That's When I Knew, The Podcast

On episode 31 of That's When I Knew, I'm joined by sales comp guru and chief of staff at Quotapath, Graham Collins. Here's what we covered:

On episode 30 of That's When I Knew, I'm joined by an up and coming leader in the tech sales space and current Account Executive at Evenbound, Nate Silvey. Here's what we covered:

On episode 29 of That's When I Knew, Co-Founder & CMO of B3 Media Solutions, Barika Phillips Bell,  shares the gems she's acquired on her journey to entrepreneurship in the social media and data analytics space. Here's what we covered:

On episode 28 of That's When I Knew, Meshell Baker joined the show to put the spirt in sales. Here's what we discussed:- Growing up in Oakland CA to blue collar parents

On episode 27 of That's When I Knew,  Galem Girmay join the show to talk about:- Humble beginnings, growing up in foster care, and how her early childhood experiences helped her developed a strong work ethic and drive

On episode 26 of That's When I Knew, Justin Solis and I chopped up around the following:- Growing up around constant change and experiencing opposite ends of socio-economic spectrum at an early age ↔️- Justin's personal  path into tech sales, the moment that he knew he deserved a seat at the tech sales table, as well as the moment he realized the sales industry needed him

Morgan Thomas Hall, joined me on episode 25 of That's When I Knew. Tune in as we talk about: - When she came to the conclusion she was no longer passionate about law

On this episode of That's When I Knew The Podcast, Robert shares his top 10 keys

15 year enterprise sales veteran, Salman Mohiuddin, joins That's When I Knew  for a casual chat around:Growing up in Fort McMurray and Toronto, Canada

After an extended break, TWIK Podcast founder & host Robert Crayton,  returns with a re-introduction to That's When I Knew, The Podcast. Some of the topics touched on this episode are:- The what & why behind the podcast

Founder of the Black History & Culture Academy and  co-host of The EdUp Experience podcast, Elizabeth Leiba,   joins That's When I Knew  for a casual chat around:Inspiration for creating the Black History and Culture Academy Black history in our public education systemsImportance of representation and inclusion in higher education Being told to pull yourself up by the bootstrap when you have on flip-flops, and they not even letting you in the boot-store to buy the boots!Liz's UK, Caribain, and Floridian backgroundSocial media as a platform to elevate issues happening around the worldIf you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!Referenced in the showBlack History & Culture Academy Get in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

Director of Collegiate Sales at Teamworks, Larry Long Jr.,  joins us on That's When I Knew to share the wealth of knowledge and wisdom he's acquired throughout his career journey. Some of the things we touch on are:It's not what you know, and it's not even who you know, it's who knows & trust YOUThe meaning behind E.P.I.C.  & F.I.D.O. Crediting his father for his desire to be intentional about positivityHis experience as a collegiate baseball player and his ultimate path into salesHis goal to positively impact 1,000 people in 2021 Becoming an impactful sales leader#MidweekMiddayMotivationalMinute on LinkedInThe fact that you can't be what you can't see, and how Sales4TheCulture is doing the work to show black professionals the possibilities within careers in salesWisdom, wisdom, & more wisdom! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorshipIf you are interested in being a TWIK podcast sponsor, you can get in touch with us at twikpodcast@gmail.comGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

People & Communities Communications Manager at Cisco, Guerlyne Guercy,  joins us on That's When I Knew to discuss:Growing up in New York and her initial dreams of pursuing a medical career How your career is a series of opportunities and decisionsHer journey into sales and account management Taking it upon herself to develop as a professional & the value of education Being a culture-add, rather than a culture-fitHow our professional career is actually deeply personalNavigating grief and life's many perceived losses (book coming soon!)If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorshipIf you are interested in being a TWIK podcast sponsor, you can get in touch with us at twikpodcast@gmail.comGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

