executive was not without its obstacles—but the rewards, inroads and insights that I got to share with others made everything worthwhile.
After nearly thirty years had passed since Karen and I had last seen each other, I woke up one day and realized, I could seriously use a vacation. I needed to refuel my tank and spend time with my sisters. I booked Karen’s Next Level Bali Retreat. I was hoping for a rejuvenating getaway, but I got so much more…
Before the trip even began, Karen and I reconnected by phone, and we talked forever and ever about everything that had happened since our college days and all that we had been through. Next came the long-ass plane ride to Indonesia (long, but so worth it!) and then a week of tropical bliss. Karen and I kept staring at each other in disbelief. In some ways, it felt like centuries since our last meeting. In other ways, it felt like barely a minute had passed.
Throughout that retreat, we shared our thoughts, constitutions, wit, senses of humor, willpower, words of wisdom, and joy of life with each other. We connected and reconfirmed that we can always go to another level in how deeply we care, share, and motivate. It was really overwhelming at times to be halfway around the world with my dear friend—riding elephants, eating Balinese food, praying in temples, fighting off monkeys, and worshipping in the sun. We both were in total agreement that you cannot give enough, because giving with a pure intention always comes back threefold.
There are many different definitions and ways to get to the Next Level in life, love, business, and relationships. You are well on your way by reading this book. Karen is beautiful, unassuming, highly intelligent, and well-traveled; she is absolutely the best person to take us all to the Next Level. She has already influenced my life in so many ways. Now it’s your turn to receive some of Karen’s visionary magic.
Enjoy this book. Read closely. Take notes. Let Karen take you by the hand and lead you into possibilities you hadn’t even considered for yourself. Know that everything is possible. And, wherever you are right now, know that there is always room to grow, to rise, to step into that Next Level Life. There is always another level…and now it’s time to find yours.
—Sheryl Taylor, vice president of Visit Orlando
Introduction
My name is Karen Arrington. I was born three years before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. I was there—a little girl with chubby toddler cheeks, standing next to my parents—while Dr. King spoke those historic words.
I was too young to fully grasp the immensity of what was happening that day. But, on some level, I know it impacted me. The words sank into my bones. Seeds were planted. Because, for as long as I can remember, I have dreamed of a better world—a world of opportunity and limitless possibility.
At age fifteen, I led a protest to change the name of my middle school. Several years later, the county school board approved a petition to change the name from Roger B. Taney Jr. High School to Thurgood Marshall Middle School.
A few years later, as a college student, I found my voice in the literary pages of works about African American sheroes like Sojourner Truth and Harriet Tubman. Their stories ignited a spark that I couldn’t rid myself of—to be a voice for the silenced, disenfranchised, and unheard women of color.
As I read aloud Sojourner Truth’s Anti-Slavery Speech “Ain’t I a Woman”—delivered in 1851 at the Women’s Convention in Cleveland, Ohio—it felt like a torch had been passed down to me. A whisper from my Ancestors saying, “Yaaas, girl, yaaas! You have been called to be a voice for women of color. Empower yourself. Empower your sisters. Help them reach their wildest dreams.”
And so, the seeds were planted and watered. I embraced my calling—a calling that has led me to many different projects over the course of my life and career. In 1986, I founded the Miss Black USA Pageant, the nation’s first scholarship pageant for African American women, awarding over $500,000 in scholarships. I went on to cofound Diabetes Awareness Day in The Gambia, West Africa. I was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador to the countries of The Gambia and Sierra Leone. I’ve mentored over a thousand young women, helping women to secure college scholarships, grants, and life-changing media and job opportunities.
While my work has taken many forms over the years, my goal is always the same: to help black women claim their power, redefine their destinies, and defy expectations.
We are living in a pivotal moment. For the first time in history, we’ve had an African American First Lady, a black woman on the top of Forbes Richest Women in Entertainment list, and sisters in positions of prestige and power at organizations like XEROX, Care USA, Microsoft, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The World Bank.
So many victories. So much to celebrate. And yet, there’s still so much work to be done. It’s time to redefine what it means to be a courageous, compassionate, and confident black woman today. We’ve got obstacles to overcome, stereotypes to smash, and trauma to release. No question about it. The road forward won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. So, my question for YOU is:
How BIG do you want to live?
It’s time to dream bigger, think bigger, and live bigger. It’s time to rise into what I call Your Next Level Life.
What is a “Next Level Life”? It means different things for different women. For you, hitting that next level might mean doubling or tripling your salary. It might mean buying a house for yourself—or a house for your parents. It might mean seeing your face on the cover of a magazine. It might mean contributing one thousand—or one million—dollars to a cause that you love. It might mean booking a trip to Dubai, securing a grant so you can take a three-month sabbatical and write your first book, or completing your BA, MA, or PhD. It might be a feeling in your gut, a feeling of worthiness and power.
With this book, I want to help you clarify what your Next Level Life looks and feels like and how to create it.
As you turn the page, I hope you will feel a spark igniting inside of you. The same spark that compelled me to protest at my high school, start the Miss Black USA Pageant, and write this book. The spark that burns with optimism and possibility and says, “It’s time to live bigger and light the way for other women, too.”
Your Next Level Life begins now.
Rule #1
Identify Your Superpowers
You were born with priceless gifts. You might have a natural knack for singing, teaching, making people laugh, or inspiring a community to take action. Find your superpowers, own them, and leverage them like crazy.
I believe every woman has a set of superpowers, waiting to be discovered.
Oprah Winfrey. Ava Duvernay. Michelle Obama. Kamala Harris. We all know these sisters and their superpowers.
What comes to mind when you think about Oprah? What are her greatest superpowers? Perhaps you think about her grounded presence, her confidence when she’s speaking on camera, or her ability to build “something” where “nothing” stood before—to build a school, to build a media empire, to build a movement. And then there’s Ava’s creativity and imagination, Michelle’s poise and grace under pressure, and Kamala’s courage, tenacity, and grit.
Just like these incredible women, you were also born with priceless gifts. These innate talents are your superpowers. Oftentimes, these superpowers
