Navigating Life's Storms: Takiya La’Shaune Testament to Faith and Innovation

Have you ever stood at the precipice of change, uncertain but ready to leap? This is the tale of Takiyah LaShawn, who transformed her life from the brink of homelessness into a luminary of faith and beauty entrepreneurship. Our latest Dorsey  Ross show episode is a vivid chronicle of Takiyah's life, painted with the vibrant colors of Southern California's culture that shaped her tenacious spirit. Witness the raw and uplifting account of how this single mother rewrote her story, from dreams of veterinary and legal careers to initiating a thriving cleaning business that embodies her philosophy of filling the gaps in community need with grace and gumption.

Chock-full of wisdom and wit, Takiyah doesn't just share her journey; she invites us into the heart of her entrepreneurial world, where challenges are stepping stones and faith is the bedrock of innovation. Be inspired by her tales of perseverance, akin to the biblical stories from Joshua, as she discusses the trials of entrepreneurship and the fortitude required to keep faith alive. As Takiyah unwraps her experiences in self-publishing and mentoring, she offers a testament to the power of purpose found in pain. Ready to be moved, encouraged, and potentially transformed? Walk with us as Takiyah lays out her roadmap to success and how you can forge your own path, illuminated by faith and determination.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:15

Hello everyone, thanks again for joining me on another episode of the Dorsi Roadshow. Today we have a special guest with us. Her name is Takiyah LaShawn. She is also known as the inspirational Judy Bosch. She is a trailblazing woman who stands firm on her foundation of the Christian faith, from hurt to hosting healing retreats, and from homeless to housing and helping women. The care not only uses her platform in entrepreneurship to further her God-given vision, but also shares her story of overcoming obstacles time and again. She's an author, entrepreneur, mentor, tv talk, video and podcast host. Takiyah, thank you so much for coming on the show today.

Speaker 2: 1:16

Thank you so much, Dorsey. It's an honor to be here. I appreciate you having me here.

Speaker 1: 1:21

Yeah, absolutely. As you know, we have people of faith and people who share their stories of faith and overcoming and, from what I've seen, I wanted you to come on and share your story. And you know, as we get ready to go here, I usually just start off with a couple of quick, you know, icebreaker questions, and one of them is where did you grow up and did that affect who you became?

Speaker 2: 1:57

Okay, that's a great icebreaker. So I am originally from the Midwest St Louis, missouri, the show me state, but I grew up in Southern California. My stepdad was in the Marine Corps and so we traveled quite a bit so I kind of grew up all over, but Southern California is where the bulk of my childhood and teenage years were. I would 100% say it impacted and affected who I've become to the positive. We'll talk about plenty of the things that I've overcome and the trauma, but just thinking about where I grew up California I was exposed to a lot of diversity. I met a lot of people. It's a big state, a lot of different people in flux, and I think growing up there helped me to branch out and become the outspoken extrovert that I am, so 100% I feel like it impacted me.

Speaker 1: 2:57

Yeah, can you tell us a little bit more about yourself and what you do?

Speaker 2: 3:05

Yeah, sure so, and thank you for that intro with the bio. Everything that I do, the Firm Foundation, is faith-based. I am a faith-based entrepreneur, if you would call it that, so to speak. I am driven by turning pain and trials and obstacles that I've come through into purpose. My foundation is in the beauty industry.

Speaker 2: 3:31

I've spent the last 14 years as an entrepreneur in the beauty industry, and one of my favorite scriptures talks about in Isaiah, how God will give us beauty for ashes, and I feel like that's literally what he did with me took me from a place of hurt to show me that he was going to use that for purpose.

Speaker 2: 3:51

And so from that being in the beauty industry, that exposed me to plenty of other people and women and hearing their stories, and that is what helped to cultivate me into being okay, using my story from a place of pain into a place of purpose and power and just using that. And so the beauty industry is my foundation. But from that, god has opened so many doors. I've written and published six books. I speak and do mentoring. I have launched a nonprofit that helps women in their spaces and places of healing, connecting them with therapists and counseling, and, most importantly, I always say that I'm in ministry, with the word ministry meaning simply to serve, and that is what I do. I use my gifts and my talents and my voice and my time and my businesses to help serve and further the kingdom of God.

