Nikki Green Of Green Chameleon Collective: The Power of Flexibility; How I Was Able To Pivot To A New Exciting Opportunity Because Of The Pandemic
Make sure your values align with your goals. As you set your personal and professional goals, make sure these goals represent more than just status in your job, the amount of money in your bank account, or the material things you want to have. Once you get past the basics of food & shelter, the material things lose their luster fairly quickly. Set goals that will lead to new experiences, new encounters and new expansion of the best “you” you can be. And make sure that “you”, is aligned with your values (Faith, family, free time, friends).
The COVID19 pandemic has disrupted all of our lives. But sometimes disruptions can be times of opportunity. Many people’s livelihoods have been hurt by the pandemic. But some saw this as an opportune time to take their lives in a new direction.
As a part of this series called “How I Was Able To Pivot To A New Exciting Opportunity Because Of The Pandemic”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Nikki Green.
Nikki Green left the tech world to inspire the next generation to do things differently. She partners with graduating college students to create a ‘syllabus for life’ designed to help them pursue their passions rather than just a paycheck. Through her book “I Laugh in the Face of Danger” and her weekly podcast Stand Up & Stand Out, she coaches the Chameleon Mindset, teaching her audience how to adapt to their ever-changing environment.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we start, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
Like all great superheroes or villains, my origin story is one of great challenges and adversity. I was born into a complex and challenging family dynamic with six parents. With my parents located in different cities and states, I moved often and was never able to grow roots. I attended nine schools in the twelve years leading up through my senior year of high school.
When I was younger I became an extrovert forced into an introverted life. A victim of bullying, I often struggled through abuse at school (mental, physical, psychological, and emotional) and later as a woman working in Silicon Valley. I was taught shame for my race, gender, and socio-economic status throughout my life, which I wrote about in my book, “I Laugh in the Face of Danger.”
This mistreatment created a distrust of others and forced me to hide my insecurities to protect myself, creating a hard outer shell that was uncomfortable and I was dying to break free. Now, out of the corporate world and helping others with my new business, I can finally be a voice for those struggling to fit in and pursue the life they dream of for themselves, in a safe environment, free of abuse from those in power.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Be so completely yourself that everyone else feels safe to be themselves too.” -Unknown
I was bullied for several years during middle school and it impacted me in ways I’m still uncovering. The abuse was more than just playground antics and was very clearly racially motivated. It made me question who I was, or to be able to define my identity, which was a challenging topic growing up with six parents and moving homes and schools almost every two years. Through the struggles during these two years of middle school, I lost myself. I forgot who I was and most days didn’t want to do the thing I had loved most, go to school and learn. I became afraid to set foot on school grounds and soon became a shell of the bubbly, happy girl I once was.
This led to other risky behaviour and loss of self as I entered high school. The wrong friends, the worst choice in a boyfriend/felon, and an inability to deal with any of it. I wanted nothing more than to escape my situation but didn’t have the support or guidance as to how. I was physically abused and mentally tortured for years, and I began to believe the lies these people told me about myself.
As I got older, I began to find myself again, through much therapy and self-study. And once I found myself, I never wanted to let her go because “Nikki is pretty awesome.” And I wanted to keep sharing my story with others to show them it’s OK to be you, the REAL you. Because I’m sure the real you is pretty awesome too!
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
The NeverEnding Story movie (1984) — I have been a voracious reader all my life. I began reading adult sci-fi novels in the 4th grade, long before the craze with the likes of Harry Potter. I have a vivid imagination and books captured my mind in ways that TV or movies rarely did. I could see the landscapes unfolding and the characters talking right in front of me. I imagined myself as a character in these fantastic novels many times.
When I saw The NeverEnding Story for the first time, it was a bit scary but also amazing. The idea that I could escape into a book so thoroughly was like a dream come true. Even now when I have a lot of work to do or a long journey ahead, I reference Bastian’s famous quote about not eating his peanut butter & jelly sandwich because “there’s still a long way to go.”
When I got a new road bike for racing triathlons as an adult, I named it Falcor after the luck dragon in the movie. Riding Falcor gave me a feeling of freedom from the pressures of work and life. It was like taking my own adventure through Fantasia, even though I was just cycling through the foothills of Northern California.
Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Can you tell our readers about your career experience before the Pandemic began?
