Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood

Jonathan Dumas

Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood is about providing space to chill in the nuance of the complex conversations shaping our society and culture. We ain’t about proving anyone wrong or even proving ourselves right, but we are exploring with our guests, and you all, how to do this thing called life. New episodes drop every Thursday everywhere you get your podcasts. Find us on Instagram: @HighlyVisiblePod Support the show on Patreon: Patreon.com/HighlyVisiblePod

  1. 4 SEPT

    Ep 100 | Joy Isn’t Naïve—It’s Radical | Season Finale Reflections

    📺 HELP US HIT OUR SEPTEMBER SUB GOAL ON YOUTUBE → https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod  What is joy really—and how do we keep returning to it, even when life feels heavy? In this season finale of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, Jonathan Dumas reflects on a whole season of On Joy—pulling together the most honest takeaways, tender moments, and practical tools from every guest. No fluff. No toxic positivity. Just real-life ways to practice joy in the middle of struggle, work, community, and everyday life. We revisit conversations with Brandon Howard on joy in the body, Amani Roberts on creativity as muscle, Abe Medoff on somatics, Mimi Gonzalez on grief and creativity, Jennice Chewlin on joy as strategy at work, Ashmi Patel on joy guilt, Tiffany LeNoir on belonging, Louis Byrd on solution-oriented peace, and Shauntelle Carnegie on “joy-stacking” when life feels heavy. Jonathan also shares his own confession—how he accidentally turned joy into a KPI—and what it took to re-learn joy as a practice, not a performance. ✨ What you’ll take away: The body-first question that helps joy stop hiding Why joy ≠ happiness (and how to tell the difference) Simple micro-practices to return to joy at home, at work, and in community A reframe: joy and struggle can coexist without guilt If you’re new here—start with these fan favorites: Tiffany: Quitting Wasn’t the Risk–Staying Was → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/real-talk-with-dumas-podcast/id1501526441?i=1000718924815  Abe: The Hidden Practice That Makes Joy Sustainable → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/real-talk-with-dumas-podcast/id1501526441?i=1000721049878  We revisit conversations with: Brandon Howard → Ep 91 | What If Joy Has Nothing to Do With the Scale? Ashmi Patel → Ep 92 | Joy Without Guilt: Unlearning Perfectionism & Generational Pressure Amani Roberts → Ep 93 | Fighting Fear, Doubt & Worry—And Creating Anyway Mimi Gonzalez, @griefsense → Ep 94 | Grief Isn’t the End—It’s the Remix Louis Byrd → Ep 97 | Finding Joy in the Mess and Fixing Problems That Shouldn’t Exist Shauntelle Carnegie → Ep 98 | “What If You’re Not Stuck—Just Scared?” Jennice Chewlin → Ep 99 | Joy at Work Isn’t a Perk—It’s a Strategy 💬 Join the Conversation What’s one small way joy has found you this season? Send a voice note → https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur 🚨 Help us hit our YouTube sub goal (125 by end of September)! Tap the Linktree and subscribe on YouTube → https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 📬 Click to Join our community + get free stickers → https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod ☕️ Click to Support the show on Ko-fi → https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod   🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com

    12 min

  2. 28 AUG

    Ep 99 | Joy at Work Isn’t a Perk—It’s a Strategy

    📺 HELP US HIT OUR SUB GOAL BY SUBSCRIBING TO OUR YOUTUBE PAGE!  Joy isn’t a perk you earn at the end of your to-do list—it’s a practice you build in the middle of real life.  In this episode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, Jonathan sits down with Jennice Chewlin—Latina mom, workplace wellbeing strategist, and founder of Chewlin Group—to unpack why joy at work is not “toxic positivity,” but a strategy for connection, trust, and sustainable impact. We get into: how to stop confusing joy with happiness, why “design for joy, not just efficiency” changes meetings and morale, and what happens when leaders start small (think: human openers, meaningful celebrations, and collaborative “show & tell” lunches). Jennice shares the story of her dad biking across the border to med school—a masterclass in how struggle and joy can coexist—and we talk “mudita” (the joy we feel for someone else’s win), sport-as-reset (soccer/basketball), and how joy fuels collective healing and liberation without ignoring pain. If you’re a people leader, culture-builder, or just a burnt-out human trying to feel human again at work, this one’s for you. 💬 Join the Conversation 📝 Finish this: “Joy at work looks like ______.” Keep it concrete (who, where, when). Bonus points if you share the song you’ll play to kick it off. Drop a voice note if that’s easier → https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur 🤝🏾 Connect with Jennice Chewlin LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennicechewlin  Website → https://www.chewlingroup.com/  Email → Jennice@chewlingroup.com  📚 Resources & Links Get Your Copy of The Lightmaker’s Manifesto   Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey   📺 Watch & Subscribe on Youtube → Hit subscribe for full video episodes, clips, and live chats. 📬 Click to Join our community + get free stickers ☕️ Click to Support the show on Ko-fi Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com