Founder & CTO of Blackfacts.com, Ken Granderson, joins us on That's When I Knew for a casual chat around:Growing up in the Bed-Stuy  neighborhood of Brooklyn New York in the 70s/80s and not seeing many white-collar jobsGetting into MIT and discovering a passion for computer science/technology at an early ageThe inspiration behind starting Blackfacts.com, the first online encyclopedia for black history, and how they are building the technological infrastructure to capture information about black people wherever it's coming from and deliver it back in an organized and effective wayAdvice to younger black professionals: "controlling the narrative", "chasing your passion not money", "doing work to push the culture forward" and several other gems from Ken's 25 year+ career journey If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorshipIf you are interested in being a TWIK podcast sponsor, you can get in touch with us at twikpodcast@gmail.comReferenced in the showYou can connect with Ken directly on social: Linkedin / Personal WebsiteBlackFacts.comGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

Head of series social at Amazon, Ken Gibbs Jr.,  joins That's When I Knew for a casual chat around:Growing up in Mattapan MA and rising above his surroundingsHis path to becoming a social media marketing leader at AmazonResponsibilities of digital and social media marketing professionals Social media trends (i.e.  #clubhouse)Why black media/content is so influential + cosmetic activism during civil unrest If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorshipIf you are interested in sponsoring a TWIK podcast episode, you can get in touch with us at twikpodcast@gmail.comReferenced in the showYou can connect with Kenn directly on social: Linkedin / TwitterGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

CEO of I AM Film Studios, Imani Mitchell,  joins That's When I Knew for a casual chat around:Finding her passion for theater/acting at an early age and continuing to pursue her passionHer inspiration for creating I AM Film Studios & the release of her first feature film, Whirpool (register for the virtual premiere, Jan 16th 2021)Managing ambition and opportunities by staying in your laneAdvice to other creators that are pursuing their passion while also working in a 9-5The importance of seeking out likeminded people when pursuing your passionBeing a working mother during this COVID eraIf you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorshipIf you are interested in sponsoring a TWIK podcast episode, you can get in touch with us at twikpodcast@gmail.comReferenced in the showYou can learn more about Imani & IAM Film Studios by visiting www.imanimitchell.comGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

CEO and Founder of Colorstack, Jehron Petty,  joins That's When I Knew for a casual chat around:The impact that his Caribbean heritage and community had on him early on in his lifeHow family gave him the resources and confidence to follow his desiresThe concept of "lifting as you climb" Why computer science literacy should be required as early as middle school, and how studying CS changes your approach to problem-solving Red flags to look out for when evaluating a mentor His inspiration for starting ColorStack and how we can all support!If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorTriplebtye: If you're a software engineer, go to www.triplebyte.com to take a quiz and level up faster!Referenced in the showIf you're a  student and  interested in joining Colorstack, visit www.colorstack.org/apply; for non-students interested in getting involved, follow @Colorstackorg on Twitter & Instagram for updatesGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

Web Engineer at Dumpling, Emeke Nkadi, joins That's When I Knew for a casual chat around:The benefits of working at a startup vs an enterprise companyThe connection between software development and literature Thoughts on how to expose youth from underrepresented backgrounds to computer scienceLessons learned from being terminated during a pandemicIf you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to stay up to date!SponsorTriplebtye: If you're a software engineer, go to www.triplebyte.com to take a quiz and level up faster!Referenced in the showThe Vera Project@emeke.exeGet in touchInstagramLinkedinwww.twikpodcast.com twikpodcast@gmail.com

Ademusoyo "Soyo" Awosika-Olumo, Sr. Software Engineer from Mailchimp, chats with us about what it REALLY means to be a senior software engineer. Soyo also talks about how she learned to accept being unique early on in her life and how she turned her uniqueness into her superpower, the value she received from getting a degree in computer engineering, tips for managing your career, and of course, her #ThatsWhenIKnewMoments.  https://www.blog.ademusoyo.com/about/This episode is brought to you by Triplebyte. If you are a software engineer looking to showcase your skills and get hired at top tech companies, take a background blind quiz and create a profile at www.triplebyte.com

