A powerful testament to resilience and faith, this article follows one woman's journey through professional setbacks, personal grief, and financial hardship—and how her struggles became the foundation for her greatest strength and purpose.
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Setbacks can be protection, redirection, or a launching pad. Trusting the process brings clarity, and patience with flexibility makes pivoting easier.
Dawn A. Johnson · In Her Own Words
Her Story
About Dawn
Dawn Johnson serves as Program Manager at the City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce, where she works directly with the Deputy Commerce Director in the Office of Business Success on strategic planning, and management initiatives that support economic growth for local businesses. She worked alongside her team with preparing and planning for the three-day Business Summit and Expo, which featured resource tables, vendors, and an inspirational fireside chat with DJ Jazzy Jeff that focused on pitfalls to avoid in economic growth. Johnson is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh main campus, where she majored in communication and creative writing, and she completed the SHRM Professional Studies Program at Villanova University. She is the owner of I'm So Philly, Inc. which is a t-shirt and accessory brand that was established in 2015. She describes herself and a go to person for all things Philly, which is where the name was inspired from. She is also a licensed Cosmetologist and Massage Therapist, who previously worked for upscale salons and spas. She attributes her success to her strong belief in God and in her Christian values. Along with her family foundation, including values of respect, transparency, honesty, dedication, and loyalty instilled by her great-grandparents, grandparents, and parents in a close-knit family. She is the first in her family amongst the grandchildren to attend a university and to start a business. Johnson advises young women entering the industry to identify their passions, pray, conduct research, take their time, and seek mentors who are doing the work they admire.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Dawn
01What do you attribute your success to?
My foundation and how I was raised matter a lot. I stand on the shoulders of giants with great-grandparents and grandparents who sowed values into me of how to be a lady, respect yourself, and treat people the way you want to be treated. I was raised by both my father and mother and with a close-knit family. I'm the first in my family among the grandchildren to go to a four-year university on a scholarship and start my own business.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
To never give up and that you can always start again.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would tell her to really think about what she's passionate about and what aligns with her personality and what she enjoys most. The things that you do effortlessly are the things that align with your passion. Pray, take your time, make sure that the work that she does she loves, do the research, and align to a mentor that you see that's currently doing the work you admire.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Pay disparity and the fact that Black and Latino women earn far less than that of white women and men. Even higher educated women remain underpaid compared to male peers. Women are also often placed in operational roles rather than strategic leadership tracks.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Respect, transparency and honesty, dedication and loyalty. You have to be totally committed and willing to roll up your sleeves and understand that everything won't come easy, but you're going to get where you're going if you trust the process and trust our Creator.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Dawn
Rising Through The Storm
A journey of faith, resilience, and rediscovery through life's most challenging seasons.
By: Dawn A. Johnson
Program Manager, City of Philadelphia
Rising Through the Storm: When the Ground Shifted Beneath My Feet
There was a season in my life when everything seemed to unravel at once.
I joined a nonprofit agency in Philadelphia as the Talent Acquisition Manager, ready to make an impact—and I did. I rebuilt the organization's entire recruitment and talent acquisition strategy from the ground up:
- Revamped every career webpage and job board.
- Leveraged our HRIS to improve applicant tracking.
- Modernized the interview process and developed tools for the executive leadership team.
- Advocated for and secured higher salaries and pay rates.
- Increased the organization's visibility and credibility by building partnerships with universities.
I poured myself into that work.
After making those improvements, I was promised a bonus that I never received. Still, I was thriving professionally and personally. I was enjoying my season of singleness, growing my business, and finally feeling as though life was coming together. I was promoted to lead the Human Resources Department, where I helped drive strategy, execution, and organizational decision-making.
Then the bottom fell out.
The organization ran into serious financial trouble and couldn't pay its employees for an entire month.
The timing couldn't have been worse. I was preparing to celebrate my 50th birthday with a long-awaited trip to Paris, followed by a cruise.
Then, in the middle of that crisis, my CEO—who was also a high school friend—died by suicide.
The grief, the shock, and the responsibility all hit me at once.
Even though I wasn't being paid, I continued working for another month because my faith would not allow me to walk away while there was still work I could do to help others. Someone had to assist employees with questions about their retirement accounts, benefits, and other critical concerns. During that time, I lived off my savings and retirement funds.
While I was grieving, I still supported employees through loan-forgiveness applications, resource navigation, and emotional reassurance. I was frustrated, exhausted, and heartbroken. I was also facing the loss of my health insurance during what I knew were my final childbearing years.
But I refused to give up.
I rolled up my sleeves.
I trusted God, and He carried me through.
To stay afloat financially, I picked up additional hours at my part-time job selling luxury fragrances for Bond No. 9. I pressed through every long day and every heavy night.
That season—the one that felt like it was designed to break me—became the very thing that pushed me forward.
The Setback That Became My Setup
That painful chapter didn't end my story.
It repositioned me.
I accepted a position with another organization, but I quickly realized it still wasn't the right fit. That experience ultimately led me to my current role with the City of Philadelphia—a position that provides stability and aligns with my personality, gifts, and purpose.
Today, I serve as a strategic partner on major initiatives. I work alongside a team that provides resources to help entrepreneurs strengthen their businesses. I support leadership, contribute to organizational planning, help build culture, and make an impact every day.
The very setback that tried to silence me became the reason I speak louder, stand stronger, and walk more boldly.
I walk in faith, not arrogance, knowing where my help comes from.
For Anyone Going Through a Hard Season
If you've lost a job, income, stability, or direction, hear me clearly:
Your setback is not your identity. Your struggle is not your ending. Your storm is not your definition.
You are being stretched, not destroyed.
You are being refined, not rejected.
You are being prepared, not punished.
Sometimes life strips away everything familiar so you can discover the strength, purpose, and resilience that have been within you all along.
I am living proof that:
- You can lose income and still gain purpose.
- You can walk through grief and still rise in strength.
- You can be overlooked and still be chosen later.
- You can be shaken and still stand tall.
God will open doors you didn't even know existed.
He will place you in rooms you never imagined entering.
He will align you with people you never expected to meet.
And He will restore what you've lost—and often give you even more than you imagined.
My Message to You
Keep going.
Keep believing.
Keep showing up for yourself.
You can bounce back from anything when you stay prayed up, remain diligent in pursuing your goals, and keep your mind focused on hope instead of fear.
You may be in the middle of your hardest chapter, but you may also be standing on the edge of your greatest breakthrough.
What feels like a collapse may actually be construction.
What feels like a detour may be divine direction.
You are stronger than you think.
You are more capable than you realize.
Your story is still being written.
And God is not finished with you yet.
Keep pressing.
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