?

In this episode, we’re talking about what comes next, life beyond the 9–5. Whether you’re consulting, on sabbatical, freelancing, starting your own thing, or still figuring it out, this conversation holds space for the truth: leaving isn’t the end of the story, it's the beginning of a different way of working and living.

We explore:

• The myths about success and safety we’re forced to unlearn after leaving institutional roles
  
  
• The difference between freedom and flailing, and how to build support structures that actually sustain us
  
  
• The hidden truths about entrepreneurship, consulting, and life outside the W-2 that don’t make it to the highlight reel
  
  
• What it means to not recreate the very grind we escaped
  
  

Key Takeaway:
Liberation is not a one-time act, it’s a lifelong practice.
Black leadership must be sustainable, whether you’re inside or outside the system.

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's 5-part limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to schedule a 1-1 consultation with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

Be sure to subscribe, share, and leave a review.

It’s Not Impostor Syndrome, It’s Systemic Racism

“You don’t belong here.”
Nobody says it out loud, but Black professionals feel it all the time.

In this episode, we’re flipping the script on impostor syndrome. Too often, we’re told our self-doubt is a personal failing, that we just need to be more confident or stop being so sensitive. But what if those feelings aren’t internal at all? What if they’re responses to systemic exclusion, coded invalidation, and racialized bias?

This conversation builds on key themes from Season 1 (Episodes 4 & 6) and recent Season 3 episodes about code-switching and new leadership models. Now, we’re going deeper into how Black professionals are pathologized instead of supported, and what it means to reclaim our narratives.

We explore:

• The difference between internal doubt and external invalidation
  
  
• How impostor syndrome language masks racism and structural exclusion
  
  
• Real-life moments when self-doubt felt logical, not pathological
  
  
• How organizations can stop gaslighting Black professionals and start dismantling harmful dynamics
  
  

 Have you ever second-guessed yourself, only to realize you were reacting to a system designed to exclude you? Share your story with us or tag #Not4Prophets.

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's 5-part limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Download your Free copy of How to Keep Great People: for mission-driven organizations that want to create longevity and loyalty among teams https://www.howtokeepgreatpeople.com/

Want to schedule a 1-1 consultation with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

DEI Leadership in Crisis: What’s Next for Black Leaders?

The DEI wave that surged in 2020 is crashing, and once again, Black professionals are the first to pay the price. From layoffs and sidelining to performative accountability and shrinking budgets, many are left wondering: What now?

In this episode, we’re talking about the DEI backlash and what it means for those who've built careers, movements, and entire identities around the pursuit of equity in the workplace.

We ask:

• How has this DEI unraveling shown up personally and professionally?
  
  
• What happens when the rug is pulled out from under your leadership?
  
  
• What does meaningful equity work look like now, especially outside of formal DEI titles?
  
  
• And most importantly: What new power centers can we create, lead, and own?
  
  

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's 5-part limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Download your Free copy of How to Keep Great People: for mission-driven organizations that want to create longevity and loyalty among teams https://www.howtokeepgreatpeople.com/

Want to schedule a 1-1 consultation with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

 

Leading Through Absurd Times for Black Leaders

At some point in leadership, especially for Black leaders, the work starts to feel absurd. The goals no longer make sense. The requests become contradictory. The funding evaporates. The outcomes are unclear or ever-shifting. And yet, somehow, you're still expected to show up with grace, clarity, and measurable impact. This episode explores what it feels like to be asked to do the impossible with the bare minimum, and the emotional, psychological, and spiritual toll it takes.

This conversation is here to remind you: you’re not imagining it. It is absurd. And Black leaders deserve to work in environments where their time, labor, and vision are respected, not exploited.

 

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's 5-part limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to chat with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

How to Spot a Scoundrel Amongst Colleagues: Manipulating Systems for Personal Gain

Not all harm comes from "the system”, sometimes, it shows up much closer to home. In this episode, we dive into a tough but necessary conversation: what happens when people inside your organization use racial justice language and DEI frameworks for personal gain? What happens when shared trauma is manipulated, accountability is dodged, and liberatory language becomes a shield against critique?

We explore:

• The subtle ways colleagues co-opt justice work for self-advancement.
  
  
• What to do when someone uses "white supremacy" language to avoid responsibility and accountability.
  
  
• How to protect your own integrity without being labeled divisive.
  
  
• Why it's so painful when people you thought were aligned show their true intentions.
  
  

We also name the very real dynamics that happen when non-Black people of color weaponize racial justice rhetoric to gaslight, deflect, or exempt themselves from doing their part, often at the expense of Black colleagues.

 

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to chat with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

If Not A 9-5 Or Entrepreneurship, Then What? Finding The Third Way

We know the cost of assimilating. We’ve felt the exhaustion of constant resistance. So what else is there?

In this episode, we explore “The Third Way”, a growing movement among Black leaders who are choosing imagination over burnout, dignity over martyrdom, and global vision over boxes that don’t fit. What does it mean to lead on your own terms?

Together, we dig into:

• The ideas, influences, and frameworks reshaping Black leadership, across borders and screens
  
  
• How abolitionist, expat, and decentralized movements are pushing us to dream differently
  
  
• The power of retreat, coaching, and community as tools for unlearning
  
  
• What it looks like to build something instead of always fixing something
  
  

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to chat with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/

What’s a leadership model you’re craving that doesn’t yet exist where you work? DM us on LinkedIn or share your thoughts using #Not4Prophets.

 

Be sure to subscribe, share, and review.

Losing Yourself in a Job vs. Strategic Code-Switching for Survival

“You’ve changed.”
But... have you really? Or have you just learned to survive?

In this episode, we’re diving into the nuance and necessity of code-switching, compartmentalization, and adaptation, not as signs of betrayal, but as sacred acts of self-preservation. For many Black professionals, especially in predominantly white or high-pressure environments, shifting how you show up is not about inauthenticity, it’s about making it through.

So let’s talk about it:

• What does it really mean to be strategic vs. inauthentic at work?
  
  
• How do you know when you’re protecting your peace... or slowly losing yourself?
  
  
• Who gets to define authenticity, and why is that so loaded?
  
  
• What toll does long-term compartmentalization take on the body, mind, and spirit?

RESOURCES

Are you a woman leader who is depleted, exhausted and looking for a way out? Check out Trenia's limited series podcast The Burnout Rescue Plan. Click here to listen.

Want to chat with David? Visit https://strivequity.com/