As you build the career of your dreams, you will face setbacks and get mostly "No's", but you only need one "Yes". Darnele shares her inspiring journey that started in Haiti and led her to IBM as a Software Engineer.  Tune in to hear how she stayed true to herself through adversity, held on to her dreams, and built a new life as well as a meaningful career in the states. This episode is brought to you by Triplebyte. If you are a software engineer looking to showcase your skills and get hired at top tech companies, take a background blind quiz and create a profile at www.triplebyte.com

A common misconception when it comes to software engineering is that you need a degree in computer science to land a job as a software engineer; Stuart suggests that this isn't necessarily the case!Stuart also shares his personal career journey into tech, how someone took a chance on him early on, and how his upbringing led him to where he is today. This episode is brought to you by Triplebyte. If you are a software engineer looking to showcase your skills and get hired at top tech companies, take a background blind quiz and create a profile at www.triplebyte.com

With all the uncertainty in today's job market, one thing is clear- it's not a bad idea to take a step back to better understand what you bring and what you want to take from the table. We're joined by Randa Atkins, a San Francisco native and multi-talented professional with experience in both education and tech verticals. She currently works as a recruiter at Triplebyte and shares how she became interested in working in the tech industry as a recruiter as well as offers great advice for job seekers in this COVID economy (p.s. it's not what you'd expect to hear!)Are you are a software engineer looking to showcase your skills and get hired by top tech companies? Take a background blind quiz and create a profile at www.triplebyte.com 

With Veterans Day just around the corner, we're excited & honored to be joined by Charles Gunn! Charles shares his experience being a military kid and how ultimately joining the army after graduating high school served as a valuable stepping stone and influenced his career in Human Resources. Charles implores us to “lean into things that make you feel uncomfortable”, “don't be afraid to take a break from your career to pursue a passion”, and to “remember, when one door closes you're just being redirected to something bigger and better”!

Sometimes we'll set plans and goals for our professional lives, but things don't always go as we intended them to. Chez Jennings joins TWIK to reflect on her upbringing and takes us on her journey of self-realization where she learned it's ok to pivot. Are cover letters still a thing? Do recruiters even read resumes? Is a degree necessary? ! In this episode, Chez also gives job search tips from the insider perspective of a technical recruiter.

Diversity & Inclusion has been a popular topic in 2020 where many companies are starting to create new initiatives to diversify their workforce and practices. Mo takes us on a journey of her personal upbringing which defined and shaped her passion where she knew recruiting and D&I was for her.Don't doubt the path you're on because if you pay close attention to the signs it'll direct you exactly where you need to be and in Mo's case, she aspired to inspire and make a change. She shows us if you speak your dreams into fruition and roll with the punches you can create a meaningful career. 

We close out the sales series with a recap on the main themes, resonating quotes, key takeaways, and moments of self-reflection.In a time where systemic racism, politics, and a global pandemic have changed the way we live and work so many people have been impacted. In this episode they have real conversations about authenticity, the value of relationships, power of language, work-life balance, knowing when it's time to pivot, remote work, the influence of tech companies, and looking forward to the future.

Gabrielle Blackwell is a manager of business development and shares tips for people interested in getting into sales and for those that are looking to transition into sales leadership. She gets vulnerable and talks about her upbringing, mental health, and building a meaningful career when you have a criminal record.

Jarrett Thomas has spent the last 10 years working as a business development and sales professional in the tech industry. He discusses the value of building a professional network and highlights the lack of diversity and inclusion within the tech industry.

Nicole has spent the last five years working in sales and marketing operations. She shows us what can happen when you're loyal to a company that actually cares about your career development. Nicole also gives advice to women considering a career in sales and touches on the benefits of working for a small family-owned company.

 Christian has spent the last 5 years working as a sales professional in the sports entertainment vertical and is currently working as a Sr. Sales Consultant for the San Francisco 49ers.  He shares his inspiring personal journey on why he chose to work in the sports industry and talks about mentorship and betting on yourself! 

In Episode 1,  Zakiya and Robert provide  insight into the inspiration and purpose of the show. They talk about their personal career journey and all of the lessons captured along the way.