I’m Zakia. I’m a writer and educator focused on self-leadership, because power starts with how you lead yourself.
For a long time, I lived with the belief that strength meant staying composed, capable, and available no matter what. I built a life that worked on paper. Motherhood. Marriage. Leadership. Service. I learned how to keep going even when it hurt, and I became a diva at carrying things quietly.
That belief finally cracked when I found myself in a hospital bed, battling cancer, and people were still reaching out to me for help, advice, and support. Lying there, it became impossible to ignore what was really happening.
I realized that I wasn’t exhausted because I was doing too much. I was exhausted because I had learned how to leave myself out of my own life.I always thought slowing down or choosing softness would mean giving up on the life I’ve built. But being on the hospital bed made me realize that softness didn’t ask me to opt out of ambition. It was asking me to be more aware of myself and come back to myself.
I realized that I wasn’t exhausted because I was doing too much. I was exhausted because I had learned how to leave myself out of my own life.
I always thought slowing down or choosing softness would mean giving up on the life I’ve built. But being on the hospital bed made me realize that softness didn’t ask me to opt out of ambition. It was asking me to be more aware of myself and come back to myself.
That moment changed how I see strength, leadership, and success as a form of self-trust and confidence, not performance. And it reshaped the work I do now.
What I Do Now
Today, I work with high-achieving, sensitive women who can feel an internal shift happening, even if their life still looks successful from the outside. Women who aren’t broken, burnt out, or lost, but are clearly outgrowing the version of themselves that once made everything work.
My role isn’t to motivate you or fix you. It’s to help you understand what’s actually changing inside you, and support you as your life recalibrates around that truth.
I help women move out of over-functioning, constant self-management, and emotional labor into a regulated way of living and leading that feels grounded, intelligent, and sustainable. The work is subtle, but the impact is deep. When identity catches up, everything else gets easier.
I don’t teach strategy alone—I teach identity.
Because no amount of discipline, ambition, or achievement can outgrow the identity you hold about yourself.
My work lives at the intersection of psychology, leadership, and possibility.
I help women rebuild their sense of self so their lives feel sustainable, embodied, and self-authored.
Let's design a life where you are no longer structurally dependent on what no longer serves you.
You Might Have Seen Me On
I believe you must bring your whole self to the table if you want to thrive.
That includes your unique set of gifts, your personality, your sense of humor and most importantly, your heart. I believe that whether you run your own business or not, a creative and entrepreneurial approach is critical to fully blossom in the modern world and to experience the happiness and fulfillment you deserve.
No matter what your dreams or obstacles, you have the power to change your life and, by doing so, you’ll change the world.
This philosophy, a dogged amount of hard-work and a discernible amount of grace have lead to some wonderful milestones.
Virgin Unite
Sir Richard Branson invited me to South Africa to mentor young entrepreneurs at his Centre for Entrepreneurship.
Super Soul Sunday
Oprah had me on her Emmy Award-winning TV show Super Soul Sunday as a thought leader for the next generation. A few years later I spoke at her incredible SuperSoul Sessions event.
The Today Show
I had a fantastic time chatting with Hoda and Meredith about my book, Everything is Figureoutable.
How I Work
My work is grounded, strategic, and deeply personal. It’s informed by psychology, nervous system science, and years of lived experience with women in transition.
I don’t offer surface-level insight or generic tools. I help sensitive, successful women name what’s actually happening beneath the exhaustion, the restlessness, and the sense that something no longer fits. From there, we translate awareness into practical changes in how you make decisions, set boundaries, structure your life, and relate to yourself.
Why This Matters
Most women are taught to survive transitions silently. To keep functioning. To stay impressive. To push through internal shifts without language, support, or permission to slow down.
But unacknowledged identity transitions don’t disappear. They show up as chronic tension, emotional numbness, loss of joy, and a life that feels heavier than it needs to be.
This work matters because women don’t need another system to manage themselves. They need space, understanding, and intelligent support while their inner world changes. When that happens, ambition doesn’t disappear. It stabilizes. Decision-making becomes steadier. Leadership becomes cleaner. Life stops feeling like something you have to endure.
This isn’t about becoming softer for the sake of it. It’s about building a life that can hold you for who you are, not for how you perform.