Dominating the corporate world is some women’s idea of achieving the American Dream. However, with corporate America often comes downsides such as having to deal with toxic work environments, especially for Black women. One of the effects of that can be overworking to prove yourself or dimming your light to avoid workplace politics and drama. These are things Sharinda Williams-Simmons says she experienced throughout more than a decade working for big business, burning herself out mentally and physically until she finally walked away from it all.
These days, she helps women navigate corporate America and access luxury travel through the PTO Nomad. This venture is an online community teaching Black women how to make the most of their 9-5, utilize their paid time off, and use some of it to access luxury travel experiences that they can find some much needed peace through.
“As Black women, a lot of times we feel as though we have to code switch in so many ways—the way we speak, the way we present ourselves, how we go to the office,” she says. “Traveling, showing up authentically, showing up as your true self and feeling your best gives you an entitlement. It gives you a sense that you deserve to see this world, which Black women do deserve to see this world. Even though this world may not want her in it.”
The idea for PTO Nomad came from Williams-Simmons’s professional experiences. She started out in the digital media space as a news reporter and found it didn’t align with her core values. “I just noticed my first interaction with microaggressions as a Black woman started in news with being told not to wear my natural hair, to actually having to cover ‘hood stories,’ as it was said in the newsroom,” she says.
She thought switching from TV to boardrooms might create more stability, but instead, she found the microaggressions were “harder” and “deeper.”
“I just noticed that I wasn’t allowed to take time off like my other white counterparts. I wasn’t allowed to express myself like my other white counterparts. I felt this urge to have to work so hard and work so much harder than everyone. So I was constantly working late, working harder than everyone else, and found out I got paid less,” she explains.
The turning point for her was when she discovered a tumor the size of a basketball in her abdomen. After fainting on her way to work, she woke up with endless calls and emails from work asking where she was and they showed no concern. After telling her boss her diagnosis and what was happening with her health, their first response was asking how long she’d be gone and when she’d be back.
“I literally felt a vail lift off my eyes. I’m like, these people literally don’t care about you. They do not care about your health or who you are,” she recalls. After having surgery, Williams-Simmons didn’t return to that workplace. Her experience inspired her to help other women in similar situations.
“The idea of keeping your head down and not making noise–that’s rooted in slavery, that’s rooted in opression. You make sure you look down so that you don’t start any issues. But the key they didn’t tell you is that you need to look up. You need to advocate for yourself,” she says. For this reason, she’s dedicated to teaching women in corporate America how to do this. She teaches them how to negotiate and ask for what they need in the workplace — that includes time off.
This movement isn’t limited to women in corporate America only. All women can take time off to reconnect with themselves, rest, and enjoy travel. Also, for women who feel luxury travel isn’t accessible to them because of the cost implications or feel pressured by social media to go above and beyond, Williams-Simmons says it’s important to understand luxury is subjective.
“Luxury is individual, not one way for every single person. Travel itself is luxury, so I don’t want anyone to feel intimidated or feel as though they are not doing travel the luxurious way. You can find luxury in any area of your life. It doesn’t always have to be materialistic,” she says. “It can be a state of mind. It can be the ability to actually just sit and meditate. It can be taking care of yourself. It can be eating a certain type of way. Luxury can be in so many different facets of life. So don’t feel pressured to look a certain way. Don’t be pressured to do a certain thing, because luxury is not one way–just like Black women aren’t one way. It’s in finding the luxury in your life.”
According to Williams-Simmons, it’s simply about giving yourself the permission to enjoy life.
When asked where she had her favorite travel experience, she said it was in Costa Rica. “You have this queen of the jungle type feel. You’re so well taken care of but you’re connecting with nature. With the beautiful hot springs and beautiful beaches–-me and my husband got married there–-it’s surprisingly luxury.”
“Everything is fine, just relaxed. It promotes that luxury life,” she adds, noting that such destinations help her put things in perspective. “Things aren’t as bad as they seem to be. Take a step back. You don’t have to answer that email, you don’t have to rush to that next place. It promotes the mentality of luxury, self-care, and wellness.”