    1 hr

  3. 21 AUG

    Ep 98 | “What If You’re Not Stuck—Just Scared?” | Finding Joy When Life Feels Heavy

    📺 HELP US HIT OUR SUB GOAL BY SUBSCRIBING TO OUR YOUTUBE PAGE!  What if you’re not stuck—just scared? In this episode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, I sit down with Shauntelle Carnegie—multi-creative, employee experience strategist, and founder of Black Girl Season—to talk about the role of joy when life feels heavy. Shauntelle opens up about navigating grief, breaking out of old narratives, and discovering that sometimes we’re not stuck at all—we’re just afraid to move. Together, we explore how humor, levity, and the small daily practices of care can create space for joy, even in the hardest seasons. We ask: ✨ What if joy isn’t linear—but layered, like survival itself? ✨ How do we find joy without guilt when life feels like too much? ✨ And how can humor become a form of healing? This conversation is tender, real, and a reminder that joy isn’t just a fleeting feeling—it’s a practice that sustains us. 🤝🏾 Connect with Shauntelle Carnegie Connect with Shauntelle on LinkedIn  Looking for a supportive community of Black women? Check out Black Girl Season on LinkedIn  📚 Resources & Links Check out Spill See where your favorite apples rank on Apple Rankings  Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod   🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com

    1h 4m

  4. 14 AUG

    Ep 97 | Finding Joy in the Mess and Fixing Problems That Shouldn’t Exist

    📺 HELP US HIT OUR SUB GOAL BY SUBSCRIBING TO OUR YOUTUBE PAGE!  What does it mean to find joy in the middle of problems that should never have existed in the first place? In this episode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, I sit down with Louis Byrd, Chief Architect of Responsible Innovation at Zanago Design, to talk about how doing the hard, often frustrating work of fixing broken systems can still be a source of joy and purpose. Louis shares how he stays grounded while working on solutions to issues that overwhelm most people, the surprising ways joy shows up in that process, and why influence isn’t always about the loudest voice in the room. We get into: 🌍 Impact without burnout — why joy is a renewable fuel for long-haul work 🧩 The “sphere of influence” mindset — and how to use it when change feels impossible 🤝 The quiet power of presence — influencing others without having to push or persuade Whether you’re a changemaker, a problem-solver, or someone wrestling with the weight of the world’s mess, this conversation is a reminder that joy isn’t a distraction from the work — it’s what keeps us in it. 📺 Watch Previous Episode on Youtube   💬 Join the Conversation How have you found joy in work that feels heavy or frustrating? Drop a comment or send a voice note → Submit your bit of joy ✨ 🤝🏾 Connect with Louis Byrd Connect with Louis on LinkedIn  Responsible innovation & products on Zanago  Homeowner? Stay organized & Financially ready with Kataba  📚 Resources & Links To Save and to Destroy: Writing as an Other by Viet Thanh Nguyen WATCH: Surviving For Closure: Documentary 📬 Join our community + get free stickers ☕️  Support the show on Ko-fi (one-time donation) Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com    #Podcast #BlackJoy #HighlyVisiblePodcast #Joy #ResponsibleInnovation #Housing #HousingJustice #RealEstateTransparency #DesignThinking #ProblemSolving #EthicalTech #AIEthics #Startups #Entrepreneurship #Community #Creativity #Midwest #Fatherhood #BlackPodcasts #BlackPodcaster #BlackPodcast