Speaker 1: 4:54

What is your background and what got you started with what?

Speaker 2: 4:58

you do is your background and what got you started with what you do. Okay, so number one entrepreneurship. I never planned on being in entrepreneurship. I mean, when I was younger I always knew. Well, actually, when I was younger I thought I was going to be a vet. I loved animals, I wanted to be a vet.

Speaker 2: 5:18

And then one summer I did an internship in high school and I realized that wasn't the thing for me. And then I always had being an attorney, being a lawyer, tucked away. And then I went to school, took a class in paralegal studies and realized, nope, that's not it either. And then I worked in the medical field as a medical assistant, and I actually loved that job. But at that time I'd had my daughter, who was about two years old, as a single mama and I just didn't have the stability of consistent childcare. And that impacted me and I actually got fired from that job. And I actually got fired from that job and that job propelled me into entrepreneurship because I had here.

Speaker 2: 6:03

I was a young single mother, I had a daughter to raise and I needed to have some flexibility.

Speaker 2: 6:08

You know, I put some things together and with my two-year-old daughter, I wouldn't pass out some flyers, and from there I started cleaning and that expanded to a 10-year business that was very successful and it helped to get me on my feet and it opened the doors of entrepreneurship, because basically anytime I needed to anyone, that's in true entrepreneurship.

Speaker 2: 6:46

We know that entrepreneurship entrepreneurs look for solutions to problems. They look to fill a void, and so for me, all of my life obstacles turned into entrepreneurship, because I had to learn to navigate. How do I live my life but continue to be able to work around what I'm dealing with? And so I got into entrepreneurship and as I began to evolve, god began to show me that this is an area that I've gifted you in. And all of those jobs working in the medical field, thinking I wanted to be a lawyer, wanted to be a vet, many other jobs in between that I realized that God took all of that experience and I'm able to now use that as an entrepreneur in different aspects of my life, and so that's how I got into what I'm doing now. So what I'm hearing you say?

Speaker 1: 7:43

because some people, when they hear the word entrepreneurship, they don't fully understand. You know what that means. What I'm hearing you say is pretty much what an entrepreneur does or is is something that fills the void of a need that somebody has or that they need, maybe in their own life. Is that what it is?

Speaker 2: 8:09

Yeah, in the business world. I mean, if that's my loose definition of entrepreneurship but in the business world, if we're talking about not even just corporate, but just in the business world, if we're talking about, like, not even just corporate, but just in the business world. Entrepreneurship is a term that is defined as someone or an entity that runs or manages businesses and really in entrepreneurship you can be an entrepreneur and not even actually have to run or manage a business. You can be someone that's maybe more on the investor side. Where you go, I have the skill or I have the knowledge.

Speaker 2: 8:47

Yes, I fully believe in entrepreneurship, that an entrepreneur in business terms sees a need for the community or you know, it's like you have these shows, shark Tank and things like that. Those people come on there and they're sitting before those investors because their entrepreneurial mindset or their entrepreneurship, they have something, they saw a need for something, and I always feel like it's God, whether someone says they're a believer or not, I just feel like God is the one who grants us wisdom, Like I just don't think we're that smart as humans.

Speaker 2: 9:37

And God is the one that grants us that wisdom or that knowledge and drops the idea in our spirit, or gives us the wisdom or the creativity to say hey, you know and you think about all these things like that snuggie blanket. You know that that was created, that was created by a young kid and he literally took. You know, we all do it. We sit down and watch TV and we wrap up with a blanket or we put a coat on backwards and put our sleeves in it. And he decided you know, let me capitalize on this and let me create something that addresses this. So that's what entrepreneurship is. It addresses a need and that's how God set us up. If you look at the intricacy of how we are created, he did that within us.

