Unspeakable Leadership

Hosted by Rohene Bouajram

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Oct 2026

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Unspeakable Leadership is a global conversation diving deep into the vibrant and dynamic world of women of colour in leadership roles. Join us on a rollercoaster ride where the host, Rohene, and guests share stories of navigating challenges, turning a serious journey into a joyous exploration with laughter, cringe-worthy tales, and empowering moments. Let's take a break in our day and revel in the reminder that the world needs women of color leading authentically. Tune in, buckle up, and embark on this thrilling adventure with us! Rohene Bouajram is an international speaker and 20-year educator and leader in the higher education space. You can learn more of her work on www.rohenebouajram.com.

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November 12, 202646 min

The Courage to Become, the Grace to Release

What if the life you're living today is only one version of the life you could have? In this Season 6 finale of Unspeakable Leadership, Rohene Bouajram brings My Arena to a close with a deeply personal reflection on endings, release and becoming. Between the season's opening episode and now, so much has unfolded in her own life: a car accident that wrote off her beloved Jack Bauer, doors closing both metaphorically and literally, and a growing belief that we can honour a chapter of our lives without needing to remain in it. Weaving together the voices of the six women who shaped this season, Haeley Mariah Williams, Alison Hemmings, Vanity Jenkins, Mercedes Swan, Yeye Omitson Cyrus and Leena Yousefi, Rohene explores: Why rebuilding self-trust is a series of small, daily choices, not one grand declaration What it means to de-center your career from your life, and why being busy has become a personality trait How leadership metaphors like "climbing the ladder" and "a seat at the table" are rooted in scarcity Why liberation begins with imagination and the courage to ask, "Is there another way?" The wisdom we carry through ancestry, spirituality, community and nature Redefining what it means to "have it all", and who gets to define "all" Three reflection questions to journal on between now and next season She also shares her excitement for the Circle of Braided Arenas, a sold-out, intimate gathering on November 14 where women come together to share what they're imagining, navigating, releasing and giving themselves permission to want. This episode is an invitation to honour who you've been, make space for who you're becoming, and remember that your arena is yours to shape. Watch the full youtube episode: https://youtu.be/LaS0GYSmQWY Connect with Rohene LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com

November 5, 202646 min

Liberation Is the Leadership Skill Nobody Taught You

What would it feel like to show up fully in your career without shrinking, masking, or performing your way through the day? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Mercedes Swan, Career Love Coach and founder of the Black Women Bliss Community and Career Love, for a deeply rich and expansive conversation about career liberation, collective freedom, and what it truly means to build a vision so big it scares you. Drawing on her background in HR and DEI and her own journey through workplace-induced anxiety, depression, and an ADHD diagnosis, Mercedes unpacks what liberation actually looks like from the inside out and why the workplace was never designed to hold the fullness of who Black women are. We cover: Why liberation is the missing ingredient in how we talk about career success The ideation vein: how possibility and reinvention are already embedded within us Why love belongs in the workplace and what changes when we bring it back What liminal spaces are and why understanding them is critical during identity transitions How to move from a what if mindset to a what now mindset The difference between shrinking your vision and letting go of an old identity Why white supremacy culture was designed to keep us from thinking outside the system How to unpack limiting beliefs and replace them with what if thinking The Career Liberation Project and what collective liberation looks like in practice Why releasing your old identity is the fastest path to your new one How ideation, intuition, and ancestral wisdom can guide your next chapter This conversation is expansive, liberatory, and deeply affirming for every Black woman and woman of colour who has ever felt too big for the spaces they were placed in. Connect with Mercedes Swan: Website: mercedesswan.com Instagram: instagram.com LinkedIn: linkedin.com Listen to Mercedes' podcast: https://www.mercedesswan.com/black-woman-bliss-podcast Join the Black Woman Bliss Community https://www.mercedesswan.com/career-and-business-community-for-black-women To Join the Career Liberation Project: https://newsletter.careerlove.io/ Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rF1CyHuWM20 Resources mentioned in this episode: Subscribe to Rohene's Newsletter: https://www.rohenebouajram.com

