As Told To is a recurring segment on xoNecole where real women are given a platform to tell their stories in first-person narrative as told to a writer.
This is Jada Rashawn's story, as told to Charmin Michelle.
I am a black nanny for an affluent and well-known white family. As in, "signed-an-NDA-and-can't-discuss-them", well-known and affluent.
And I wouldn't have it any other way.
Admittedly, I never knew I would end up here. My first business was actually at the age of 9, back in Detroit, braiding the kids', and even some of the moms', hair in the neighborhood. For a while, everyone thought I was going to be a hairstylist, or a journalist because my mom said I talked a lot and I used to pretend I had my own television show. I thought I was Oprah, y'all!
We relocated to San Antonio when I was twelve, which is when I began helping my mom in the children's department at our church. We were that family HEAVILY involved in the church we attended, so most of the friends I made were friends from there.
Anyway, I didn't think anything of it at the time other than I was getting to sneak away from the long service my pastor preached, but watching my mom and how animated she was with the kids, really started planting the seed of caring for children in my head. She made it fun for the kids, and for herself. I ignored this path for a bit though because like so many of us, I was multi-passionate at an early age, and I never wanted to be boxed in. I loved doing hair, speaking, dancing, acting and even drawing. I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted to do as I got older for that very reason.
I graduated high school, and enrolled in college for small business management, with a concentration in entrepreneurship. Soon, the childcare thing started to stick when I got my first job working at a day school while in college. I had a coworker who was offered a nanny position from one of the parents of the children in our class, and I'll never forget the way they presented the job opportunity to her. They pulled her to the side, and their body language just gave off the idea that they were about to offer her something big. And they did. Sis put in her two weeks' notice at work to become a private nanny. I was like, "Private nanny? The heck is that?" Only nanny I'd heard of was Nanny Fran.
So, I started doing my research on exactly what the nanny profession was all about, and I discovered this entire world. Nannies working for rich people, traveling all over the world and getting paid to play with their most prized possessions for a living.
Sounded easy, fun, and a bit exclusive too. I liked what I was seeing, and of course, I completely failed to acknowledge the actual work and not-so-glamorous side to the industry (but that's what we tend to do when we're just excited about something). I began to freelance as a babysitter for various families, and then slowly built up my experience to work with an agency where the big jobs worth "bragging" about were.
And eventually, I worked my way up to where I am now, a Nanny/Family Household Manager, which is a fancy way of saying I work very closely with the parents and the role requires me to make a ton of decisions on their behalf.
Do I love it? Abbbbbsolutely. And here's why:
OK, so there are many unspoken, frustrating misconceptions about black nannies...and rightfully so. Some people wonder why black women even want to work as nannies, especially for white families. There's been times where I've personally experienced racial encounters where once, while walking in a bourgeois neighborhood, I was surrounded by not 1, not 2, but FOUR police tahoes while walking my nanny kiddo—all because "I fit the definition of a suspicious pregnant woman walking with a stroller." #eyeroll (the nerve, I was not pregnant).There's been times where I've been "promoted", but shortly afterward, I noticed a pay cut. Yes, you read that right.
And additionally, many assume that we aren't treated or compensated fairly, and to be honest with you, it's very true that tons of nannies get taken advantage of. But in my experience, that has been with both black and non-black nannies, due to not knowing how to advocate for themselves.
These are all experiences that I've had, lessons that I've learned, and now, information that I'll gladly share. And aside from loving my families and kids, these have all contributed to my passion of advancing the trade.
But Jada, don't you know that many white families prefer black nannies because of long-standing, racially-motivated traditions?
Yes, I know this, yes, I sense this. Movies such as The Help and Gone With the Wind often come to mind whenever a black person says they're a nanny (meanwhile….Mary Poppins flying in on an umbrella often come to mind for non-black nannies). Chile. Listen, for some, hiring a black nanny is simply their way of introducing culture to their children. They like the idea of a black woman caring for their children, for a number of reasons, yes, but also because we can have the conversation about race if it ever comes up. They know this rich life oftentimes creates a false reality of what the real world is like for everyday individuals, and in some way to them hiring a nanny who doesn't look like them is there way of introducing/exposing their children to that.
Make no mistake about it, I always tell potential employers, as well as clients, I'm not here to be someone's black history teacher.
