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Renee
Talk us through the experience of living and working in different places.
Ebony Molchenet
Are you leaving to run from something? Truth is, if you're running from something, most of the time, when you go somewhere else, it comes with you.
Renee
A lot of women have the dream of being able to move from place to place.
Ebony Molchenet
I experienced it as a heavy, very heavy energy. People see you and they think they know everything about you based on what you look like.
Courtney
How do you build resilience and a sense of belonging in a space that doesn't feel like it was built for you?
Ebony Molchenet
Reading the Bible, I made the decision. Whatever is in that Bible, I believe, even if it contradicts what I believe personally. Steve Aubrey Gosh, I am very much a Trinidadian girl, but I am a citizen of the world. The whole world is yours if you want. Belongs to each of us. Oh yes, that one.
Courtney
Is that a worrying period? You know, we're all here. Hello and welcome to the To My Sisters podcast. I'm Courtney.
Renee
I'm Renee.
Ebony Molchenet
And I'm Ebony.
Renee
And we are your online sisters and hosts of the 2 My Sisters podcast.
Courtney
We are all about promoting the wellness, growth and development of a community of sisters around the world.
Renee
And in today's episode, we are in for an absolute treat. We are joined by the wonderful Ebony Molchenet and she will be telling us wonderful, wonderful things around making space, embracing the pivot and what it really feels like and looks like to embrace being a woman in so many different global spaces. Ebony it is have you on the podcast. We were definitely having a little bit of a fan girl when we when you agreed to come on our humble podcast to My sisters. And I'm sure all of the women listening will be excited to hear more from you and more about you. But to kick off the episode in true TMS style, we like to start with a little bit of a glowing and growing check in. So these are quick fire first things that come to your mind, that kind of thing.
Ebony Molchenet
Okay.
Renee
And so I'm going to start with a glowing question and then I'm Gonna hand over to my lovely, lovely co
Courtney
host Courtney and I'll ask a growing question.
Renee
Precisely so for the glow question of this week. Said yes to that surprised you, but also brought a lot of happiness and joy to you.
Ebony Molchenet
Entrepreneurship. Oh, yes, exactly. So after having worked, you know, at the highest, at the most senior levels within companies, I decided after much prompting from the Holy Spirit to. To say yes to being my own boss.
Renee
Beautiful.
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah. And stepping out on a limb and doing something quite different from what I had done for the last 25 years.
Courtney
Stunning.
Ebony Molchenet
About to get into that.
Courtney
Yeah, you need to dive into that. And my growing question is, what is one habit that keeps you anchored in turbulent times?
Ebony Molchenet
Reading the Bible. So the. The Bible is a habit? It is very much for me. It is the word of God. And I believe it is the literal word of God. And I remember when my mom passed away, I decided that whatever it says, I never sat down and actually read it cover to cover. And we hear so much about this is in the Bible and that's in the Bible. And I was raised in church, but I made the decision, whatever is in that Bible, I believe whatever it is, even if it contradicts what I believe personally. And that decision absolutely revolutionized my life, even as a womb to tomb Christian, just, just making that. And so that habit has turned, taught me so much about myself, about the power that I have as a child of God.
Courtney
So good. That's so beautiful. That is so good. I mean, we've already had so much power and conviction. But can you tell the sisters who you are? Tell us your story?
Ebony Molchenet
Sure. So I was born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago island.
Nikayla Matthews Akome
Beautiful.
Ebony Molchenet
And anybody who knows Trinity, I didn't realize growing up, but it is a particular environment. It is an environment that is plural in a way that I haven't experienced anywhere else. Because we are a multicultural, multi religion. You know, you have everybody in your family. So even if you have an argument or you disagree or you have a. These are your people. And I have lived in the United States, which is even more plural, I would say, in terms of different ethnicities, but they don't live together in the way that we do in Trinidad and Tobago. And so I grew up on one side there was a Hindu family and we were Christian. And then on the other side you had a Muslim and Hindu family. And so I grew up, we had all the different festivals. Festivals and, you know, lightened Diaz for Diwali and all of these different things. And grew up in, I thought, you know, very normal circumstances. But after being around the world, recognized that we were actually. We didn't have much. I never wanted for the necessities. And I didn't realize because we were so loved, not just by my parents, but by the community. And having left, that is when you leave that you realize what it is to be isolated, to be by yourself, to not feel like you belong. And so that is a contrast that I've lived having moved from place to place and having seen that everyone's heart is not open. Yeah, even when yours is open, it doesn't force the other person to open his or her heart. And so who am I? I am very much a Trinidadian girl, but I am a citizen of the world. And one of the things that I've realized as well is that the whole world is yours if you want. Belongs to each of us. The air is free. God didn't create us to have to buy water and land. It belongs to each and every one of us. He sends his good sunshine and rain on each and every one of us without discrimination. And so, you know, when you embrace that. Right, you live in a different way. That's something. That's beautiful. My goodness.