Speaker 1: 10:25

Right, what are some of the biggest challenges that you face, either in your life or even in your entrepreneurship?

Speaker 2: 10:35

you know, with your businesses or your books, or even your podcast, that you have to not give up, to not give up, to not throw in the towel, to not call it quits, to continue to trust that what God said would happen will happen, even though it doesn't look like it's going to happen. That's the challenge. But for me, I always say that I am purposeful, I've completely surrendered my life to Christ and given God my yes, and I always tell him I work for you. I have a brand of a line of t-shirts and it says CEO on the front, but it stands for Christ, executive Officer, because I'm not in charge and I always want to remind myself that I work for him. He's the head. He tells me what businesses to start. He's the one that gives me the wisdom and the knowledge and the drive and the motivation and the ideas for these businesses and as long as they're purposeful, meaning I'm furthering the kingdom of God, I'm helping you know to do what God wants to be done. I'm reaching souls.

Speaker 2: 11:56

I have a witness in this area of entrepreneurship, but it can get pretty tough. It can. There's all kinds of obstacles that come in. You know, when God gives you a vision, what is Habakkuk 2 and 2 says write the vision and make it plain so those that read it may run with it. God gives each of us visions. We're the visionaries. He chooses us to be the visionaries and we got him like, oh okay, we're going to execute this. God's given me a plan, I'm going to. But then when you bring other people in that have to read that vision and run with it, everybody doesn't always get it or see it, and so that's the difficult part of the journey, too is ensuring that you have the right people that are in place and that God sends the right people, because he will. We just have to have that discernment to know when God is sending those people. So that's a bit challenging, but my number one answer would be it's a challenge to not want to give up.

Speaker 1: 12:56

Yeah, yeah, I've definitely, you know, wanted to give up in my own life and I'm sure, you know, a lot of my listeners would want to. You know, give up in their own life and you know, whether it be a job or career or whatever, you know give up in their own life and you know, whether it be a job or career or whatever, you know they're dealing with. You know, and it's encouraging, you know, you know for you to tell them hey, you know, don't give up, keep going, keep pursuing what it is that God wants you to do in your life life, because we know it's not easy out there, you know, sometimes to not give up.

Speaker 2: 13:35

Right, yeah, that's so true, and one of the things that I always you know, I'm a blogger and I write as well and I always come back to keep going. That's the phrase that God always drops in my spirit. Keep, keep going, because it is very easy to want to quit, to give up, to throw in the towel, to get discouraged. And, like you said, dorsey, it's not just in business, it could be family, it could be relationships, it could be with your spouse in a marriage, it could be your health, just believing in God for that healing or for that restoration or reconciliation or that breakthrough moment, and all we have to do is keep going. That's what God continually whispers to me. I'm actually reading in the book of Joshua right now, and one of my favorite. What God always circles me to is what he told Joshua. He said he was talking to them about going into the promised land and he said look, it's there, I'm about to take it. But he says only be strong and of good courage. And he says it to him three times.

Speaker 2: 14:41

And that's so powerful because God basically was saying God knew like look, I've made a promise to you and my children. And God knew like, look, I've made a promise to you and my children and you're going to have to go in and there's some things I'm not going to tell you that's going to happen. There's some giants and some things that you're going to have to fight. You will defeat it, but listen, only be strong and of good courage. And so God has me reading that right now, because even myself I'm in the midst of you know, I battle, wanting to give up all the time, and he just tells us hold on to those promises. That's an anchor and what he said he will do. He is the author and finisher of our faith. He knows the end from the beginning and he's like I just need you in the middle, in the midst of this. Keep going, keep going.

Speaker 1: 15:36

You have. You know from what I hear. You know you got your blog, you do podcasts, you write books. You're an entrepreneur. How do you set a time? You know how do you set time apart to do each one.

