Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jill Wener, CEO of Conscious Anti-Racism, LLC, located in Atlanta, GA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
My business is Conscious Anti-Racism, LLC. My partner, Dr. Maiysha Clairborne, and I do Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) consulting and anti-racism education. I also work 1:1 with clients as an allyship coach. We work with individuals and organizations (inside healthcare and out) who are looking to take their DEI work to the next level. It's one thing to want to do better (on a personal or organizational level) in terms of DEI. It's another thing to have the tools actually to do it. We're really good at teaching people tools to process and learn from the discomfort that can often derail anti-racism and DEI work.
Tell us about yourself
I am a white woman, and I started on this journey after a friend told me that a blog post that I wrote after the 2016 election was privileged. In addition to being a physician, I'm also a meditation teacher and an EFT/Tapping practitioner. I found those skills to be extremely helpful in helping me recognize my areas for growth, deal with my own defensiveness, and lean into anti-racism work. A lot of the work we do is teaching people how to develop the resilience and emotional intelligence that will help them to really engage in this work. Most people don't consider themselves to be racist, so what motivates me is teaching people some of the lesser-known ways that bias and racism can show up in our lives so that we can all take accountability and grow towards a more equitable future together.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Dr. Maiysha and I published a book in November 2020 called Conscious Anti-Racism: Tools for Self-Discovery, Accountability, and Meaningful Change, which was very exciting! In addition, a child psychiatry department used our CME-accredited online training as an intervention to reduce the number of restraints used on their patients of color, and it completely eliminated all racial disparities in restraint use! It was really gratifying to see our work making such a real-life impact.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Connecting with clients who are ready to take that next step in their anti-racism and DEI journey. Not everyone is there yet, and we have many different training options to support them wherever they are along the process.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Do something you love. When the going gets tough, the passion will keep you going.
- Keep yourself open to new opportunities for learning and training.
- Know your values and use them to inform all of your business decisions- how you hire, who you hire, where you spend your money, etc.- this will keep your integrity, and your clients will be more loyal because of it.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.consciousantiracism.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jillwenerMD/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jillwenerMD
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillwenermd/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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