Episode 4: An Ode to Local Heroes

Episode 6: Michelle Weldon's Pursuit of her Passion for Fashion!

On this final episode of Season 1 of In Your Element we have the pleasure of hearing from Michelle Weldon, Founder and CEO of Shop Outre. During this episode Michelle shares her story of growing up in Western Massachusetts and knowing from a young age that fashion was truly her passion.

Throughout her life she recognized the importance of not giving up—even when the path that she took didn’t look as neat or as simple as those around her, which gave her the confidence to take the leap of faith last year and launch her online boutique: Shop Outre. She tells of her journey to becoming a fashionpreneur, leading a brand that embodies sophistication while being sexy without making skin the focal point. Allow Michelle to introduce you to her dialect of fashion as well as some of her newest boutique items on this episode!

To learn more about Shop Outre and Michelle, visit her website: www.shopoutre.com and check them out on Instagram @shop_outre.

This episode was written, produced and edited by Charisse Alouidor. Music production & logo by Chris Theodat.

Episode 5: Kurt Faustin's Formula for Success, Minus the Stress!

In this episode of In Your Element, Kurt Faustin shares part of his story of growing up in the inner city of Boston and being molded by his experiences of overcoming childhood trauma, attending 4 different high schools, and opening up his perspective to a more nontraditional method of learning through mentors on YouTube and other inspirational settings and books (Think & Grow Rich: A Black Choice by Dennis Kimbro & Napoleon Hill).     He encourages us to challenge our ideas about stress and allow ourselves to be open to the idea that there is immense value in learning how to manage and cope with stress. He believes that once we begin to stress LESS, the world becomes our oyster and our productivity and potential becomes realized.    To learn more about Kurt and to check out his upcoming webinars, please be sure to visit his website: www.kurtfaustin.com This episode was written, produced and edited by Charisse Alouidor. Music production and logo by Chris Theodat. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/IYE/support

Episode 4: An Ode to Local Heroes

On this episode of In Your Element, we take a moment to celebrate and recognize our local heroes who are providing us moments of happiness and hope as we continue to live through this COVID crisis. We have the opportunity to hear from Dr. Khalilah Knight, an Endocrinologist in NYC who has been called back into the hospital to support COVID patients. Additionally, we get to witness the heart of humanity through some of the co-founders of the Boston based nonprofit, My Brother's Keeper 617, Mario & Tony as they share the experience of bringing joy to members of the Greater Boston community during the Easter Holiday! Be sure to show them some support by visiting their website, www.mbk617.org to learn more!

This episode was written, edited, and produced by Charisse Alouidor. Music production & logo are courtesy of Chris Theodat. 

Episode 3: Becoming Well with Ana Tibisay Ayobiojo

In this episode, Ana shares her story of being born in Queens, NY to Dominican parents: a loving mother who cared for her as best as she knew how and a father who abandoned her before she was born. She tells of her experience of growing up in an urban area on the North Shore of Massachusetts amidst the distractions of a bustling city and still challenging herself to strive in her academics to achieve the opportunity for a full scholarship to her reach school, Northeastern University! Throughout all of this, she struggled with and overcame PTSD before later launching a career as a clinical counselor and therapist, in the midst of successfully juggling the roles of being a wife and now a mother of 3.

Ana most recently published her first book, From Survival Mode to Greatness in which she details her experience of overcoming PTSD along with tips and resources for others, and she is also the host of her new podcast, The Community Well. Be sure to check out all of her handles at https://linktr.ee/anatibisayayobiojo

While neither myself, nor Ana are experienced medical professionals, Ana does share some resources for anyone looking for mental health support services during this time. I have no personal affiliation to any of these companies. Those resources are as follows:

• Talkspace (www.talkspace.com)
• Open path Counseling (https://openpathcollective.org/)
• BetterHelp (https://www.betterhelp.com/)
• Amwell for patients (www.amwell.com)
• Center for Interactive Mental Health Solutions (https://cimhs.com/)
• 7 Cups (https://www.7cups.com/)
• HealthSapiens (https://healthsapiens.com/)

This episode was written, edited and produced by Charisse Alouidor. Music production and logo design are by Chris Theodat.

Episode 2: Emeka Nnama’s Tale of Growth

In this episode, Emeka shares his story of being born in Jamaica to a strong praying mother and a father who was a diplomat that left Jamaica soon after he was born. He takes us through the experience of coming to the US as a child and learning what it means to create an identity for himself as not only a black man, but later in life, learning what it means to be a father. Throughout his life he has persisted through a number of struggles including growing up in the midst of gun violence, watching his mom be physically abused, nearly failing out of college, and becoming a father. The one constant that remained was his mother’s expectations and his belief that he could be better. Hence, this is his tale of growth. This episode is produced by Charisse Alouidor, it was filmed by NECTN, edited by Mayah Gilmer, and the music & logo are created by Chris Theodat. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/IYE/support