Her Story
About Nikki
I founded my leadership consulting business and launched full-time in January 2023 after working in toxic environments for years. I noticed a trend as I was promoted to higher levels in every business I worked in - all of the leaders at the top were just pretty much making it up. I got to see that without executors, the business can't run, but if we removed everyone in a leadership position, the business could run. I worked in lots of environments where the leaders didn't necessarily appreciate or value their frontline staff, or understand what they were contributing to the business that helped it actually generate revenue. It took me several months to figure out that my sweet spot really honed in on culture and operations. I had to think back to all of the jobs I've ever had, and the common theme always came down to three specific areas: people development, program management, and process improvement. I love training folks, I love coaching and mentoring, I love to manage projects and build relationships, and I love looking at new ways to improve how we're already executing. After being able to pinpoint these as my specialties, I was able to reframe and redirect so that I could pivot to offer the services that make sense for my skill set. When we think about a business coach, they think about someone who's going to scale the business, someone who is going to look at the strategic vision, and that's just not the area that I tap into. My work focuses on helping businesses, nonprofits, and churches build strong leaders, foster collaborative teams, and improve their processes through training, coaching, consulting, and business process improvement services.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Nikki
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would honestly ask, how much does she love people? And the reason why I ask that question is because I have come to learn that we are beautiful, but we are flawed and messy people. As long as you can deal with people having moments of brilliance, and then having moments where it feels like they're stuck or are unwilling to move forward, then you'll be fine. I've learned there's no perfect human, there's no perfect way of being able to speak to people. It's about meeting people where they're at. It's finding out what matters to them, and learning how to use that information to uplift and empower them to meet the next phase in their journey.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Service is a lifestyle, it's a mindset. My grandmother taught me that. We didn't do glamorous things, and so I don't do glamorous things. I do things, the same stuff that a lot of people just wouldn't want to do, but that's how I was raised. I constantly remind myself that there are two ways to influence people. There's a good way to influence people, and there is a bad way to influence people. I identified in my mid-20s that I was a terrible leader because I was raised in toxic situations. The blessing was I had two people in my life who noticed, and they were like, hey, we're not gonna allow you to lead people the same way you were taught. I've been on a personal development journey for the last 20 years. I can lead my classes with lots of conviction, because I know what it is to not make people feel included, to not resiliently listen to what they have to say, just across the board, just be a bad leader. I am on a mission to challenge the way people think of leaders, because it has nothing to do with their authority, it has nothing to do with their titles or their position, it's all about influence. I am determined to help people see that children can be leaders, grandparents, your parents, like folks at the grocery store, it's all about influence, because if no one's following you, there's no way you can be a leader. I care about people, and I care about value. I care about making sure that I deliver what I say that I'm gonna deliver. When I do speak, I want to make sure that it has substance, and that anyone that hears me is blessed, and it adds to their lives.
Keep Exploring
More Influential Women · Tennessee
Join Influential Women and start making an impact. Register now.