Speaker 2: 15:54

Yeah, I was laughing. I was about to laugh because I knew what question was coming. And people ask me that all the time, like that life, work balance, and girl, how do you find the time? And, dorsey, you know, I'm learning and I'm evolving, because I don't have a solid answer in this other than the fact that I seek God, because seasons change Like what worked for me. So, for instance, as a young single mother with my then daughter and then, six years later, having my son, I'm a single mother with two children entering into entrepreneurship, raising them.

Speaker 2: 16:34

What I had to do in that season looks so different from what I do now with those two kids being adults, young adults. They're now 20 and 26 and they're independent and they're on their own. And now I find myself with all this free time. But it's so interesting because with all of this free time, I feel like I'm struggling a bit more to get things done. And it's like God, what is going on? I was knocking it out as a single mother, but I think I was in survival mode and now I'm in a place where I'm thriving.

Speaker 2: 17:07

And so, in this season, rest. I have learned to rest. I've learned to listen to my body and where, when I was younger, I used to have the ability and the tenacity to get up at four or five or 6 am and get my day started and knock those things out. I realized I did it because I had to, because I had children. And now that I'm independent and the kids are grown and the businesses have grown up as well, that looks different.

Speaker 2: 17:40

And so in this season, god is just teaching me balance in listening to my body and resting, and I know and that's different for everyone, where they are, and when I say rest I mean literally physically, mentally, emotionally, getting that rest, but leaning in and spending time with God and developing a system of organization. Organization is important. You know, sitting aside, I'm going to do this on this day and I won't touch anything else, but then tomorrow I'm designated with I may work on the podcast, and that's the delicate balance, because I find myself with time or without time and I'm like, oh, I can work on this avenue and it's like, no, you've got to learn to stick to that. So commitment, commitment definitely is key.

Speaker 1: 18:33

Yeah, because I have my own podcast and right now, you know, in this season, because of financial, I needed income. I thought that you know I had to go back to and work part-time in a retail store and that takes up five, six hours a day in my life. Plus, at times I travel and I speak at different cities and events. So I kind of dropped the ball when it came to the podcast and now I'm trying to pick it back up and you know, like you're saying, try to set that time apart to say, hey, today I'm going to focus on the podcast, I'll do the editing, I'll do the interviewing, I'll do whatever it needs to get done to get those episodes out.

Speaker 2: 19:30

Yeah, absolutely Trying to structure that, you know on certain days and just do a sticking with that and even again, setting time apart to rest. That's important. A lot of times we don't prioritize our rest and that's so important so that we can recharge and be able to do those things.

Speaker 1: 19:48

How are we I mean, this is a little pivot to what we were talking about how are you turning your purpose into profit?

Speaker 2: 20:15

utilizing my voice, booking speaking engagements with the podcast. My podcast that I just launched is very new. I just launched it in January and I shared my story on many platforms to date, how that even began. I launched the podcast Behind this Smile with Tequila Sean, and that's a platform where I go behind the truth of the smile, you see, and I talk about the pain and the things that God has brought me through that. I've overcome Everything from molestation in my childhood to physical abuse in my adulthood, being homeless, just overcoming trauma and things that my children have even dealt with, and so that podcast was launched to be a platform of authenticity and vulnerability and that's opening door. I know God is opening doors with that to do more things. So I'm learning to monetize my voice in this aspect.

Speaker 2: 21:12

Speaking engagements I've done in the past my books. I have self-published all of them. I am this year going to look into getting with a publishing house, because doing all that promotion on your own I mean we know today there's so many different outlets that you can do it, but we want to work smarter and not harder at this point in our lives and so doing different things like that. And then my background with entrepreneurship, which again is a complete gift of God to me, because I don't have a college background, that's I didn't go to college. Like I said, I took a couple of paralegal classes. I thought about school, but life took a different turn for me and so I just didn't do college. So my knowledge and wisdom and input in entrepreneurship as a business owner came from God number one and experience, and so God has taught me so much and I have. I've become an expert in my area, so I'm able to monetize that when people want to come to me for business consulting or coaching or things in that manner.

