Dr. Tangela Harris with Six Figure Chicks

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Houston, Texas. It’s time for Houston Business Radio. Now, here’s your host.

Trisha Stetzel: Hello, Houston. Trisha Stetzel here bringing you another episode of Houston Business Radio beyond the uniform series. You guys know what that means? I’ve got a special sister vet on with me and a sister from the book, as you guys have been hearing about. So I’m super excited about having Dr. Tangela Harris, founder and CEO and creator of God, and I do. We’re going to talk a lot about that. I also want you to know that she has over a decade of experience as a motivational speaker and life coach, coupled with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship from the University of Houston. Tangela, welcome to the show.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Trisha Stetzel: I’m so excited to have you on today. And we have so many things to talk about in so little time. So here’s where I want to start. Okay. Tell us more about who you are. And then I’d like to dive into God and I do.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Okay. Um, I would definitely say I am a woman mother, a sister entrepreneur. Auntie, a grandma. I’m all those things as well as, you know, I’m good at cooking clean. That’s a lie. I’m not good at cooking. That is a lie. I’m not that bad.

Trisha Stetzel: It’s okay. We’ll just take it back.

Dr. Tangela Harris: I’m good at preparing. That’s okay.

Trisha Stetzel: I love.

Dr. Tangela Harris: It. Carry. And you know the fact that, you know, I’m a retired hairstylist, 30 to 35 years. I have seen how I have been involved all these years and all these different things that I’ve done and do and show up to that at the end of the day. I’m just a woman that God created to produce and help others to transform their lives. So that’s pretty much what I’ve been doing. I’ve been helping women pull out what God has instilled in them. I’ve been helping women to heal. I’ve been helping men to heal, too, I think, to lead them out. I’ve helped men to heal. And that’s that’s just who I am. I love to help. I love to show up. I love to support. I love to be your biggest cheerleader. And that’s just this. That has always naturally been me.

Trisha Stetzel: I can see that about you being everyone’s biggest fan, but also learning over the years to take care of yourself. You know, we were talking about that just before we started recording this show, and I appreciate the love that you were giving back to me today very much. Uh, we got to look out for each other, right? Yeah. So you’ve a pretty diverse background. You’ve done a lot of amazing things, but your most recent project is being the founder, CEO, creator of God, and I do. Tell me more about this. I’m going to call it a movement because I hear it coming from. Yes. Let’s talk about it.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Let me tell you, let me tell you. Let me tell you. Okay. It started with me being married three times. So that means that I switched my name three times. And after the last one being a, it ended in domestic violence. So I am an advocate for domestic violence. Um, God showed me that I was running from my name. I didn’t really like who I was. I didn’t like who I, I didn’t know, I didn’t like anything about me. And so what God showed me was I was changing my name, trying to discover this person. And it always came right back to Harris. So after that last, the last marriage, I had to sit back and say, okay, God, what? What am I doing wrong? Like what? What am I doing? He said one. You need to start with a relationship with me. And I’m like, well, God, I’ve been going to church. What do you mean? I’ve been going to church all my life. I mean, I don’t do the the worst things. I’m not perfect, but. And he was like, the relationship with me starts off with allowing me to love you, I chose you. And then in the midst of that, you’ll discover who you really are. You’re the apple of my eye. I love you, I chose you first. I created you in my image. And then whatever you and I have, it spills over into everybody else. But what you’ve been doing is serving everybody else. I think that’s what I want you to do.

Dr. Tangela Harris: And so now you’re drained and you’re tired and you’re depleted because those people are not giving back to you. Now you’re coming to me saying, father, fix this. Fix this now. So in the midst of that transition and him showing me that I was like, wow, I never thought about that. So then the second confirmation was I was listening to somebody speak and they said, most of you are creating a relationship with God based on your natural father. Wait, what? False flag on the play. Wait, what? He said you. If your father, not your father, disappointed you. You look at God as disappointing you. You look at your natural father not showing up. You don’t think God’s going to show up? He was telling the truth. That’s how I was treating God. I was treating God the way that I treated or received affection or attention from a natural father. So there was another journey. So I’m like, God, okay, let’s let’s wipe the slate clean. I’m good at that one. Let’s watch. Just like a teacher. Let’s wipe it clean. Let’s get that soapy water. Get all the residue. Now show me what love is. Show me how to receive love. Show me what that looks like. And that’s where we birth God and I. We do first, then it spills over into everybody else. So now I have a I have this relationship with God. I go to him first. I don’t care what it is, when it is how I go to him first, then he’s showing me how I’m looking at it, how I can look at it, what could be the outcome, what could be the consequences? He shows me all of that and I’m like, okay, okay, okay.