October 29, 202645 min

Your Biggest Barrier is Yourself

What happens when you realize the biggest barrier to your leadership isn't external, it's your own opinion of yourself? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene sits down with Leena Yousefi, founder of YLaw, the largest female-owned law firm in Canada. Leena has spent her career reimagining the legal profession through progressive values like four-day work weeks, pay transparency, and first trimester leave. But before the accolades, Leena hit rock bottom at 19. Severe depression. Failing courses. Parents who had given up. Even now, with recognition as one of Canada's Top 25 Most Influential Lawyers, she's actively working to unpack the guilt and perfectionism that still follow her every step. In this raw, honest conversation, we explore: How to build a thriving career without losing yourself to perfectionism Why "having it all" is a myth and what actually matters The difference between balance and living with intention Why ambitious women are often told they're "too much" How childhood conditioning keeps us seeking validation from others The biggest mistakes that still haunt her and how she's healing them Why your body holds the answers your mind keeps seeking How to pass a different message of worth to the next generation What it actually means to choose yourself This episode is for anyone who's been told they're too ambitious, too loud, too much. Anyone ready to redefine what leadership means on their own terms. Connect with Leena Yousefi: Website: www.ylaw.ca Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leena.lawyer.ylaw/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leena-yousefi-7932b232/ Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch the episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/K1128rqZrug

October 22, 202653 min

Redefining Leadership When Your Voice Has Been Silenced

What happens when you realize the biggest barrier to your leadership isn't external, it's your own opinion of yourself? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Haeley Mariah Williams, Founder of The Mental & Physical Coaching Experience, Holistic Health & Wellness Educator, Transformational Coach, and Creator of Remember You™, a trauma-informed framework designed to help people reconnect with who they are beyond what they have experienced. Haeley brings over a decade of lived experience, professional expertise, and hard-won wisdom about what it truly means to reclaim your voice, your body, and your power. From losing her brother to suicide at age 12, to navigating identity as a student athlete, to being cut from her college team right before graduation, Haeley has faced the moments that most people only fear, and she's emerged with a framework for turning survival into transformation. In this raw, honest conversation, we explore: How trauma, athletics, and grief shaped her leadership journey The first law of personal growth: we will never rise above our opinion of self Why valuing others' opinions over your own keeps you stuck The critical difference between hearing yourself and listening to yourself How to build self-trust through action, even when you're terrified Why stillness and meditation are where real decisions happen The universal law of rhythm: why healing isn't linear, and how to love the down slopes as much as the up slopes How to move through pain and suffering with gratitude instead of resistance What it means to be your ancestors' answered prayer This conversation is for anyone who's been told who they should be, anyone who's doubted their own instincts, and anyone ready to choose themselves, not just once, but again and again. Connect with Haeley Mariah Williams: Website: www.haeleymariahmpe.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haeley.mariah/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haeleymariah/ Substack: https://haeleymariah.substack.com/ Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Download a free guide: rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QuXaFyAySng

October 15, 202645 min

Our Ancestors Answered Prayer: How to Reclaim the Power Women Have Always Had

What if the power to heal the world has been inside you all along? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Yeye Omitosin Cyrus, spiritual leader, third-generation guardian of the Kenny Cyrus Alkibidon Ilaiyappa (K C A I I), one of the oldest Orisha shrines in Trinidad and Tobago, and recipient of the chieftaincy title Iyalode de Awaa Bay (Mother Leader, Woman Leader of the World). Yeye brings a lifetime of spiritual grounding, corporate leadership experience, and ancestral wisdom to a conversation about what it truly means to lead as a woman in a world that has systematically erased our power. Drawing on the Osa Meji reading, the divine guidance for June 2026–June 2027, she reminds us that women are the first healers, creators, and leaders, and that when we put aside our fear, we blossom into our full capacity. We cover: How the Osa Meji reading reveals women's power to heal and transform the world The historical and systemic erasure of women's power through colonization and patriarchy Why fear is the loudest voice holding us back, and how to move beyond it The gifts women need to reclaim and the balance between spiritual and physical life Why nature connection is essential to leadership and healing The role of intuition, ancestral guidance, and discernment in navigating a constructed world Growth comes with discomfort: what her mother taught her about preparation Why we are our ancestors' answered prayers, and what that means for how we lead The festivals, initiations, and spiritual work Yeye is leading into the future This conversation is sacred, grounded, and deeply affirming for anyone who has felt the call to lead differently, who carries ancestral wisdom, or who is ready to step into their power despite the fear. Connect with Yeye Omitosin Cyrus: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yeyeomicyrus/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Pve3VuY3H/ Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ISiJgKB1vxg Resources mentioned in this episode: Work with Rohene: https://www.rohenebouajram.com/workwithrohene

