"Are you being consistent and persistent?"
Meet our vibrant and fierce consultant Chauntelle Lewis!
Get to know the faces behind Hustle Crew! Our incredible group of experienced consultants dedicated to making your workplace, and your world more inclusive.
What has been your journey so far?
I was born on a tiny island called Montserrat, West Indies and have lived in the UK since I was approx. 2-3 and super proud of my Caribbean/African heritage.
When I was younger I had a noticeable stutter and worked on it through speech therapy but hated public speaking. Fast forward to today, I’m pretty loud and vocal about the things I’m passionate about.
I’ve always been creative in some capacity, from writing to poetry and gardening. I was also fascinated by people, their experiences and how their minds worked — a precursor to working with teams as a Consultant!
After my Graphic Design degree at Kingston University, I transitioned into Social Media Marketing working for a design innovation agency and at TikTok. Since then, I’ve now branched out on my own to specialise in community management and inclusion & belonging training.
Why did you get into diversity and inclusion work in the first place?
Frustration led me to want to create real change and impact. Here’s a little backstory: a manager once called me ‘insubordinate’ and ‘aggressive’ because I stopped censoring myself and became more vocal, which challenged the hierarchical structure she wanted to enforce.
I defy conformity and have always been on a mission to break barriers because I’m often the only Black woman on the team or in the room. When I returned to speech therapy in the midst of job changes in 2020, I explored the ideas of challenging authority, obedience and rebellion. My therapist encouraged me to keep redefining traditional pigeonholes. This helped me to redefine my purpose.
One thing I knew for sure was that I wanted to cultivate safe spaces for discussion, transparency, vulnerability and realness.
What has been most rewarding? What’s been the most challenging?
The receipts don’t lie! I love seeing the stats and feedback from Hustle Crew workshop participants. It’s an honour to facilitate a safe space for these difficult and sensitive conversations.
As an empath and marginalised person, it can be challenging to consistently conduct these conversations because it often feels like I can’t switch off. But I’ve learned about the importance of decompressing through my peers at Hustle Crew so it really helps.
What’s one quote you live by?
“Sometimes the role you’re in isn’t the final destination – instead, it’s a stepping stone towards your greater purpose” - Chauntelle
I’ve pivoted a lot in my career to the point that my friends nicknamed me the ‘Bounceback Queen’. I’m a stronger believer in ‘doors close but greater ones open’ and I share my story here.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a leader or manager trying to make a change in their workplace?
I’d ask them: “Are you being consistent and persistent?”
Using the past two years as an example, after the murder of George Floyd we’ve seen a lot of temporary allyship and performative behaviour.
As a result, when it was no longer a ‘hot topic’ the focus shifted and a lot of folks stopped advocating for change. I would encourage leaders and managers to evaluate if they’re willing to put in the work in the long term as change doesn’t come overnight. This isn’t a one-off tick-box exercise–we have an ongoing fight on our hands.
What are you reading, watching or listening to right now?
I’m currently jumping between the following for personal and professional development and a little bit of escapism/research.
The Mountain Is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery by Brianna Wiest
Conversations in Love: Lovers, Strangers, Parents, Friends, Endings, Beginnings by Natasha Lunn
On Guerrilla Gardening: A Handbook for Gardening Without Boundaries by Richard Reynolds
Want to work with Chauntelle and the rest of the Hustle Crew team? Get in touch here.
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Welcome to Hustle Crew.
Since 2016, we’ve been providing. Since 2016, we’ve been helping companies like Sky, Stella McCartney and more to become more diverse, through our Recommended Programme — which includes ‘Fostering Inclusion’ and ‘Understanding Bias’ workshops. Navigating conversations about diversity can be challenging, but driving long-lasting change in your company is possible.