Before the pandemic, I was an executive in Silicon Valley. For nearly 20 years, I worked at some of the top firms like Cisco, Microsoft, and PayPal. Although I studied Finance in school, I found a unique niche to work in hybrid roles that leveraged my finance background and my aptitude for technology. I helped design and build some of the most critical financial systems, used by the employees of these companies to manage important tasks. I created a name for myself by optimizing the sales and pricing processes, at one point taking forty-five financial software systems (acquired through different company acquisitions), and merging them into one cohesive end-to-end system which saved the company millions of dollars and improved the time to close deals with customers.
What did you do to pivot as a result of the Pandemic?
During the pandemic, my entire life was flip turned upside down. What would you do if in the space of a month you:
- Lose your apartment,
- Your husband leaves you,
- And your boss thinks the pandemic is “fake news”?
Hold on to your hats for one of the craziest pandemic pivot stories you will ever read! I began the pandemic in a state of crisis, in every aspect of my life. I didn’t have time to deal with the chaos of the world, as my world was spinning out of control. I had to do something, and I had to do it soon or lose my sanity in the process.
Over the early months of the pandemic, I took control and started anew.
- I moved in with my only friend in a new city,
- I quit my job and built a new business, Green Chameleon Collective,
- Made amends with my ex-husband to remain friends who could support each other through any crisis or celebrate any victory.
Without hesitation, I boldly made each move to improve my chaotic conditions. I made decisions quickly to keep the fear at bay and the momentum in my favor. And I found a purpose that drives me to help others through my writing, speaking and other creative projects.
Can you tell us about the specific “Aha moment” that gave you the idea to start this new path?
As I left my job and my corporate career, I knew I needed help and guidance. I found a career coach through LinkedIn and began working with him to find the “new me.” He started our initial session by asking me to journal and think about the things I wanted in my life, the things that made me happy, and the things that I no longer wanted in my life that were keeping me down. From there I rediscovered my love of reading and writing. Those journals became my first book, “I Laugh in the Face of Danger.” Although the book is a memoir, it’s more about stories of my career journey as a woman executive in Silicon Valley and how to make the best of unfortunate situations.
How are things going with this new initiative?
The first year of my new business has been amazing. To enjoy a year of pure creative freedom was wonderful. It’s been great to spend time learning and retooling, to ready myself for this next big thing I’m attempting to do as a part of Green Chameleon Collective.
At the beginning of 2021, I had no idea I would launch a podcast or how much fun it would be. Now on our third season of Stand Up & Stand Out, I really love the medium and the people who are a part of the podcasting community. It reminds me of ComicCon in the early days when you could actually buy comics at the convention. Podcasting is real fans who support real creators.
During the last year, I also learned some important lessons about writing and self-publishing a book. This has helped me as I work on my second book, to figure out which parts I enjoy doing myself (the writing) and which things I should leave to the professionals (like editing and marketing). I’m excited to be working with Book Launchers to release my second book (coming out Summer of 2022).
My first love is still speaking on stage, and I’m hopeful that we will return to in-person events soon. I miss traveling to new places and meeting new people, having been to fourteen countries and 33 of the United States before the pandemic. I want to continue to share my message of how to remain true to yourself during times of change and hear others’ stories in return. As things open up I can’t wait to bring these two favorite past times of speaking and traveling together!
Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I have been very fortunate to have had many great mentors in my life. I’m a terrific example of the phrase, “It takes a village,” because my unique qualities and aspirations took a wide variety of people to guide and help me throughout my journey. From inspirational volleyball coaches to incredibly intelligent bosses at various jobs, each had their own unique wisdom to share. And growing up with six parents, they also had wise words to contribute along the way. I’m so thankful for so many people to see my potential and help me, especially during times of struggle and insecurity when I needed their support the most.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started in this new direction?
I wanted to meet the CEO of LeadHERship Global, Linda Fisk. I had attended some of the LeadHERship Global webinars and found the content really helpful as a new woman entrepreneur. I replied, somewhat jokingly, to a post-event survey as they asked the question, “How else can we help you?” and I wrote, “I’d love to meet the CEO, Linda Fisk.” And before you know it, her assistant messaged me and set up a time to talk.
The most memorable were her first words to me during that meeting. She said, “I feel like I already know you! You have some much great content out there, including the podcast. It’s easy to feel like we are already friends who can help and support each other.” It was reassuring to hear those words after all the hours of piecing my content together and crafting the story for my brand and my business. The compliment from someone who I looked up to, meant a great deal to me.