Dr. Tangela Harris: So God and I do. And that’s just my bile. Because I’ve had people to say, well, why are you why are you stopping to do that? Was he the man you had in your life? He’s the head of my life. I go to him first. Before we wrote the book. Six figure checks. I talked to Mel. It was amazing conversation. But when I got off that phone, I said, God, okay, I missed this. Who, me? Mhm. Should I? I went straight to him. So it’s him and I against the world, not the world depleting me. Then I want God to fix it and then I find it myself. Mhm. So God did I do is a movement of let’s put God first. Let’s put things in a proper order. God first. God. What does it mean to be in a relationship? What does it mean to be in a healthy relationship with myself? With others? What does that look like? Let’s start there. Then. Now I need to apply it in my life. I need self-care. I need to put me first. If God rested on the seventh day. Explain to me why I’m going on and on without rest.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Don’t make sense. And then everybody reap the benefits of the love between him and I. And what we doing? Then they get the overflow. So I’ve learned to not put people ahead of God. I go to him first because he’s showing me people I shouldn’t connect with. He showed me with people that have ill feelings towards me. He showed me, hey, you can talk to that person. That’s a good person. I’m dealing with that person. And so the movement is I want people to pause and go back to the first. The Scripture Matthew six and 33 says, seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Then all that other stuff will be added to you. Stop forcing or pushing to get the stuff. Start Thought here.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah.

Dr. Tangela Harris: It’s more you than the overflow. Yeah.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh, I love that. That’s so amazing. And I. I can feel the overflow from you. So thank you for being there for me today because this feels really special. And I love the way that you’ve reframed, um, your priorities, um, so that you can take care of yourself and you can take care of other people with that overflow. So tell me more about this movement and how you’re bringing it to other people.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Oh I’m excited. Okay. So we’re starting with apparel. We’re starting with t shirts. We’re starting with t shirts. God, and I do. It’s my vow. That’s number one. And we hope that it’ll be a conversation piece, because, you know, we do have people who don’t know nothing about God. They don’t know nothing about themselves. And that’ll be a great introduction. That’s number one. And with every shirt comes a vow card. So I got an I do is saying, okay, God, I choose you daily. That’s the whole God. I choose you daily. You’re first. And so the vow cards, the wild cards that come with the shirt, you can tape it to your mirror so you’ll be able to read I am special, I’m his apple of his eye. I’m God’s masterpiece. I know it helps you set the stage for the day. Because we go through as we know, we go through so much. You know, after burying my father 60 days later, burying my grandmother who raised me, and then a year later, my fiance. That’s a lot. That’s a lot. And all I could do is sit on the on the on the on the sofa. And I didn’t want to think. I didn’t want to breathe. I didn’t want to cry. I just I was just sitting there. And so in this movement, when you look at the cars on your on your, you put it in your car, you’re going to put it on in your cubicle or. But I put all my affirmations on my mirror in the bathroom. So when I’m brushing my teeth, I’m reading. Okay, wait and worship. Okay, okay. So while I’m waiting, I can wait and worship God, I honor you, okay? God, it’s about you. Okay. What I got to do. Okay, I need to do those t shirts. I put everything on on my mirror. So the vow cards are cards that come with the come with the t shirt, and you can just tape it to your mirror so you ain’t got to do the work. I do the work for you.

Trisha Stetzel: And I love that. That’s so beautiful. And and I know as a, as a motivational speaker and as a life coach that this is going to be part of your work, right? As you move through this space. I’m so excited. So, um, tell people how they can best connect with you and find these shirts with the vow cards.

