If you're unfamiliar with Bet On Black, it’s a show that brings black business owners across the US to pitch their brands for a chance to win a grand prize of $200,000. The show premiers on the Revolt TV channel, and is funded by Target. I appeared in their third season.
As you can imagine, I was 38 weeks pregnant when I received the call that I was selected to be on the show - terrified. I’ve never been on television before. Just the thought that millions of people are going to see and hear me was terrifying enough. What if I stutter? What if I go blank? What if I’m so nervous that I just shut down and cry on national television from embarrassment? These thoughts had me in a chokehold…
1. Community is Key.
We need each other. Isolating yourself does have its benefits but when it comes to performance, you need people who’ve done it and done it better on your team. It may seem like we were all up against each other because it was a competition, but we all leaned on each other for support. Someone who’s always home, working, and in my little world, I hadn’t been able to commune with like-minded people, trying to reach the same goal. I learned so much from the contestants. They taught me some valuable lessons about entrepreneurship.
This concept doesn’t stop at being a business owner if you want to be a better student, chef, content creator, or aircraft pilot. Whatever you’re doing, I don’t care. You must surround yourself with other risk-takers and people who will inspire you to elevate your dreams.
2. Never forget your story.
I wasn’t as prepared as I thought, haha! Operating a business (from home) is challenging. You’re working so closely with what you do, that you tend to forget why we even do what we do! When your hands are constantly dealt with in the day-to-day of your business journey, you sometimes lose touch with your “why”. In my opinion, my pitch wasn’t my best work.. I was somewhere between, “I got this” to “holy sh*t wtf is terra-tory anyway!?” I blame the creative block I experienced during my pregnancy. When you’re carrying a human and your body feels like it’s under attack, your creativity plummets. It was so bad I didn’t think my creative muscles would bounce back (but that’s a different story for another day).
3. Think Bigger.
I’m a humble girlie. So my problem sometimes is realizing how much of an impact my story has on people. I tend to see myself as smaller, meeker. So to me, I’m some small-time soapmaker whose products happen to heal thousands of people and change even more minds in the natural skincare industry. I’m constantly calling this a “small” business. But I can’t claim that. I can’t claim the lack or speak in such scarcity for myself and this brand. We are conscious of so much - sustainability, utilizing as little plastic as possible, handmade small-batching for excellent quality and control of ingredients, white glove customer service, and experience. And lastly, the omission of coconut/palm oil in our products (which is only half the battle to dry skin). Our team believes wholeheartedly in these values and does a great job upholding our brand ethos (which I’m so grateful for). In the studio we’re peeling and chopping carrots to make your carrot soap, we’re stripping aloe leaves down to the gel to make Aloe Detox, and we’re grinding whole coffee beans for Plantain + Coffee cubes. Like we’re doing A LOT. That should be applauded!
I didn’t feel as though I found many opportunities to tell the judges this. However, I had no idea what they were going to ask me or what my answers were going to be. I was nervous as all hell but spoke from the heart, as gracefully as I could…
Have you had a chance to tune in to Season Three of Bet on Black? What do you think of my pitch??? What points should I have improved on? Haven’t seen it?? It’s on YouTube, the Revolt TV network, and now on Peacock! Would love to get your feedback, let me know what you think!
With Purpose,
Kim
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