I'm here to do a job and while those conversations will come up out of the curiosity of the child, their black nanny shouldn't be their only way of exposure to cultures and races different from them. Besides, I've had the opportunity to work for black families, white families, Native American families, as well as Asian families—same thing. Fortunately, the families I've worked for totally get that and the kids I've helped raise have a huge respect and appreciation for everyone of every background. So, my job is done there.
—
Over time, my job has afforded me so much abundance, which is all I could ever ask for. All of my experiences make up for the most rewarding, fulfilling career imaginable, and the good news is becoming a nanny is pretty simple once you have a good amount of experience—just two years will get you a position with decent pay and benefits. But as the industry continues to grow, the more experience and qualifications you have helps you immensely. Families want the best of the best for their children, so arrive packaged, and ready to work.
There's a few different routes you can take to land a position, which all have their pros and cons. You can go through a referral/friend, apply to various agencies, or even join an online website (much like a dating site) that allows you to create a profile and families to find and hire you directly. If you are just starting out with little to no experience, you'll want to take advantage of sitter sites and referrals to help establish you and build up your resume to prove you know how to care for and keep a child happy—and most importantly—alive (haha). I always recommend linking up with a really good agent. There weren't many agents in my area at the time early on in my career, and the ones I worked with got me fairly decent positions in the beginning, but they lacked advocacy and support for the nanny, so I created No Other Nanny, where I educate families on market rates, fair pay, etc. I introduce the information that is mostly discovered once you're in the industry. And what has taken me years and years to learn.
Ultimately, ladies, if you are interested in becoming a nanny, do iiiiit, sis. If you love children, and love working with them, I would highly recommend doing further research on this industry. Or let's have coffee and chat about it. #Nannylife can truly be a dope life when you discover how diverse it's become. I love it and thoroughly enjoy taking part in helping take it to the next level.
One precious, beautiful, loving, and amazing child at a time.
Jada is currently working on continuing to building her business and educate aspiring nannies all over the country. Follow her on Instagram @jadarashawn to keep up with her latest projects.
Feature image courtesy of Jada Rashawn
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So, we handpicked one hundred It Girls who embody that palpable It Factor moving through us as young Black women, the kind of motion lighting up the world both IRL and across the internet.
It Girl 100 became xoNecole’s most successful program, with the hashtag organically reaching more than forty million impressions on Instagram in just twenty-four hours. Yes, it caught on like wildfire because we celebrated some of the most brilliant and influential GenZennial women of color setting trends and shaping culture. But more than that, it resonated because the women we celebrated felt seen.
Many were already known in their industries for keeping this generation fly and lit, but rarely received recognition or flowers. It Girl 100 became a safe space to be uplifted, and for us as Black women to bask in what felt like an era of our brilliance, beauty, and boundless influence on full display.
And then, almost overnight, it was as if the rug was pulled from under us as Black women, as the It Girls of the world.
Our much-needed, much-deserved season of ease and soft living quickly metamorphosed into a time of self-preservation and survival. Our motion and economic progression seemed strategically slowed, our light under siege.
The air feels heavier now. The headlines colder. Our Black girl magic is being picked apart and politicized for simply existing.
With that climate shift, as we prepare to launch our second annual It Girl 100 honoree list, our team has had to dig deep on the purpose and intention behind this year’s list. Knowing the spirit of It Girl 100 is about motion, sauce, strides, and progression, how do we celebrate amid uncertainty and collective grief when the juice feels like it is being squeezed out of us?
As we wrestled with that question, we were reminded that this tension isn’t new. Black women have always had to find joy in the midst of struggle, to create light even in the darkest corners. We have carried the weight of scrutiny for generations, expected to be strong, to serve, to smile through the sting. But this moment feels different. It feels deeply personal.
We are living at the intersection of liberation and backlash. We are learning to take off our capes, to say no when we are tired, to embrace softness without apology.
And somehow, the world has found new ways to punish us for it.
In lifestyle, women like Kayla Nicole and Ayesha Curry have been ridiculed for daring to choose themselves. Tracee Ellis Ross was labeled bitter for speaking her truth about love. Meghan Markle, still, cannot breathe without critique.
In politics, Kamala Harris, Letitia James, and Jasmine Crockett are dragged through the mud for standing tall in rooms not built for them.