Renee
I mean, we've talked about this a little bit off camera because we had that luxury, but, Ebony, you really are a global trotter.
Courtney
Yeah.
Renee
You've experienced so many different lifestyles, and you've kind of alluded to that already. But talk us through the experience of living and working in different places, because quite a lot of our audience is, of course, global. But a lot of women have the dream of being able to move from place to place. A lot of us have the dream of picking up, packing up, and going elsewhere. So talk to us a little bit about the reality of that experience and if it's actually something that you would recommend as well, given the contrast and the differences that you came across.
Ebony Molchenet
So I would say one thing we know for sure is that 90% of the world lives and dies within 30 miles of where they were born. And that is for a reason. As humans, we need community to anchor ourselves, to center ourselves. And when we do that, when we decenter or we de. Anchor ourselves from an environment, it is a stressful thing. It is not an easy thing. The other thing I would say is, if you're leaving, consider your motives. Are you leaving to run from something? Are you leaving to build something, to grow something? Because the truth is, if you're running from something, most of the time, when you go somewhere else, it comes with you, whether it's trauma, whether it is. It is pain. You might leave the catalyst of that pain, but often you seek out another person to inflict the same pain on you until and unless you heal that. And so I would say leaving moving is a stressful thing. Living somewhere is not the same as going on vacation. It's a big difference to, you know, you go somewhere and you don't have to work there, you don't have to navigate government. You don't even necessarily have to deal with the language if you don't want to. When you're a tourist, when you live somewhere, you embed yourself in a culture. And often places have a spirit. So there. Yeah, yeah. So sometimes you go to a place and the spirit of the place is open, it's light, it's welcoming. Other places is far more heavy. And so when you go into that environment, you have to accept the spirit of the place and you have to wonder, do I fit with the spirit of the place? So I can remember when I moved to Germany, Germany, for me, I experienced it as a heavy, very heavy energy. And the immediate reaction for me, as a highly extroverted person, was depression. So I immediately went into a deep depression upon moving. And so I would counsel people to think about things like that before they move. But moves always grow you. So even if you move, you could always move back. But, but, but to be very thoughtful about, about moving, that's so good.
Courtney
And I, I. We can tell from the richness with which you speak that those experiences have given you just such insight. And I want to go back in your story a little bit where you were talking about moving from Trinidad. And it's a place of, of huge diversity. But then you move to the state and you're now confronted with diversity in a new way.
Ebony Molchenet
Yes.
Courtney
In which I'm sure people do not visibly look like you. And something you both have in common is you both went to Harvard, which is a predominantly white institution. Right. So I want to talk about being the chocolate chip in the cookie, being the odd one out. Right. Where you're in a space where people don't necessarily look like you, they're different from you. How do you build resilience and, and a sense of belonging in a space that doesn't feel like it was built
Ebony Molchenet
for you, you find enclaves. So that was, for me, very important. I found my people even at Harvard, you know, I found one of my best friends is from New Orleans. And if you know New Orleans people, they are very Caribbean.
Courtney
We've been there. You can fish very influence.
Ebony Molchenet
And you Find. And sometimes an enclave could be people who have the same soul, if not the same outside. So I experience this world very much. I am a spiritual being having a physical experience. And so a lot of times what I will find is a kindred spirit, someone who believes as I believe, and that gives me an anchor as well. It was unsettling, to be frank, to be confronted with people's perceptions of you before they know you. I think that was. That was an is. People see you and they think they know everything about you based on what you look like. And I had never experienced that. But in the end, who you are has nothing to do with people's opinions of you. And I had to learn that the hard way, that people's opinions and their words and their projections of themselves onto you because in the end, all they're doing is projecting themselves onto you has nothing to do with the path that God put me on in this earth. And so being that, it's nice because everybody knows you. So everybody, you know, be like, although they mix us up. But that's a whole other story. It makes it. There are ways that it makes it easier in that you stand out. You don't have to think about, you know, how do I get someone to notice me? Because you're immediately noticed. But on the other side, you have to make very much a conscious effort that you, as an individual, make an impression rather than being a stereotype or being someone else's image of who you are.