October 8, 202645 min

What Nobody Taught Us About Building a Career on Our Own Terms

What if everything you were taught about building a successful career is actually keeping you stuck? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Alison Hemmings, career glow-up coach and founder of Nouveau Executive Solutions, for a refreshingly honest conversation about redefining career success, breaking free from traditional employment scripts, and building a life that actually fits. Drawing on over a decade of experience as an executive recruiter sitting in rooms where hiring decisions were made, Alison shares what she learned on the inside and how she now uses that knowledge to help senior women of colour get seen, promoted, and paid what they are worth. We cover: Why the traditional script of work hard and climb the ladder is keeping women of colour broke and burnt out The visibility gap and why the most talented person rarely gets the job How to advocate for yourself when you have been conditioned to stay invisible Why staying at the same company too long is actually costing you money What fractional leadership is and why it represents the future of work The importance of getting a life outside of your career How to stage your career like a house before you go to market The difference between being a generalist and being a multi-hyphenate Why doing everything by yourself is one of the biggest career limiters for women of colour How to shift from a struggle bus mindset to a private jet mindset What it truly means to decouple your identity from your career This conversation is honest, practical, and deeply affirming for anyone who has ever felt stuck in a career loop, burnt out from overgiving, or ready to reimagine what success looks like on their own terms. Connect with Alison Hemmings: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coachalisonhemmings/ LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alisonhemmings Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/nf-vNx6SKFM Resources mentioned in this episode: Work with Rohene: https://www.rohenebouajram.com/workwithrohene Subscribe to Rohene's Newsletter: https://www.rohenebouajram.com

October 1, 202643 min

The Scarcity Trap: Why Self-Trust Changes Everything for Women of Colour Leaders

What if the very metaphors we use to talk about leadership are already rooted in scarcity? In this episode of Unspeakable Leadership Season 6, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Vanity Jenkins, founder of ShiftED Consulting, leadership coach, and human design facilitator, for a rich, honest, and deeply practical conversation about scarcity mindset, self-trust, and what it truly means to lead from a place of abundance. Vanity shares her personal journey through two layoffs, single motherhood, and the decision to finally bet on herself, and unpacks why so many women of colour find themselves trapped in fear-based leadership, even when they're trying to open doors for others. We cover: Why the metaphors we use ("climbing the ladder," "seat at the table") are already rooted in scarcity How women of colour can unconsciously become barriers to other women of colour and why The relationship between injustice and scarcity in organizational leadership What it takes to move from fear-based decision-making to abundance and possibility How to name and interrupt the inner voice that spirals toward worst-case scenarios Why stability isn't always what we think it is and what self-trust looks like instead Navigating the freedom and fear of entrepreneurship as a single mom Thinking in seasons: what African perspectives on time and nature teach us about leadership cycles The difference between mentorship that opens doors and mentorship that narrows possibility Why the crossroads metaphor is itself a form of scarcity and what to ask instead This conversation is grounding, generous, and deeply affirming for anyone navigating leadership transitions, scarcity mindset, or the courage it takes to bet on yourself. Connect with Vanity Jenkins: Website: www.shiftedconsulting.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/shiftedconsulting/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanity-y-jenkins/ Book a Discovery Call: https://calendly.com/vanity-jenkins-/discovery-call Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/4anP01HHadw Resources mentioned in this episode: Join Our Newsletter: https://www.rohenebouajram.com/contact