In sports, Angel Reese, Coco Gauff, and Taylor Townsend have been reminded that even excellence will not shield you from racism or judgment.
In business, visionaries like Diarrha N’Diaye-Mbaye and Melissa Butler are fighting to keep their dreams alive in an economy that too often forgets us first.
Even our icons, Beyoncé, Serena, and SZA, have faced criticism simply for evolving beyond the boxes society tried to keep them in.
From everyday women to cultural phenoms, the pattern is the same. Our light is being tested.
And yet, somehow, through it all, we are still showing up as that girl, and that deserves to be celebrated.
Because while the world debates our worth, we keep raising our value. And that proof is all around us.
This year alone, Naomi Osaka returned from motherhood and mental health challenges to reach the semifinals of the US Open. A’ja Wilson claimed another MVP, reminding us that beauty and dominance can coexist. Brandy and Monica are snatching our edges on tour. Kahlana Barfield Brown sold out her new line in the face of a retailer that had been canceled. And Melissa Butler’s company, The Lip Bar, is projecting a forty percent surge in sales.
We are no longer defining strength by how much pain we can endure. We are defining it by the unbreakable light we continue to radiate.
We are the women walking our daily steps and also continuing to run solid businesses. We are growing in love, taking solo trips, laughing until it hurts, raising babies and ideas, drinking our green juice, and praying our peace back into existence.
We are rediscovering the joy of rest and realizing that softness is not weakness, it is strategy.
And through it all, we continue to lift one another. Emma Grede is creating seats at the table. Valeisha Butterfield has started a fund for jobless Black women. Arian Simone is leading in media with fearless conviction. We are pouring into each other in ways the world rarely sees but always feels.
So yes, we are in the midst of societal warfare. Yes, we are being tested. Yes, we are facing economic strain, political targeting, and public scrutiny. But even war cannot dim a light that is divinely ours.
And we are still shining.
And we are still softening.
And we are still creating.
And we are still It.
That is the quiet magic of Black womanhood, our ability to hold both truth and triumph in the same breath, to say yes, and to life’s contradictions.
It is no coincidence that this year, as SheaMoisture embraces the message “Yes, And,” they stand beside us as partners in celebrating this class of It Girls. Because that phrase, those two simple words, capture the very essence of this moment.
Yes, we are tired. And we are still rising.
Yes, we are questioned. And we are the answer.
Yes, we are bruised. And we are still beautiful.
This year’s It Girl 100 is more than a list. It is a love letter to every Black woman who dares to live out loud in a world that would rather she whisper. This year’s class is living proof of “Yes, And,” women who are finding ways to thrive and to heal, to build and to rest, to lead and to love, all at once.
It is proof that our joy is not naive, our success not accidental. It is the reminder that our light has never needed permission.
So without further ado, we celebrate the It Girl 100 Class of 2025–2026.
We celebrate the millions of us who keep doing it with grace, grit, and glory.
Because despite it all, we still shine.
Because we are still her.
Because we are still IT, girl.
Meet all 100 women shaping culture in the It Girl 100 Class of 2025. View the complete list of honorees here.
Featured image by xoStaff
Then there were those who gave up their zip code altogether and found a permanent home in the skies. After years spent recruiting students for a university, Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare became a full-time travel influencer and founded her travel company, Shakespeare Agency. And she's not alone.
These stories mirror the experiences of women across the world. For millions, the pandemic induced a seismic shift in priorities and desires. Corporate careers that were once hailed as the ultimate “I made it” moment in one's career were pushed to the back burner as women quit their jobs in search of a more self-fulfilling purpose.
xoNecole spoke to these three Black women who used the pandemic as a springboard to make their wildest dreams a reality, the lessons they learned, and posed the question of whether they’ll ever return to cubicle life.
Answers have been edited for context and length.
xoNecole: How did the pandemic lead to you leaving the cubicle?
Randi: I was becoming stagnant. I was working in mortgage and banking but I felt like my personality was too big for that job! From there, I transitioned to radio but was laid off during the pandemic. That’s what made me go full throttle with entrepreneurship.
Gabrielle: I moved around a lot for work. Five times over a span of seven years. I knew I needed a break because I had experienced so much. So, I just quit one day. Effective immediately. I didn’t know what I was going to do, I just knew I needed a break and to just regroup.