Courtney
Yeah. And so after Harvard, I guess, what was the path that God took you on, and how did that lead to being an executive leader? And, I mean, just doing all the amazing things you've done in the corporate space.
Renee
Yeah.
Ebony Molchenet
So it was very much. I met my husband at business school, at Harvard Business School, and he's German and his name is Morchanek. I took it on. But that is the thing that brought me to Europe. So I never. I would have stayed in the US I was happy there. I had made a home. I had my routine of going back and forth to the Caribbean. And being Caribbean American is very much understood and embraced in the us There's a community. You say, you know, you open your mouth and you say, you're Trini. And people like, oh, right. People relax. People know what that is. Europe was never something that I had in my plan. And I realize now that it was very much in God's plan for my life and so moved here. Initially, it was supposed to be a year or two, and that has been now 18 years. It was 18 years in August last year, so going on 19. Right. So we got married and, you know, moved to Germany. And as I said, the first thing that happened was a deep depression. So I went from Boston to a small town in Germany called Kassel, where nobody spoke English. I, you know, they stare being stared at. So instead of being one in a crowd, even a different one in a crowd to being an object of curiosity, but began to build from there, you know, made the decision. So me and my husband are very close as a result, because he was the only person I knew in the country and his family, and began learning the language, understanding the culture of the people, and working, you know. So when I moved from financial services, I had to pivot into corporate life and started in a big German corporate. In the airline space. Everybody probably knows which one, but I won't say Lindsay. And I was in charge of M and A. So also a very international, outward facing and dealing with stereotypes all over the world. So as people of African descent, as black people, there are perceptions of us not just in the spaces we inhabit, but in the spaces that. Where people have never seen us, based on the media, based on who knows what the perception is. And often you go into a room and you have no idea what people think of you. There were some rooms I went into or have gone into, and they didn't even want to go into the room with me because of my appearance, because of who I am. And so being able to deal with that and differentiate that from who I am, their perception of me, again, has nothing to do with me and. And being able to depersonalize it, because in the beginning, it feels deeply personal. Yeah, but those people don't know me, and they don't have the gift of getting to know me if their perceptions don't allow them to.
Courtney
That's so beautiful.
Renee
I love how unapologetically you enter into spaces. Right. And I think for a lot of the women that are listening, that can be such a big challenge.
Nikayla Matthews Akome
Right.
Renee
I think bringing your full self or your whole self to the table can come with its challenges.
Ebony Molchenet
Right.
Renee
As you so rightly named. The fact that people have their own perceptions of you and their own projections and being able to kind of shirk that off and still own that space is an important skill that I think a lot of women are really trying to work on and trying to do better for you. Ebony, kind of preparing to go into those spaces, being able to overcome, as you mentioned, depression and just that kind of initial period of, like, almost imposter syndrome. What does that personal development look like for you internally, personally, behind the scenes? Like, how does Ebony prepare to make waves in the corporate spaces she enters into in the public spaces that she has to occupy? What is that kind of routine ritual? What does that look like for you?
