Influential Women Spotlight: Meet Speaker and Author, Ebony Butler/INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE NEWS

Hi Influential People News readers, it is our distinct pleasure to introduce you to Ebony Butler, a dynamic and sought-after speaker, teacher, and business consultant who is a recognized thought leader on leadership and diversity, equity, belonging, and inclusion.

Ebony shares her experience as a woman wearing many hats as a mom, professor, caretaker, and sole provider while managing the demands of her professional career. Ebony brings a unique perspective to the table, drawing from her personal experiences, professional expertise, and most of all, her successes, and failures to deliver impactful insights and practical strategies that help women to show up authentically and thrive in corporate spaces.

Ebony centers her work around helping career-driven women overcome their doubts, overcome their fears, gain their power, and unmask- to positively create impact while navigating corporate spaces.

Whether you are looking for inspiration or you are an ally and looking to support your team, Ebony is the keynote speaker, teacher, and business consultant who has proven success shifting mindsets of women and allies and driving equitable and inclusive workspaces for all.

Influential People News readers, please enjoy our interview!

If someone were to ask you who is Ebony Butler, what would your reply be?

Ebony: Ebony is a dynamic and engaging speaker. Ebony is known in the diversity and learning & development space as an expert at transferring knowledge in a creative and thought-provoking fashion. Ebony is a loving mother of three adult children who have blessed her with 2 baby grands in 2023. Ebony is a loyal friend, daughter, sister, and business partner. Ebony is also a mentor, mentee, ally to other marginalized communities and a huge supporter of women everywhere and especially in corporate spaces. Ebony is a teacher, yet a life-long learner always seeking ways to fill her cup and connect with others.

We salute your work helping leaders at all levels in organizations to recognize the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion. How has this journey been so far for you?

Ebony: Challenging, rewarding, insightful, encouraging, and most of all fulfilling. I never feel like I’m working. I know that sounds cliché, and it is very true. Because I knew at the age of 5, I would speak and teach and people would listen coupled with me seeing a very strong and independent mom, the desire to be an ally, create awareness, and provoke-thought to shift mindsets and workplace behaviors, it has just been a delight. All times have not been pleasurable and I must say, those times served as significant learning opportunities for me, so I’m thankful. It’s challenging when you know leaders want to drive change; yet, they aren’t ready to really effect change. Challenges run the gamut, from struggling to get budget allotted for inclusive commitments to trying to track progress using tangible data to drive diverse representation. While I’ve been leading in this space for over 6 years, I have learned to focus on driving inclusive cultures throughout the organization as we impatiently wait for what we need to drive change. On the flip side, it’s very rewarding to know that people recognize your work and the importance of your work. It is quite encouraging to know people are inspired and influenced by the work you’re doing. It is exciting to hear how you have helped people personally and professionally.

What would you say are some of the best qualities that have made you a successful leader?

Ebony:

RESILENCY- ability to shift/change and bounce back when faced with personal struggles and professional challenges
LOYAL- this has helped me to build effective business partnerships and life-long friendships
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE- the ability to not only be aware of how I’m feeling and to also take note of what’s happening around me. This helps me readjust how I show up, how I communicate, what I communicate, when I need to be empathetic, when I need to just listen and also when I need to breathe, walk away, and come back
VISION SHARER- I have found that I have the ability to influence others and that has become even more apparent to me over the year. In the beginning of my career, I thought I was just “liked” and I have recognized that “like” does not always lead to action; and I’ve been able to inspire people to act. One way I do it is share my vision and connect each person around me to how they play in making the vision come to life.
EQUITY AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFE FOCUSED- this also leads to my ability to influence because people have said they trust me. They trust I’m a listening ear, I care, and I care about their success. I’m courageous and I speak up and speak out, strategically. I sponsors others by creating safe spaces for them to be their true authentic selves.

Have there been any challenges within your career that you’ve faced? If so, how did you overcome those moments?

Ebony: It was disheartening when I realized my voice was only welcomed when I agreed with other’s perspectives and I was silenced when I provided my own perspective on matters. I always self-reflect to see what I could have done differently and I learned a valuable lesson that helped me overcome my frustration. I repositioned how I shared my point of view by replacing the emotions and presumptions with data, facts, and impact. Doing this helped me to leverage my voice in a more productive, influential, and impactful way.

Diversity teams are challenged when these groups are structured under the HR umbrella. I have my own thoughts on this topic, I’m unable to reveal at this time. I’m working through allies I’ve determined to have the right influence to get me in rooms, I’m normally uninvited. I have learned to create and communicate my value; by tapping into the pain points I know leaders are experiencing and are in dire need to solve.
My skill to provide engaging learning experiences, became the skill that marginalized me. What do I mean? I was only called on to share a message, as a matter of fact, I was the only one who would do diversity training for the C-Suite executive teams. Can you imagine, a person like me sharing a challenging message with some challenging people that needed my message the most? That was me! I was only tapped on to deliver the message that was already scripted; however, I was never in the room to develop the content, to develop the message. This opportunity would have allowed me to use my strategic mind and show teams I was not only great at executing on the message; yet, I was also just as skilled at packaging and determining the message. I overcame this by constantly finding ways to fill my own cup. I focused on independent learning and strategically placed myself in uncomfortable situations to implement the skill I learned. I took total control of my own learning and career and eventually opened myself up to another career opportunity.

What have been some of the most memorable moments in your career so far?

Ebony:

Keynote speaking at conferences and the request for more speaking engagements
Promotion to Vice President of Learning and Diversity
Game Changer Award and all-inclusive trip for shifting the organization’s culture
Facilitate inclusive learning sessions for C-Suite at Fortune 100 Tech company
Successfully standing up diversity councils and employee resource groups
Mentoring opportunities to coach, develop and sponsor other’s success

What else are you currently working on these days?

Ebony: I am working on building and showcasing my own personal brand by: seeking keynote speaking opportunities, sitting on panels to share experiences, participating in collaborative book writing projects, and preparing myself for upcoming interview opportunities. I am always focused on ways to creatively share knowledge via my YouTube channel, so creating a following who craves my content, is a focus. I’m also interested in learning how to continue to engage my supporters as I progress through the entrepreneurship journey.

What inspired you to be a part of Book Profits Club?

Ebony: I vowed to pour back into myself in 2023! This opportunity was strategically chosen because I weighed the probability of me feeling uncomfortable, learning something new, and being challenged. I have definitely been uncomfortable as I’ve had to get out of my comfort zone when it comes to marketing via social media and even dialing for dollars. Initially, my number 1 dream was to be a keynote speaker around the world; and, it had never dawned on me that the book collabs could be the vehicle used to get me to the stage. When this was presented to me, it made so much sense, so now, I’m inspired to be a part of this book profits club as I can use the book to get to the stage. I can use the book to connect with people, and I can use the book to reignite the flame in myself and in others when faced with adversities and unforeseen challenges.

What else would you like our readers to know about you and the work that you do?

Ebony: My passion for sharing and transferring knowledge is why I do what I do. I have navigated corporate America for over 20 years and it has not been easy. I know we, women of color, are often told to dim our light to conform to the dominate cultural norms of corporate spaces, and I am here to debunk that mindset and to encourage each woman, and especially women of color, to begin loving themselves, appreciating their lived experiences, and to begin bringing that with you into corporate spaces. I have done it, after 14 years of managing a professional career, as someone else and I’m so thankful I gained the encouragement, the courageousness, and the confidence to show up in ANY space, unapologetically ME.