Lisa-Gaye: I was working in recruiting at a university and my dream job just kind of fell into my lap! But, I never got to fully enjoy it before the world shut down in March [2020] and I was laid off. On top of that, I was stuck in Miami because Jamaica had closed its borders due to the pandemic before I was able to return.
Randi O
xoN: Tell us about your journey after leaving Corporate America.
Randi: I do it all now! I have a podcast, I’m an on-air talent, I act, and I own a public relations company that focuses on social media engagement. It’s all from my network. When you go out and start a business, you can’t just say, “Okay I’m done with Corporate America,” and “Let me do my own thing.” If you don’t build community, if you don’t build a network it's going to be very hard to sustain.
Gabrielle: I realized in New York, there was not a lot to do for Black lesbians and queer folks. We don’t really have dedicated bars and spaces so I started doing events and it took off. I started focusing on my brand, Raw Honey. I opened a co-working space, and I was able to host an NYC Pride event in front of 100,000 people. I hit the ground running with Raw Honey. My events were all women coming to find community and come together with other lesbians and queer folks. I found my purpose in that.
Lisa-Gaye: After being laid off, I wrote out all of my passions and that’s how I came up with [my company] Shakespeare Agency. It was all of the things that I loved to do under one umbrella. The pandemic pulled that out of me. I had a very large social media following, so I pitched to hotels that I would feature them on my blog and social media. This reignited my passion for travel. I took the rest of the year to refocus my brand to focus solely on being a content creator within the travel space.
Gabrielle
xoN: What have you learned about yourself during your time as an entrepreneur?
Randi: [I learned] the importance of my network and community that I created. When I was laid off I was still keeping those relationships with people that I used to work with. So it was easy for me to transition into social media management and I didn’t have to start from scratch.
Gabrielle: The biggest thing I learned about myself was my own personal identity as a Black lesbian and how much I had assimilated into straight and corporate culture and not being myself. Now, I feel comfortable and confident being my authentic self. Now, I'm not sacrificing anything else for my career. I have a full life. I have friends. I have a social life. And when you are happy and have a full quality of life, I feel like [I] can have more longevity in my career.
Lisa-Gaye: [I'm doing] the best that I've ever done. The discipline that I’m building within myself. Nobody is saying, ‘Oh you have to be at work at this time.’ There’s no boss saying, ‘Why are you late?’ But, if I’m laying in bed at 10 a.m. then it's me saying [to myself], 'Okay, Lisa, get up, it's time for you to start working!’ That’s all on me.
xoNecole: What mistakes do you want to help people avoid when leaving Corporate America?
Randi: You have to learn about the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. You have a fast season and a slow season and I started to learn that when you're self-employed the latter season hits hard. Don't get caught up on the lows, just keep going and don't stop. I’m glad I did.
Gabrielle: I think everyone should quit their job and just figure it out for a second. You will discover so much about yourself when you take a second to just focus on you. Your skill set will always be there. You can’t be afraid of what will happen when you bet on yourself.
Lisa-Gaye: When it comes to being an influencer the field is saturated and a lot of people suffer from imposter syndrome. There is nothing wrong with being an imposter but find out how to make it yours, how to make it better. If you go to the store, you see 10 million different brands of bread! But you are choosing the brand that you like because you like that particular flavor.
So be an imposter, but be the best imposter of yourself and add your own flair, your own flavor. Make the better bread. The bread that you want.
Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare
xoNecole: Will you ever return to your 9 to 5?
Randi: I wouldn’t go back to Corporate America. But I don’t mind working under someone. A lot of people try to get into this business saying, “I can't work under anyone.” That’s not necessarily the reason to start a business because you're always going to answer to somebody. Clients, brands, there’s always someone else involved.
Gabrielle: I went back! I really needed a break and I gave myself that. But, I realized I’m a corporate girl, [and] I enjoy the work that I do. I’m good at it and I really missed that side of myself. I have different sides of me and my whole identity is not Raw Honey or my queerness. A big side of me is business and that’s why I love having my career. Now I feel like my best self.
Lisa-Gaye: I really don’t. For right now, I love working for myself. It's gratifying, it's challenging, it's exciting. It’s a big deal for me to say I own my own business. That I am my own boss, and I'm a Black woman doing it.
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Featured image courtesy of Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare
Originally published on February 6, 2023