Ebony Molchenet
So the first thing I would say to anybody is think about what you think about. What is the voice that you use when you speak to yourself? Is that voice a voice of derision? Is it your limiting belief that you allow to take the lead voice? Or is it the voice of affirmation? And so I've learned both through my faith and from, from practice, to speak life into myself. And so what I say to myself is, I might be the only person there, but I am walking in with an army. I may, they may see one, but I am 10,000. I am all the people who came before and survived all that they have survived so that I could be here. I am the dreams of my great grandparents, that I could go to Harvard, that I could self actualize, that I could choose who and where and what I want to be. They didn't have that option. And so it is my responsibility to open a door that my children and their children and my sister's children can walk through. And so I take that seriously. And so when I walk into those doors, I remember all the people that I have coming with me. And I remember my mother who loved to fight, and I remember my grandmother who has a sharp tongue. The they used to cross the street so she wouldn't see them, you know, And I remember all the countless thousands who sacrificed so that I could be there. And theirs is the voice that I hear. And then there's this thing that I do, it's confidence, training. So I speak life into myself. I have different affirmations for different voices that I hear. You know, the voice of doubt that will say, you know, nobody wants to see you, black woman in that room in Saudi Arabia. Well, even if they don't want to see me, they get to see me. It's their privilege. And so what am I going to teach them about me and about my people and about what we have done and what we can do. And so often when people are resistant, that is the biggest opportunity for us to teach. And this is another thing about my culture that I love, because we are taught that we're taught if when you get, you give and when you learn, you teach. And as soon as you learn something and you teach it, you have paid your debt to your generation. And so this is all that I want to continue to do for the rest of my life to pay the debt to my generation with the purpose that has been put in me.
Courtney
Steve. Oh my gosh, that was so powerful. Even when you were talking about the fact that when you walk into a space, it's not just you. You're coming in with 10,000. You're coming in with. You are the wildest dreams of the people who came before you. I literally could feel myself tearing up because I could feel the power in that. But I can also hear to some degree a possible burden in that.
Ebony Molchenet
Oh, yes.
Courtney
So how do you deal with the burden of I may be one of the first, but I don't want to be the last.
Ebony Molchenet
Yes.
Courtney
And I want to continue to ensure that my children, when they step into a room like this, they don't even have to second guess themselves at all. So how do you carry that burden?
Ebony Molchenet
So it is one I'm still working on. I'm imperfect at it, but what I have realized is carrying that burden doesn't mean I don't make mistakes. Because I used to feel like the price of admission was perfection. And it cannot be. It must be that I am as human as any white man. Anybody who can walk in and be themselves and not be perfect, I have to give myself the same right to be a person who is learning and who is becoming and who makes mistakes. And for a long time I didn't allow that. So what that meant was being over prepared was overdoing, overworking. And in the end, it wasn't sustainable. It wasn't right for me. And then I thought about, is this what I want to teach my sons, that they have to be more? Yes, we have to be better. But better doesn't mean less human.
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Ebony Molchenet
Yeah, and so I'm not. I'm still not there. Like today, I didn't have anything prepared for. For a chat and I was having a big breakdown. And then I said, and. And then I said, you know what, Holy Spirit, I want to come in and just be myself and let that be enough. Even if I stumble, even if I make mistakes, even if I answer your questions. Crazy. But. But isn't being human enough? Isn't being a child of God enough with all the limitations that comes with. Has to be. It has to be. Otherwise we don't want it. Yeah.
Courtney
Yeah, that's a big one. I think as young women with big dreams and ambitions, I even speak for just us personally. The amount of pressure that we have on ourselves, even at 28. Yeah, like, you need to understand, you need to be perfect. Because we're used to walking in rooms and it's like, you might be the first black person, you might be the only black person. You might be the only woman, the youngest woman. And you don't want to make a fool of your generation or people take you seriously.
Ebony Molchenet
And we know the stereotypes, we know that they think you're, you know, a ghetto baby mama or whatever. And. And if you are. And so what that. And then what that part, you know, who you are is enough. And this is something I have to tell myself often because. Because so much of who we are Comes with shame. I used to feel so ashamed that I wasn't rich like, you know, the other people at hbs or I didn't have three houses or, you know, that my grandparents were, you know, household domestic workers. And. But none of that is my fault. And so if I take on everything that ever happened to anybody who ever looked like me, I'll go crazy. And so we have to allow ourselves to be as we are and know that nobody is perfect. Most of the people in the rooms that you're coming into, even when they are part of the crowd and the majority, they're also uncertain, they're also learning, they're also becoming and making mistakes and saying the wrong thing and doing. I mean, we see it all the time on a global stage. They all know what they're doing.
Courtney
That one is that worrying. You know, we're all here for the first time.
Renee
I feel like you're really like speaking to me and speaking to our souls right now. Because as Courtney mentioned, this is something that not only the women listening deal with, but we deal with personally.
Ebony Molchenet
Right?
