00:42
Jan Robinson Flint Highlight
Be in this moment as opposed to being concerned about what job you're going to get in a year.
About Jan
- Thought she had to follow the "American script": go to college, get a job, live happily ever after, etc.
- Says that's all just a myth for most people; "you've barely lived in your twenties; how can you decide what you'll do for the next fifty years?"
- Grew up in Chicago, saw the 1968 riots, saw the Black Panthers with a strong platform; calls this an "opportune time."
- Knows this environment primed her for social justice work, but didn't realize it until later, when she got some distance.
- Works as executive director for Black Women for Wellness, a non-profit organization that educates and supports black women.
- Says she's happy because she's "living her life, not somebody else's life."
- Admits that there are things she would've done differently, but ultimately is living the life she always wanted.
- Discourages people from "following a script," says living someone else's definition of a "good life" only leads to midlife crises.