    1h 5m

  5. 7 AUG

    Ep 96 | The Hidden Practice That Makes Joy Sustainable

    What if the thing that’s been missing from your pursuit of joy isn’t more achievement, motivation, or “thinking positive”—but a deeper reconnection to your own body? In this grounded, expansive conversation, Jonathan Dumas sits down with somatic coach Abe Medoff to unpack how embodiment, breath, and emotional range aren’t just self-help buzzwords—they’re the sustainable infrastructure beneath real joy. Abe reframes joy not as a fleeting mood, but as a resource: something that emerges when we give ourselves permission to feel, release, and reclaim the parts of us that were taught to be shut down. Together they explore: 🫁 Somatics 101: What it really means to move out of your head and back into the aliveness of your body. 🌱 Joy as resilience: Why feeling your full emotional spectrum (not just the “positive” stuff) increases capacity, connection, and meaning. 🔄 The shame-to-allyship shift: How to humanize the protective parts of yourself that once kept you safe, without vilifying them—and begin allying with them instead. 🧠 Emotional range as practice: The same muscles that help you process anger, grief, or fear unlock your ability to hold joy. 🤝 Being present for others: What it looks like to show up embodied in someone else’s grief or celebration—how to move from headspace to heartspace. 🌳 Abe’s own revealing moments: From near-miss encounters in the woods that yank him into presence, to how community and deep belonging fuel his current season of embodied joy. This episode is for anyone who’s tired of “hustle happiness,” curious about what it would feel like to really be seen (by themselves and others), or ready to start practicing presence in a way that sticks. 💬 Join the Conversation! What’s one moment today where your body told you something your mind wasn’t? Drop a comment below or send a voice note →https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur 🤝🏾 Connect with Abe Medoff •  On LinkedIn   • Interested in Abe as a somatic coach?  📺 Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@HighlyVisiblePod  📬 Join our community + get free stickers https://highlyvisiblepod.ck.page/684e1e911f ☕️ Support the show on Ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/highlyvisiblepod Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com    #Podcast #BlackJoy #HighlyVisiblePodcast #Somatics #Joy #Embodiment #EmotionalIntelligence #Breathwork #MentalHealth #Healing #SustainableJoy #Trauma-informed #BlackMen&Emotion #Community #Connection #JonathanDumas #AbeMedoff #Presence #PersonalGrowth #Self-Awareness

    59 min

  6. 2 AUG

    Radical Joy & Repair: Rituals, Boundaries, and Belonging | #Minisode

    What if joy wasn’t a bonus after surviving the grind—but the intentional practice that sustains the work, heals the wounds, and builds community? In this stripped-down minisode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, Jonathan Dumas shares powerful highlight moments from two women doing the internal and external work—Melany Del Carpio and Kenisha Coon. They unpack how ritual, self-expression, boundary-setting, and radical commitment to joy become both armor and repair in lives filled with equity work, identity navigation, and creative evolution. What You’ll Hear: Melany’s morning and evening rituals that center her—ceremonial matcha, “rest is resistance” card pulls, and the symbolic cleansing to offload energy from work. How self-expression (clothes, tattoos, intention) becomes a practice of alignment, intuition, and reclaiming presence. Kenisha’s framing of joy as survival, transformation, and sustainable fuel for justice and equity work. The difference between community that drains vs. community that holds you accountable and amplifies belonging. Practical boundary language and the real mechanics of choosing joy while showing up in heavy systems. The connective thread between identity, purpose, and choosing yourself in seasons of uncertainty. Guests: Melany Del Carpio – Coach-in-training, creative self-expression advocate, and ritual practitioner. LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanydelcarpio/  Kenisha Coon – Equity strategist, author, consultant, and joy-as-repair practitioner. Instagram →  @kenishacoon (https://www.instagram.com/kcoon9288/?hl=en) Website → https://www.kenishacoon.com/ Kenisha Coon’s Memoir, And Then She Persisted → https://bookshop.org/a/79820/9798888385968  💬 Join the Conversation! What small intentional ritual keeps you grounded? Drop a comment or send a voice note → https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur   📬 Join our community + get free stickers https://highlyvisiblepod.ck.page/684e1e911f   ☕️ Support the show on Ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/highlyvisiblepod   Catch us on Youtube 📺: https://www.youtube.com/@HighlyVisiblePod     Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod   🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com    #Podcast #BlackJoy #HighlyVisiblePodcast #OnJoy #RestCulture #WorkingMoms #MentalHealth #BlackPodcastCommunity #Joy&Career #BlackCreators #JoyRituals #RestIsResistance #Self-Expression #EquityWork #CommunityBuilding #RadicalJoy #MentalHealth #IntentionalLiving #IdentityReclamation #PersonalBranding #AuthenticLeadership #BoundarySetting #PodcastHighlights #Anti-Racism #JoyAsResistance #BurnoutRecovery