Renee
That intense pressure, that desire to want to be almost perfect. And in that striving for perfection, you become less human. And I think it's important that as we continue to strive, we remember that we are human. And I think even in you speaking to your faith, it's in our humanity that God can really do miraculous things.
Ebony Molchenet
In our weakness, he is strong.
Renee
Exactly. And I love that you touched on that. I actually wanted to ask you, how do you then take care of yourself? Because I think in our striving for perfection, in our ambition, one of the things that we often neglect is, is our self care.
Ebony Molchenet
Definitely. Right.
Renee
We are constantly putting on, you know, shoes that we have to fill. We are constantly thinking about the future. We are constantly thinking about striving. That in that work, we forget that there's a work that we have to do for ourselves as well. So how have you incorporated self care into your life and how do you take care of yourself now?
Ebony Molchenet
So I have to be very intentional about seeking out what pours into my cup. And I always use the analogy of on the plane, right? They tell you put on your own mask and then. And then the other person next to your child or whomever. And I think for me, it is that Bible habit I journal. It is seeking out the company of people who fill my cup. And luckily I live with three of them and my dog, who every day I feel gifted and blessed to have the kind of marriage that I have, to have the Children that I have is a blessing. And then to have friends all over the world who genuinely care because I ain't got nothing to give them. And you know, they check in with me. I have lived thousands of miles away from them and they never forget me. And it's, it's a connection that is only because we are children of God, you know, that we, we are joined as children of God by one spirit, one purpose. And so they feel, sometimes I will feel, oh, you know what, let me call so. And so let me send them a WhatsApp. And just the act of caring for other people is self care. And yes, we have to stop. Yes, we have to sleep and we should eat well. And you know, now I'm on this thing of healthy body, healthy mind, healthy spirit. So, you know, I also work out three times. I hate it. Better get yours. Right, Right.
Renee
But.
Ebony Molchenet
But for me, especially as an extrovert, people are what power me. And so it is seeking out the people who are fill my cup as well as I can fill theirs.
Renee
Yes.
Courtney
So as of you, Daruga. And I think I want to lean a bit more into this faith element of things because you can see how much it has shaped you, how much it means to you.
Renee
Right.
Courtney
And I think as a woman, I mean, you help some of like the world's leading organizations navigate really turbulent times. Right. And that can be quite stressful.
Ebony Molchenet
Absolutely.
Courtney
Imagine like for everyone, especially yourself, who they're looking to for solutions. How has your faith anchored you in those moments when people are looking to you for answers, but then you're looking to God for answers? How does your faith anchor you to be that powerful executive, but also still a daughter of God in your own right?
Ebony Molchenet
I will say it is not this far off God that people believe in. I know God. God is with me. You know, I can hear his voice. I feel him. Sometimes I will. All the hair on the back of my neck will stand up and I know I have to do something or, you know, I will be afraid. And I start to sing a hymn. I remember I was doing a financing and I kept hearing and I know it was him. I'm no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God. Over and over in the presentation and my heart rate just slowed. And these are the little things because he is concerned about what concerns me. He said he wrote me in the palm of his hand. He will never leave me or forsake me. And so I take that seriously. And I will say, sometimes I walk into a place where I'm Scared, I'm nervous. And I say, surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life. And so this is why David said, thy word have I hid in my heart that I will not sin you hide that word in you and it will just the right word will come to you at the right time, in the right place. And this is beyond human understanding. This is not confidence. Because people see me and they say, how are you so confident? You're the only black woman and you're so tall and you're so, and it's not confidence. This is Godfidence. God is with me. Who could stand against me, who literally. And sometimes I want to tell people I wish, like Elisha said to his servant, open, open your eyes and see the hosts around you who could be against you, Literally.
Courtney
Yeah. That's so powerful.
Ebony Molchenet
There's nobody who could stand against the power of the living God.
Courtney
That's it. I, I, I love that because I think faith, religion, we can become so familiar with it and it's scriptures we know, it's things we heard. Like you said, being a Christian from womb to tomb. But actually our spirituality is a part of our wellness. It's a part of how it is the basis of how we stay connected to our source, our life giving source. And so I really love that, I think breaking it down that way, of how we carry that and how it literally empowers us in some of our most troubling times at work in life, biggest transitions. I just love how human that is. So thank you for sharing.
