Today we’d like to introduce you to Dani Badgett.
Hi Dani, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
The last two years have been so pivotal for me, both personally and professionally. While the pandemic has played a major role, I also stepped out in faith as a full-time entrepreneur.
For about 8 years after graduating from college, I worked on college campuses as both a staff and faculty member. One of my main roles was equipping students with the tools necessary for becoming inclusive leaders in college and beyond.
I had the privilege of creating curricula in and outside the classroom that challenged students’ perspectives on every aspect of identity. From creating classes like “The Right to Exist” to “Lift Every Voice”, students on multiple campuses were taught how to have difficult conversations that challenged the ways they had been socialized to think about varying identities.
In 2018, I started my own business where I offered Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion workshops and trainings for students, faculty, and staff across the country. This went well, but because of a shift in my full-time corporate job, this new business had to take a backseat for a while.
Fast forward to 2020 when the world saw the real effects of racism in the United States and the inability to have difficult conversations. Two of my friends and I were approached by a number of people and asked to create a space where people could sort through everything they were processing after witnessing the murder of George Floyd.
Within a few days, the three of us created 2 six-week virtual classes for individuals across the United States. From business owners to faculty members to construction workers to activists and students – we brought all of these individuals together to discuss race and racism in America in a course called “The Fire This Time”. Our goal was to educate and provide individuals with the tools necessary for creating actionable steps toward antiracism in their own communities. Change starts at an individual level, and our goal was to spark as much change as possible with these participants. A fire had been started, our job was to fan the flame.
Three weeks into the class, we all realized this was something that we wanted to pursue full-time. I dissolved my previous business, walked away from my full-time job, and created The Fire This Time Enterprises LLC with my two close friends.
One of the main products we have been working on over the past 2 years is Brave The Cycle – In these tailored workshops, we teach people how to use empathy, courage, and curiosity to address harmful cycles that exist in the areas of race, sexual orientation, gender, and religion.
Our business continues to grow, and the first quarter of 2022 has been our busiest so far. We have had the honor of hosting 9 workshops and over 36 individual intercultural coaching sessions with corporate and non-profit organizations. My goal in 2020 was to help people have difficult conversations together, and I am so excited that two years later the work continues.
To supplement my income from the full-time job that I left, I also became licensed as a real estate agent. Because of my work in social justice, I fully understand the wealth gap that affects systemically marginalized groups and believe real estate can be a means of bridging the gap. With a background in education, I’m able to educate people on both real estate and social justice issues.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh my goodness! Entrepreneurship looks so glamorous on Instagram! People always leave out the part where you may go months without a paycheck, work 60-70 plus hours a week, and question your decision to walk away from a stable job on a weekly basis. Although both of my businesses are in a good place, it has not been easy. One of the challenges that I am tackling now is consistency in business. I have seasons that are extremely busy and others that are not. Because of this, I am beginning to consider other products that I can offer during “off-months”. I am also becoming an Intercultural Coach – a personal coach who will create an intercultural developmental plan to help people grow in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Workshops as a team are great, but it’s so important to have one-on-one help in these areas.
In addition to basic business woes, I still have to live life and balance family. At the beginning of 2021, my dad was diagnosed with leukemia, which consumed my life for several weeks. After a tough battle, a month later, he passed away. I was shook, to say the least. Business took a back seat and my family and personal-mental health were top priorities for several months. At the time, I was living in Phoenix, AZ but knew that I needed to be closer to family in Texas. In May of last year, I sold all of my belongings, packed up my car, and drove to my Momma’s house in North Dallas.
As I mentioned, I was licensed as a real estate agent in AZ, so moving meant that I had to get licensed in Texas. After putting in an additional 180 hours of coursework in 6 weeks, I passed the Texas Real Estate exam and became a licensed REALTOR in two states.
The last year has been all about healing, building, and growing. It hasn’t been easy or smooth at all, but it’s been worth all of the tears and late nights. I’ve also been so blessed to have such an amazing support system cheering me on!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are educators, learners, and facilitators who believe in the magic that happens when we create space for folks to actively explore and learn with empathy, courage, and curiosity. The workshops that we create do not focus on shame or guilt. Instead, we acknowledge that all of us have some form of privilege and it’s our responsibility to use that privilege to create more equitable environments for all.
While we love the collective growth that happens from our workshops, our main goal is to help each participant understand their role in the systems and structures that currently exist in their communities. Both corporate and non-profit organizations utilize our services for professional development, strategic planning, and individual coaching.
Since 2020, many of our clients have asked us to help them create goal-oriented action steps towards creating antiracist environments. It’s one thing to make a statement, it’s another to develop the steps necessary in making the statement a reality. We assist with the latter.
There are so many cycles and systems that exist in every organization. Our goal is to help individuals, especially those in leadership positions, identify the negative cycles and Brave their way (with our help) into creating new cycles that benefit everyone involved.
What were you like growing up?
I’ve been an entrepreneur since I was about 7 years old. I remember one of my first business ventures was creating bean bags for the kids at my church. My aunt taught me how to sew – so, I would get creative fabric, sew a little pouch and fill it with lentils. For some reason, this was a pretty profitable business!
I was very outgoing as a child. My mom will tell you that I always struck up conversations with strangers. Getting to know more about people and their stories has been a natural tendency of mine
As a teenager, I was extremely involved in sports and music. I played violin and cello in a community orchestra and taught piano lessons as a senior in high school. God has given me some unique gifts, and I’ve always enjoyed sharing them with other people.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@bravethecycle.com
- Website: bravethecycle.com
- Instagram: @bravethecycle
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bravethecycle
- Youtube: bravethecycle