I’m now a member of LeadHERship Global and have made some incredible connections within the group. I have been able to help many of the other members with skills from my many years in tech, while they have been able to share their expertise and help me with some amazing projects for this new business. It is a true community where people work together to help each other and together we all improve and succeed.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I started leading my organization” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1. You are not alone. Managing often feels very lonely, whether you are in a big organization, or whether you have started your own business, both can make you feel isolated from your employees or your customers. You feel like you must balance the world on your shoulders and there is nowhere to turn. But mentors are just as important for managers as they are for employees. Everyone needs help and guidance on how to handle things. These can be the small things as often as it is the big things. Why not get a starting point from someone who has been there before, and then make your mark on it from there.
2. There is no such thing as multi-tasking. I should know because this is one I still struggle with to this day! There is doing one thing well, or a bunch of things half-ass. Pick a lane and stick with it. Set big goals, but make sure you can dedicate the time needed to each goal to achieve it to the best of your ability.
3. Most of your teachers were wrong. My English teacher told me I was a terrible writer and I’m on the way to publishing my 2nd book. My high school career counselor couldn’t imagine why I wanted to take French and Spanish my Senior year. I now speak 4 languages and have traveled to 14 countries and 33 of the US states. You are good at a great many things, and you should try new things more often. You never know what else you might be good at! Being perfect is over-rated and will paralyze you from making progress. There are no grades for the exam of life. There is learning new things and developing yourself to continue growing and adapting to the world around you. Or there is sitting on your sofa, wishing you had.
4. Never wait for someone to work for you, to work for you. There is an incredible amount of talent out there. Maybe you admire someone above you, and you want to work for them or have them as a mentor — ask them! Drive your career and actively choose your bosses and your mentors, for the support you need and desire.
a. Or maybe you find someone that has an incredible drive and talent that you want to work with, as a peer or to have them as an employee? Don’t wait for someone to design the perfect team for you. Make that team happen informally. The bond you form with the team you choose will be stronger than any org chart that barely fits on a PowerPoint slide
b. Don’t wait until someone gives their notice to find a replacement. Always be searching for new talent to strengthen your organization and bring new ideas and a fresh perspective.
5. Make sure your values align with your goals. As you set your personal and professional goals, make sure these goals represent more than just status in your job, the amount of money in your bank account, or the material things you want to have. Once you get past the basics of food & shelter, the material things lose their luster fairly quickly. Set goals that will lead to new experiences, new encounters and new expansion of the best “you” you can be. And make sure that “you”, is aligned with your values (Faith, family, free time, friends).
So many of us have become anxious from the dramatic jolts of the news cycle. Can you share the strategies that you have used to optimize your mental wellness during this stressful period?
I never watch or listen to the news. I can’t. I get too excited and find myself yelling at the tv. I’m a problem solver and listening to the over-sensationalized version of news events, just makes me want to jump up and start fixing it. Instead, I get my news in small bursts from others whom I know like to watch the news and stay informed.
I highly recommend people turn off alerts on their phone for email, social media, and any other chirp, ping, and ding it can send you. Choose when you respond and how much time you spend staring into the void of your phone.
Your best bet is to go get some exercise. It’s too cold in Chicago right now to go out for a run, but the gyms are open and I’m happy for some time away from devices (computer, tablet, phone, and tv) and just focus on me. It’s a lot easier to listen to how your body is feeling when you aren’t distracted by a hundred things trying to steal your focus. Put down your phone. Go to yoga. Find some zen.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I want to reverse the current dynamic of power in this country, and around the world. Too many voices are silenced because they don’t look like those in power. Whether that is due to gender, race, or religion, it’s keeping important ideas and innovations in the dark that could be helping us all. Instead, those in power continue to want to only see their reflection at the table (or video screen) across from them. It’s their insecurities and a lust for “legacy” that keep us from letting people’s true talent shine through.
Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!
Taraji P. Henson
I think she’s incredibly inspirational to young women and a fantastic entertainer. When I was asked to dream about how I wanted to be represented as I got on stage to do a speech, I remembered many of Taraji’s memorable performances. She seems really fun to be around and much like her, I love to dance!
How can our readers follow you online?
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/TheNikkiGreen/
Medium:
https://thenikkigreen.medium.com/
TikTok
https://www.tiktok.com/@nikkigreen678
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/GreenChameleonC
IG:
https://www.instagram.com/greenchameleoncollective/
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHXpHj0320spEGSl58--AZA
Website:
https://www.thenikkigreen.com/
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!