Yolanda Nichole Solutions

03/15/2026

14 audiobooks. All Black women authors. One playlist for Women's History Month and honestly, every month after.

I curated this list around something I believe deeply: focus and flow are not productivity hacks. They are what becomes possible when a leader is grounded in who she is and clear on what she's building.

From Michelle Obama to Cole Arthur Riley to Fawn Weaver, these voices span memoir, business, movement-making, and contemplative practice. They don't all agree. That's the point.

Full playlist on libro.fm. or bookshop.org if you want the physical version. Link in bio.

02/11/2026

I know you’ve read all about the founding of negro history week for the last couple of weeks, but have you seen it from this angle? Dr. Woodson was a young visionary and clearly deeply committed to making sure the Black community was acknowledged. He didn’t do this alone. He needed collaborators and community to pull it off. And now 100 years later, we’re still celebrating the movement he started. You might be thinking about what your influence will be in 100 years. What are you working on? Who are you working on it with? Consider as you put your ideas in motion. I’m on a mission to help people plan, operate, and engage in business in ways that are a right-fit for them and their communities. If you are looking for collaborators, community, or an ecosystem to build with, check out the link in my bio. Let us know what you’re working on in the comments 🥳

01/29/2026

Hello 👋🏾 I’m still here. Last year I ended up taking time to recalibrate my business and do some groundwork to show up differently. I read more books, joined a couple of business cohorts, earned a couple of certifications in AI, while continuing to do life like getting a son graduated from high school, helping my younger son prepare for his future with experiences at , Germany and soon Ghana, and for me, continuing to pursue good mental and physical health to keep up with it all. I’ve changed my business approach (and updated my branding) and it’s past time for me to share with you what I’m building (and have built) 😅 I’ll share more in another post but in the images, you can catch a preview of a few solutions I’m sharing with purpose-driven small business and nonprofit leaders (a few are complimentary gifts). You’ll hear more from me soon!

07/31/2025

Black women are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs—
…yet still the least funded and lowest paid.

🧾 On average, we earn 66 cents to the dollar (50 cents to the dollar for moms)
💰 Less than 1% of VC goes to us
Still, we lead. We build. We thrive anyway.

✨ If you care about equity, don’t just talk about it—fund it, share it, buy from it.

Here’s how to support Black women in business all year long:

1️⃣ Buy from Black women-owned businesses
2️⃣ Prioritize supplier diversity
3️⃣ Refer us to rooms we’re not in
4️⃣ Invest—through contracts, capital, or collaborations

🖤 Start with mine.
I help purpose-driven orgs build smarter strategies, better processes, and stronger teams. yolandanichole.com

I’ve also curated some more data along with Black women-owned business directories and local entrepreneurs + events you can support—check the graphics for details.

Know someone who needs this? Share it to your stories or tag them below.
Let’s turn awareness into action.

12/01/2024

If you haven't already, check out this amazing story about the founding of Uncle Nearest Whiskey and Nearest Green Distillery.

05/03/2024

Today for , we'll lean into how small businesses can scale for growth. Small business owners see exponential growth in revenue once they hire additional employees, but many small businesses do not grow beyond one employee. Companies need the infrastructure to serve the number of customers or clients it takes to earn enough revenue to become employer firms. There are many ways to get there as shared earlier this week however, of utmost importance is creating and committing to a company culture with clear mission and value statements. These will provide guiding principles for how the company will engage with its stakeholders (partners, employees, and customers) and the market, and maintain its integrity especially when the CEO is unavailable.

There are many resources small business owners can access for support with developing companies that scale:
- Government agencies: Small Business Development Center (SBDC), Small Business Administration (SBA), SCORE, and local and state economic development offices and chambers of commerce.
- Large companies: Amazon, Google, Meta, Verizon, and others provide resources catering to small business growth (in other companies, inquire about support for your small business with purchasing, supplier diversity, or the executives of the business departments of your end users).
- Accelerators: TechStars, Y Combinator, various universities, industry leaders such as Northwestern Mutual, and more have programs to support small business scale.
- Community crowdsourcing works as well for deeper customer engagement and funding support.

Thank you for your support of my small business. I hope I can help you or someone you know with my services soon!

05/02/2024

Industry data shows small businesses employ almost 50% of the U.S. workforce, but over 80% of small businesses only have one employee - the owner. Most companies with one owner/employee earn around $44k - $46k per year (s/n: businesses owned by Black women earn an average of $24k per year). However, when additional employees are added to these companies, earnings skyrocket to six figures and beyond. It’s difficult to hire employees with little earnings or financial backing. It’s very challenging for these businesses to be approved for enough funding from banks and investors, even more so for Black owned companies, to gain the ability to hire more employees and grow the business.

A proven way to build capacity in a small business is with strategic partnerships. These partnerships may look like formal joint ventures with other companies to increase market access, hiring independent contractors and other vendors to increase company infrastructure, or simply collaborating with other companies on large contracts for a host of mutually beneficial reasons. Partnering creates more opportunities for small businesses to afford additional employees, grow revenue, and serve more customers. Proper due diligence & setting clear communication and expectations are important factors for making partnerships work and reducing associated risks.