Renee
Absolutely stunning, honestly.
Courtney
Wow.
Renee
Ebony, there's a lot to this man.
Courtney
There's a lot to this. I do want to ask you for, for, for the woman who feels like, okay, I'm coming from maybe a similar place where it's like, you know, I know that I didn't grow up with the silver spoon. I didn't grow up with the big name. My baby didn't even grow up in a big place. I Trinidad, it's a big association, but I know I have big dreams and God is calling me to a big place to do big things. What do you have to say to that woman who's carrying purpose?
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah. Move forward, don't wait. It's in the waiting that we disobey. So when God calls you, he doesn't give you 10 steps. And this, this is what gets me. I am not perfect with this either. I want to know, so after I do this, then what happens?
Renee
Yeah, right.
Courtney
Yeah, exactly.
Ebony Molchenet
So how these bills, you know, I want to know all the things. Yeah, but he doesn't work that way because by faith, the world was framed by the word of God. And it's not faith. If you could see all the steps. Faith says step and then step and then step and then. And we hate that because we have a timeline. And I want to be married by 30, and I want to have these babies by 35, and we have plans, especially us women of purpose. But he doesn't work like that. He is not. You are not his God. He is your God. And to be in this walk is to be submitted to his will. And that is a decision you have to make every day. And every day you move forward and he gives you the choice he'll show you, you could do this, or you could do this, you could move forward or you can stand still. And you know, and it's. When we move forward, it doesn't come. You know, you start off, you graduate from school and then you're the cfo. That's not how it is. You start off and you make copies. You drop. You stay up till 4 doing models and you drop off books and you ask God, God, I graduated the top of my class. Why am making copies? And then. And then the step comes and then another step slowly. And then. And then a step back. Because that's part of the journey too. If you think it's this way.
Renee
Yeah.
Ebony Molchenet
It doesn't. It does not only go forward, sometimes you take steps back, you take steps sideways, you go places you never asked to go. And you ask him, why me? Why so many times I lay in bed and I said, God, why? Why I here what I do? But it is obedience. Obedience and trust. And it's in the obedience and trust that the way it says that the. Your way will become shining like the noonday sun. Obedience.
Courtney
You are preaching. When I had to give a sermon in Manchester two weeks ago, and that was literally the basis of my work, right. Like Hebrews 11 and Hebrews 12. And just about how in order for us to show faith. Yeah. We need to get all these things. Our timelines are. I want it this way, by this time, out of our heart. And allow God to be our God and trust in his timing for us and his direction for us, even when it doesn't make sense. And I think when you are an ambitious woman, you want clarity, you want plan, you want strategy. And God not telling you that is not him not having thought of it. It's just your mind can't comprehend even if he told you, and if he told you everything. You wouldn't go?
Ebony Molchenet
No.
Courtney
So I think that obedience pies.
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah. And I could tell you he will do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that you can ask or think. I couldn't imagine the life that he has given me. When I was sitting in Trinidad, I was telling my sons I didn't even have a desk in my room.
Nikayla Matthews Akome
Wow.
Ebony Molchenet
I went and I got bricks from outside and some scrap wood and I made a little desk and I put. Because I wanted to have, you know, a desk in my room. And, you know, I look at the desks and the rooms and the offices that God has brought me to, I couldn't even dream of it. I didn't grow up reading the Wall Street Journal or the Economist. And he has brought me to the centers of excellence. I've been to Singapore and London and New York and all over his. His world. Because the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. And when you. When you embrace his plan, it is infinitely better than anything you could even imagine. And so let go of these. Like you were saying, the timeline. I did it. I remember saying when I was in New York and I was living alone, if I die now, nobody will find me and I'll be stinky by the time we get there. Nobody ain't even gonna miss me. And you know these are all attacks of Satan, Right. He sends his fiery darts. They're well timed suggestions and we have to combat them with the Word again. The Word, the Word, the Word, the Word, the Word. Bury that word. Because when these darts come, and they will come, you clap back. You have scriptures ready. 3 o' clock in the morning, he comes with some nonsense and you hit him back and you go right back to bed. Yeah. Because that is. Doubt is not of God. Fear is not of God.
Courtney
Good. Yeah, that's good. So, so good. Wow. We could talk to you forever. We can talk to you forever.