    15 min

  7. 25 JUL

    Ep 95 | Quitting Wasn’t the Risk—Staying Was | A Joy‑Filled Exit from Burnout

    What if the biggest risk in your career isn’t walking away, but staying in a job that drains your soul? In this episode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, Jonathan Dumas sits down with Tiffany LeNoir—former tech‑sales leader, mom, and children’s‑book author—to explore why she left a six‑figure role without a backup plan, how she navigated the guilt and fear that followed, and why choosing rest can be your most radical act of self‑care. Tiffany and Jonathan dive deep on: Undoing the Hustle: Code‑switching, performance pressure, and the moment she realized her worth wasn’t tied to a quota. Quit with a Strategy: What it really takes—financially and emotionally—to leave a stable job without knowing what comes next. Motherhood & Meaning: The unexpected joy of watching her toddler share her own book at daycare, and why family can’t be replaced. Reclaiming Your Voice: From “pod voice” to authentic speech, how Tiffany un‑learned corporate patterns to show up fully herself. Rest as Resistance: Why resting now—before burnout breaks you—is the bravest, most transformative choice you can make. Whether you’re a Black woman in tech, a working parent, or anyone wrestling with a career impasse, this conversation will remind you that joy isn’t a prize for later—it’s your birthright today. 💬 Join the Conversation! Have you ever faced that crossroads—“stay the course” or “bet on myself”? What fears held you back? What unexpected freedom came when you finally said, “I deserve rest, I deserve joy, I deserve me”? Drop a comment below or send a voice note → https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur 🤝🏾 Connect with Tiffany LeNoir • LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanylenoir/ • Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/tharrisonlenoir/   📚 Resources & Links • Get a copy of Mama Made Time  • Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey 📬 Join our community + get free stickers https://highlyvisiblepod.ck.page/684e1e911f ☕️ Support the show on Ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/highlyvisiblepod Follow us for more: 📸 Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod 🎙️ All platforms: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com    #Podcast, #BlackJoy, #HighlyVisiblePodcast, #OnJoy, #Burnout, #RestCulture, #CareerJoy, #TechIndustry, #BlackWomenInTech, #BlackWomeninSales, #WorkingMoms, #CareerPivot, #MentalHealth, #BlackPodcastCommunity, #QuitWithoutBackupPlan,#Joy&Career, #BlackCreators, #CorporateBurnoutRecovery

    1h 8m

  8. 17 JUL

    Ep 94 | Grief Isn’t the End—It’s the Remix | The griefsense Story with Mimi Gonzalez

    How do you keep choosing joy when your heart keeps breaking? In this episode of Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood, I sit down with Mimi Gonzalez—host of griefsense, Gen-Z storyteller, and grief worker—to explore how we carry loss, build legacy, and still find our way back to joy. Mimi shares what it’s like to live with 36 funerals by age 29—and how grief reshaped her relationship with creativity, community, and rest. We talk about the weight of cumulative trauma, the loneliness of being a highly visible griever online, and the radical act of turning grief into art. We also unpack: The moment she walked away from a C-suite job to protect her nervous system Why cooking and creating can feel like “cocoa butter for the soul” The pressure of “healing for content” in a social media world What it means to build legacy instead of chasing a brand How joy still finds its way through the cracks—even if it takes time This isn’t a conversation about “getting over it.” It’s about being with it. And letting your life expand to hold both grief and joy at once.   📤How has grief reshaped your relationship with joy? Send a voice note or message: https://form.smartsuite.com/sszxz4mn/sxwLOAg7ur   🤝🏾 Connect with Mimi Gonzalez LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mimigonzalez TikTok & YouTube → @griefsense Newsletter “The Sala” (grief + creativity) → https://griefsense.com Grief-Sense podcast → https://linktr.ee/griefsense 📚 Resources & Links HINDZSIGHT on YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@Hindzsight “Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway” by Susan Jeffers (book)  🔔 Stay Connected & Support the Show Subscribe & Share to keep these conversations alive Join our email list + get free stickers: https://highlyvisiblepod.ck.page/684e1e911f Buy me a Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/highlyvisiblepod Follow on Instagram & TikTok: @HighlyVisiblePod All links: https://linktr.ee/highlyvisiblepod 🎛️ Production Credits Produced & Edited by: Jonathan Dumas Co-Produced & Additional Editing: Reggie Hall Contact: HighlyVisiblePodcast@gmail.com  #Podcast #BlackJoy #HighlyVisiblePodcast #OnJoy #GriefAndJoy #MentalHealth #BlackJoy #GenZCreators #griefsense #LegacyNotBrand #Creativity #PodcastInterview #CreativeProcess #MentalHealth #JoyAsResistance #BlackPodcasts #BlackPodcaster #BlackPodcastCommunity

    1h 7m
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About

Highly Visible & A Little Misunderstood is about providing space to chill in the nuance of the complex conversations shaping our society and culture. We ain’t about proving anyone wrong or even proving ourselves right, but we are exploring with our guests, and you all, how to do this thing called life. New episodes drop every Thursday everywhere you get your podcasts. Find us on Instagram: @HighlyVisiblePod Support the show on Patreon: Patreon.com/HighlyVisiblePod

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