Today for , I encourage small businesses to support each other with these five steps:
- Develop a plan for how strategic partnerships can be useful for your business and create a solid pitch to engage the right partners
- Identify complementary small businesses as potential strategic partners
- Connect small business owners who may collaborate well together
- Prioritize procurement from other small businesses for business and personal needs
- Refer small businesses to opportunities when you can’t do it anyway, it strengthens their credibility, it propels a common mission, you receive a referral fee or other incentive, and/or you have an abundance mindset

05/01/2024

Burnout from mental and physical exhaustion can be a major barrier to business success for small business owners. Research shows small business owners are highly susceptible to burnout from “financial pressures, social isolation, long work hours, and the lack of a “safety net” (Martin, et al). I can testify as a company founder that you may have the clearest vision and solid plans for your business but if you are on the verge of burnout, none of it will matter. You might walk away before seeing it grow just because of the chronic stress. It’s the same with employees of a small business. As the engine of the business, it’s important to do your part to ensure they are in good mental health and well-being or the business could be negatively affected. Unfortunately if an owner is experiencing stress, it will likely trickle down to employees.

With the start of mental health awareness month during , I encourage small business owners and executives to prioritize mental health for themselves and their employees. Entrepreneurship is tough as it is so along its important to set yourself up for success in this way. Today, I encourage executives to support their small businesses by supporting themselves:
- Work schedule. Create a general schedule for your work and ensure you respect time for self-care & rest.
- Consistent self-care. Physical movement, mindfulness, spiritual practices, connecting with friends and family, & fun hobbies are all important as daily or weekly rituals for your mental well-being.
- Delegation. Outsource business & personal activities that are not your strengths (e.g. non-revenue generating business activities & personal services).
- Community. Connect with trusted peers, coaches, and mentors who can provide a good listening ear and/or solid business counsel.
- Talk, Learn & Grow. Hire a therapist, listen to podcasts, read books, & access other resources that support mental growth.
- Employee Wellness. Allow space for employees to access the same as above for a positive trickle down effect.
- Celebrate. Create a company culture that celebrates wins for the company, employees, partners, customers, & community.

04/30/2024

1 in 5 businesses are expected to fail after five years, commonly from lack of capital or market demand. Given my line of business, I would argue the risk of failure can be mitigated with a serious written plan of action for what needs to be accomplished (goals) and how (strategies including contingency planning).

Having a business plan to lay out the basic structure of how the company will operate and a strategic plan to have a roadmap and timeline for accomplishing goals on a quarterly basis could provide just the edge to be an attractive option in the market that customers would be delighted to engage in. This planning can take time away from pursuing “revenue generating activities” - to actually sit down, think things through, and write out a plan - but it can save a load of future time, effort, and energy to not have to reconsider how to accomplish a task each week. Having a trusted thought partner to assist may save even more time and serve as a muse for go-to-market and other growth ideas. The business plan itself could be used to pursue more capital and share how resources would be managed.

In other words, 4 in 5 businesses are expected to succeed after five years. Nearly two thirds of all new jobs created over the last 25 years have been from small businesses. These companies are vital for our economy and well-being. Having plans and roadmaps assists with their survival during these crucial times.
Today, I encourage people to support :
- Shop at a new small business - maybe grab dinner at a great restaurant
- Share positive and constructive feedback with your favorite small business owner in support of growth
- Connect with small business owners and listen for how they can benefit from either your expertise and products, or others you know they should connect with
- For small business owners: review and develop your business and strategic plans to help this quarter of 2024 exceed current expectations [let me know if you need help with that]

04/29/2024

Happy National Small Business Week 🥳. This week, I want to celebrate and build up small business owners! We represent a critical sector of the national economy - 99% of all U.S. businesses are small businesses as defined by the SBA. That’s 33.3 million businesses (1 million in NC) which generate 44% of U.S. GDP! Today, I encourage people to support your favorite small businesses:
- Shop with them including buying gift cards
- Refer them to family, friends, and others in your network (including B2B firms)
- Leave a positive review
- Share a personal testimony with the owners about the importance of their business
- Connect on social media
These can all be done virtually or in-person, in less time than listening to your favorite podcast.

03/26/2024

This was an amazing leadership program I recommend over and over for those who want to make an impact across the state and beyond. The best part of the experience was connecting with really impressive peers from all over the state. Go to the info session and learn what it takes to apply. Let me know if you need help!

Interested in learning more about Leadership NC? We’re hosting two virtual information sessions about our Core Program in advance of our June 1 - June 24, 2024, application window.

Info Session Schedule:
Friday, April 26, 9:00 – 9:30 am
Tuesday, April 30, 5:00 – 5:30 pm

Register today and help spread the word! https://bit.ly/LNC32Info