Renee
But unfortunately, ladies, y' all can't talk to her forever. Oh, Ebony, honestly, like, thank you so much for your poor. Like, this has been such an edifying conversation. Yeah. And I think what's been so beautiful about your story and your personhood is just how evident it is that God is in your life.
Courtney
That's right.
Ebony Molchenet
Oh, yeah.
Renee
That God is in your life. That faith has been such an anchor for you. I think, especially as high achieving or ambitious women, we often let our achievement speak for us. But it's clear to us that God is really see you and through you.
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah.
Renee
So thank you.
Courtney
Thank you.
Ebony Molchenet
Thank you for having me.
Courtney
Wow. We have to have you back. Yeah, you have this point back. Well, maybe we'll come to just Germany.
Renee
Yay.
Ebony Molchenet
They're not ready.
Renee
They better get ready. Hey.
Courtney
Oh, please, could you tell us or tell the sisters where they can find you, how they can know more of what you're doing?
Ebony Molchenet
Well, I'm. I'm mostly on LinkedIn. I think I need to get some more socials. For sure.
Courtney
I mean, LinkedIn can work.
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah, get on LinkedIn. And I do have a website, so it is ww.weinstar/partners.com. and that name comes from a dream I had where he said to me, you can do nothing without me. It was on a blackboard. And of course, that's from John 15:5. I am the vine, you are the branches. And so Weinstock means grapevine. And it reminds me that he is the managing partner in my business. And I can do nothing unless I'm connected to that source. And so if you want to reach out, please do on LinkedIn or Weinstock partners until I, you know, get my act together. So. But I welcome, you know, the sisters. I remember how hard it was when I couldn't see anyone who looked like me doing what I wanted to do. And so much of who we are is being able to visualize and to see it, because everything that happens happens twice. It happens in your thought life, in the spirit world, however you want to look at it. I look at it in the spirit because we know that the things that are visible were birthed from the things that are invisible. And so that's. That's why representation matters. And that's why I take this work seriously. And that's why I spoke about all the ancestors who come with me. But I believe that our daughters are coming with us, too. When we walk into those rooms and we show who we truly are, everyone is with us, the whole family of us, across water, across nations, whether we are in the Caribbean, in the US In Africa, and in Europe, we are one big family full of lions. And so I welcome any of my sisters is only one of me. So don't get mad at me if I. If I take 10 years to answer your email, but it touches me very much when I make an impact on one of them. So thank you.
Courtney
Thank you. Thank you.
Ebony Molchenet
Thank you very much.
Courtney
Wow. Sisters, I don't know if you can feel what we're feeling, but this is the Holy Spirit. So. Wow. Honestly, the chills, the. The just being on the brink of tears, like, I think the power of this conversation is in that being able to see someone go ahead of you and affirm that you're on the right path.
Ebony Molchenet
Yeah.
Courtney
Thank you so so much. Thank you Sisters. If you want more conversations like this, subscribe to the TV My Sisters Please podcast here on YouTube. Rated five stars on Spotify. Just listen to us. Why not? We're here every Sunday at 8pm GMT.
Renee
Yeah GMT.
Courtney
London time. London time. And you can follow us everywhere on social media at To My Sisterhood for more enriching conversation, live events and some glowing and growing tips over on our mailing list. If you want to sign up to our newsletter, we sent you a love letter every week because we just love you like that. And so make sure you sign up over on our website www.to my sisters.com
Renee
Sisters, we absolutely love you. And until the next episode, keep glowing and growing.
Nikayla Matthews Akome
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Episode: Carrying The Weight of Being The Generational Curse Breaker ft. Ebony Simone Morczinek
Hosts: Courtney Daniella Jesse & Renée Imafidon
Guest: Ebony Simone Morczinek
Release Date: April 5, 2026
In this empowering episode, Courtney and Renee welcome Ebony Simone Morczinek, a Trinidadian-born global executive, entrepreneur, and faith-driven leader. Together, they explore what it means to be a "generational curse breaker"—the first in your family or community to break cycles and step into new spaces. Ebony shares candidly about her experiences living and working internationally, overcoming feelings of isolation, cultivating resilience, and staying anchored through faith. The discussion touches on identity, imposter syndrome, self-care, representation, and what it truly feels like to carry the hopes and expectations of those who came before you.