September 24, 202627 min

Stop Shrinking Yourself: Redefine Your Leadership on Your Terms

What does it mean to lead truly, not because the system told you how, but because you decided who you want to become? In this Season 6 premiere of Unspeakable Leadership, Rohene Bouajram opens with one of the most important conversations of the season: her own. She invites you into her arena, a space where you stop performing and start choosing. Between Season 5 and now, Rohene has been reflecting deeply on the question that launched everything: What do you really want? But that question needed expansion. Because reaching success by someone else's definition doesn't mean you're free. And that's where this season begins. Drawing on conversations with fellow coaches, her doctoral research on how leadership has been defined far too narrowly, and her lived experience as a woman of colour in organizations, Rohene explores: Why we can be excellent at navigating a system without ever feeling truly free inside it The difference between success and freedom How leadership has been architected around assumptions that never accounted for women of colour What it means to hold multiplicity: to be ambitious and soft, strategic and spiritual, grateful and wanting more The concept of "braiding", how our lives don't have to happen in separate compartments Your arena: the space where you decide who you're becoming, what you're choosing, and what you're carrying because it's truly yours She also introduces the Circle of Braided Arenas , an intimate in-person gathering for women ready to be themselves, find community, and share what they're carrying, alongside an exclusive bracelet marking this new expression of Unspeakable Leadership beyond the podcast. This episode is an invitation to ask better questions, reclaim agency over your life, and remember that your courage opens doors for someone else. Your success expands what's possible, for everyone. Connect with Rohene LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Learn more about the Circle of Braided Arenas & the bracelet: https://www.rohenebouajram.com/circle-of-braided-arenas Watch the episode on Youtube: https://youtu.be/-jHtPab5c2k

July 23, 202613 min

She Decided What's Good Enough

What does it really mean to build your own arena? In this Season 5 finale, Rohene Bouajram reflects on the powerful conversations that shaped She Built Her Own Arena and shares the deeper lesson that emerged throughout the season. Building your own arena is not simply about ambition. It is about honesty. It is about having the courage to admit that the life you've built has room to expand into something more aligned with who you truly are. Drawing from the wisdom of every guest this season, Rohene explores the threads that connect dreaming bigger, self-love, financial leadership, authenticity, and redefining success. Together, these conversations become an invitation to imagine differently and to build a life rooted in choice, purpose, and possibility. We cover: • Why building your own arena begins with honesty • The lessons each Season 5 guest brought to the conversation • Creating space for expansion instead of staying within limitation • Letting go of lives built around what feels attainable • Why leadership extends into every area of your life • The relationship between imagination, trust, and possibility • Asking yourself what you truly want and giving yourself permission to pursue it This episode is a heartfelt reflection and an invitation to continue building a life that feels deeply aligned with who you are becoming. Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lPmsumVVSYE Resources mentioned in this episode: Subscribe to Rohene's newsletter: https://www.rohenebouajram.com

July 16, 202631 min

Being the CEO of Your Financial Life | Season 5 Ep 7

What if becoming the CEO of your financial life has less to do with how much you earn and more to do with the decisions you make? In this episode, Rohene Bouajram sits down with Chimaobim Udodi to explore how financial literacy, intentionality, and leadership intersect to create a life of freedom, confidence, and possibility. Together, they unpack the mindset shifts that help us move from reacting to our finances to leading them with purpose. Chima shares why financial leadership is about creating options, protecting your future, and making decisions today that support the life you want tomorrow. We cover: • What it means to become the CEO of your financial life • Why financial literacy is an essential leadership skill • Building confidence through intentional financial decisions • How money creates freedom, choice, and opportunity • The importance of emergency funds, debt management, and investing • Moving from financial fear to financial empowerment • Creating long-term wealth and generational impact This conversation is practical, empowering, and filled with actionable insights for anyone ready to take ownership of their finances and lead every area of their life with greater intention. Connect with Chimaobim Udodi: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elektra.cutie?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw== Website: https://worldsystembuilder.com/mypage/chimaobimu/ Connect with Rohene: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohenebouajram/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unspeakableleadership/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rohenebouajram Website: https://www.rohenebouajram.com Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hW-La5Ru8BE Resources mentioned in this episode: Free Resources to Download: https://www.rohenebouajram.com/resources

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