Speaker 1: 22:28

How did you find your purpose in the pain?

Speaker 2: 22:31

I had to walk through it. I mean, my honest answer is I had to walk through that and I had to sit with God. I'm huge. Prayer is a huge proponent of my life, my relationship and my faith and sitting with and seeking God, sitting with and seeking God for me, that was developed early on, when my children were little and I was enduring things and I really, at that space and place in my life, I didn't have a lot of. I had not healed in my heart, so there was not a lot of trust for people or feeling like I can go to anyone, but God was always my safe space. I can go to anyone, but God was always my safe space.

Speaker 2: 23:18

I was okay with talking to God about the pain and about the disappointment and about the hurt and about the setbacks and the frustration and the anger even. And I learned to talk to God freely and release my vulnerabilities because I'm thinking he knows it anyway. So it's okay to vocalize it. It's okay to vocalize it. It's okay to verbalize it and the beauty in that is God began to wrap me in his presence and he began to show me the answers and to help heal me of the pain, like this magic eraser, where everything just disappears.

Speaker 2: 23:53

I believe it's a process, at least for me, and God always showed me there's purpose in this, there is beauty in this. I know it doesn't look good, I know it doesn't feel good, but I promise you it's for your better. And I was recently on a podcast where someone said that what we endure is not happening to us, it's happening for us, and that has helped me to walk out, finding purpose in the pain and seeing other people grab a hold of the fact that Takiyah kept going. She didn't give up, and if this is what God did for her, then I know he can do it for me, and so my finding purpose in the pain is seeing the beauty in other people being set free or soul saved or delivered or healed, or them finding their aha moment and getting into finding purpose in their pain and not giving up Amen.

Speaker 1: 25:02

As we get ready to end here, what's one piece of advice you can share with my listeners, or one piece of encouragement that you can share with my listeners? Or one piece of encouragement that you can share with my listeners?

Speaker 2: 25:17

Yeah, I would circle back to keep going, keep going, because I know that there are so many of us, especially if we just even take a look at what we as a world have endured in the last few years, since 2020 with the pandemic, that was something huge that everyone that's alive right now has never endured or experienced, and from 2020 on, it just has seemed there's been a major shift and things have been difficult and things have changed.

Speaker 2: 25:53

And then you peel away that and you get into our personal lives. Like I said earlier, someone may be dealing with believing in God for a sickness or a terminal illness or that prodigal to come home, or even just wanting to give up on life themselves, wanting to end it. I would say, keep going. I would say that you are valued, you are seen, you are loved, you are important, you are so, so, very important to God, and I would just say to keep going, just one foot in front of the other. Every day is a new day. To keep going just one foot in front of the other. Every day is a new day and keep going, keep going.

Speaker 1: 26:40

Amen. Thank you for that encouragement, takiyah. We greatly appreciate that. Now, where can people reach you or connect with you if they wanted to connect with you for speaking, for a podcast, to buy your book, to, whatever it may be?

Speaker 2: 26:59

Yes, so I have made it very simple. I have one link tree and all of my social media handles. If you type that in it's, your smile is Weapon and you will find me across all social media platforms. You go to linktree L-I-N-K-T-R dot E-E backslash your Smile is your Weapon. I'm on Instagram as your Smile is your Weapon. I'm on TikTok every social media platform and you're going to find that and you're going to go to my website. Or, or you can go directly to tequilashonministriescom.

Speaker 1: 27:37

Thank you again, Tequila, for coming on the show. We greatly appreciate it.

Speaker 2: 27:43

Thank you so much. This has been amazing to be on. I appreciate it.

Speaker 1: 27:47

Definitely. Hey guys and girls, thank you again for coming on and listening. Please like, share, post to social media. Also, leave a review on any podcast platform that you are listening to, and please check out my website as well at wwwdorseyrockministriescom. Have a great day, god bless. Bye-bye.