Meet The Disruptors: Nicole Draffen On The Three Things You Need To Shake Up Your Industry

Speak your truth. I erased so much and wrote and rewrote my book based on a fear of what other people would think. When I finally stopped concentrating on other people’s reactions, and just wrote, I was able to really begin my story.

As a part of our series about business leaders who are shaking things up in their industry, I had the pleasure of interviewing Nicole Draffen.

When Nicole’s not making plans on how to shake up the world, you can find her in her garden tending to a vast variety of plants, Feng- Shuing everything in sight, reading vintage novels, collecting vintage paintings, attending Jazz festivals, antiquing, and sometimes running. It is her belief that each of us can achieve whatever we set out to do, if we are determined, and remain positive

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?

Running plays a lead role in my backstory. I always wanted to travel, but I’m the kind of person who prefers traveling with purpose. Running gave me that purpose and the Snowdonia Marathon in Wales, UK gave me the opportunity. It only took a very short while during that vacation to realize that people did not interact with me in a way that was mindful of the color of my skin. They reacted to me merely because I was American, and of course, that was only when I spoke. To the reader, this concept may sound so simplistic to the point it almost feels non-relevant. However, as an American person of color, it is the most relevant and soul-enriching situation to be in. I was seen as an American, not a Hyphenated-American, and that is a momentous statement. That short vacation led to a year-long exodus living in the United Kingdom.

What led me to write Hyphened-Nation harkens to one very well-used saying: “The trouble is that once you see, you can’t unsee it. Once you’ve seen it, keeping quiet, saying nothing, becomes as political an act as speaking out. There’s no…