Moving and Starting Anew
“Are you leaving to run from something? Because the truth is, if you’re running, whatever you’re fleeing often comes with you.” – Ebony (00:42)
Diversity & Belonging
“We didn’t have much, but I never wanted for the necessities. Because we were so loved—by my parents and by the community.” – Ebony (04:52)
“People see you and they think they know everything about you based on what you look like. I had never experienced that.” – Ebony (11:17)
Faith as Foundation
“Whatever is in that Bible, I believe, even if it contradicts what I believe personally. That decision absolutely revolutionized my life.” – Ebony (03:40)
Dealing with Stereotypes and Biases in Corporate Spaces (14:13–21:51)
Ebony recounts transitioning from Harvard to Germany, facing both overt and subtle forms of exclusion.
“There were some rooms I went into, and they didn’t even want to go into the room with me because of my appearance. ... In the beginning it feels deeply personal—but in the end, it has nothing to do with me.” – Ebony (14:14)
The necessity of depersonalizing others' projections and refusing to internalize them as truth.
“Their perception of me has nothing to do with me and being able to depersonalize it, because in the beginning it feels deeply personal, but those people don’t know me, and they don’t have the gift of knowing me if their perceptions don’t allow them to.” – Ebony (15:11)
Carrying the Weight—and Joy—of Being First (21:51–23:43)
“I am the dreams of my great-grandparents ... I take that seriously. So when I walk into those doors, I remember all the people that I have coming with me.” – Ebony (18:40)
“I used to feel like the price of admission was perfection. And it cannot be.” – Ebony (22:34)
“Better doesn’t mean less human.” – Ebony (23:27)
Self-Care, Community, and Restoring Yourself (29:10–31:53)
“I have to be very intentional about seeking out what pours into my cup...sometimes just the act of caring for other people is self care.” – Ebony (29:49)
Faith and Executing Leadership
“People see me and say, ‘How are you so confident?’ ... It’s not confidence. This is Godfidence.” – Ebony (32:35)
Advice to Women Called for More (35:35–41:31)
Move forward even without full clarity; obedience and incremental steps lead to fulfillment.
“Move forward, don’t wait. It’s in the waiting that we disobey. He doesn’t give you 10 steps ... faith says step and then step and then step.” – Ebony (36:04)
Embrace imperfection, setbacks, and detours as part of the journey.
“Sometimes you take steps back, you take steps sideways, you go places you never asked to go, and you ask him ‘why me?’ Why so many times?” – Ebony (38:07)
God’s plans exceed personal imagination:
“He will do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that you can ask or think. I couldn’t imagine the life He has given me.” – Ebony (39:31)
On identity and belonging:
“I am very much a Trinidadian girl, but I am a citizen of the world. The whole world is yours if you want—belongs to each of us. The air is free; God didn’t create us to have to buy water and land.” – Ebony (04:52)
On representation:
“Representation matters. When we walk into those rooms and we show who we truly are, everyone is with us—the whole family of us, across water, across nations.” – Ebony (44:44)
On the generational impact:
“When you get, you give, and when you learn, you teach. As soon as you learn something and you teach it, you have paid your debt to your generation.” – Ebony (21:20)
On faith under pressure:
“He is concerned about what concerns me...He will never leave me or forsake me. Sometimes I walk into a place where I’m scared…and I say, ‘surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life.’” – Ebony (32:35)
On self-worth and shame:
“So much of who we are comes with shame…I used to feel so ashamed that I wasn’t rich like the other people at HBS or that my grandparents were domestic workers. But none of that is my fault.” – Ebony (27:14)
“That name comes from a dream...you can do nothing without me. ... Weinstock means grapevine. It reminds me that He is the managing partner in my business.” – Ebony (42:41)
Courtney and Renee's conversation with Ebony brims with affirmation, wisdom, and encouragement for women ready to step into uncharted territory. Whether navigating major life moves, confronting stereotypes in powerful spaces, or sustaining yourself while carrying generational hopes, Ebony’s journey offers honest, faith-centered tools for growth. The episode is a testament to embracing your calling with courage, humility, and a sisterhood that spans the globe.
For more enriching conversations, follow the "To My Sisters" podcast on your favorite platform and connect via @ToMySisterhood.