Dr. Tangela Harris: And can keep it simple. You can go to tangela. Com simple. Because everything I do is on there because the the work. Like you said, there’s a whole movement, but then the work comes, you know, there will be Bible studies, there will be, um, you know, times of retreats. He gave me this great retreat. I gotta figure it out. But Sacred Pulse, I was like, oh, God, that’s good. But what I what I know God has brought me to leaders. I’m I’m that person that that that work with leaders. And God wants the leaders to understand. I know I gave you great work, but I need you to pause for me. So just like you’re going on vacation tomorrow, that is God’s sacred pause. So you don’t have to think you could just kind of be how to kind of process what you’re dealing with. Just be in that space because a lot of leaders don’t. Because I was one of them. Always going, going, going every weekend, every weekend. Now I at least get myself two weekends out of the month that it’s just nothing. It’s a time that you can you can think better. That’s the time where you can create. That’s the time when you’re able to be refueled. You know, we don’t have to be drained. We don’t have to. If God if God pours on the seventh day Sabbath, why are we not causing art in the new beginning, the beginning of a new week or a new month or whatever? So we have to learn to pause. So I say, okay, God will show me what you want me to do with this retreat. I like that, I like.

Trisha Stetzel: That sounds amazing, and I’m sure that information will be up on your website as well when it’s available. That sounds. I love that it just came to you. I’ve never led a big retreat, but I’ve been called to be a participant in one, and it can be such a special time, not only for yourself in the connection, the spiritual connection that you have, but also the connection with the other people show up. Right. Yeah. I love that you’re doing that. That is amazing. You do such a beautiful work, Tangela, and I can’t wait to see more of what’s to come with God and I do.

Dr. Tangela Harris: I love it, I love it, I’m excited. I start to get scared for a minute. You know, I start to, I mean, for just a brief because I was on vacation last week. So for a brief moment I was like, oh, because I seen warehouses and, you know, manufacturers. And I was like, okay, God. Okay. All right. So I’m ready. I am ready. But for, for for a short moment I was like, oh Lord, okay, okay.

Trisha Stetzel: It’s okay. It’s what you’ve been called to do. And you’re going to impact so many other people through your actions and your words. Right. Because you have this relationship with him and you’ve been called to do this work. So excited. So can we. You mentioned it, uh, the book 66. I’m so excited about this. So my sister, Doctor Tangela, is one of the, um, coauthors or chapter writers in six. Figure six Houston, volume one, P. S international best selling author. Doctor Tangela. Congratulations. This is so exciting. Do you want to tell us.

Dr. Tangela Harris: You two.

Trisha Stetzel: No it’s not. Yes, yes, yes. Uh, do you want to give us a little sneak peek into the chapter that you’ve written so that we can get folks to buy even more of these?

Dr. Tangela Harris: I love it, I love it. My chapter is about bouncing back. Mm. You remember when we were growing up? It was that big ball on that. That that long rubber band that used to boom, boom.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes, yes.

Dr. Tangela Harris: That’s how we are in life. Mm. You know, we go through different things and guess what? We have the ability to bounce back. And if we keep that image in our head that you know what, it might have hit the wall. But guess what. It bounces right back. And in my chapter, I talk about being resilient. The military taught me about being resilient. I didn’t even know what the word really meant. And then when life started happening. Over here, over here, over here, I was like, oh, but then I stand straight back up. I’m standing up. I’m standing tall, you know, and you can’t tell nothing’s going on. Because really, a lot of people don’t think I have any issues. And I’m like, if you knew the fires that go on in my life. But that’s not who God created me to be. He created me to find the solution or understand the solution on how I can use what I’ve been through to help somebody else. So when I’m bouncing back, I’m not bouncing back for tangent. I’m bouncing back for that woman who needs my story. I’m bouncing back for that little girl who needs to hear my voice. I’m bouncing back from that man that just needed time to just tell me a little something. Tell me a little something. Cease, you know? But it’s that bounce back. And so that I. I love my chapter because it reveals something in me because I didn’t think I, I was that bounce back person. But as I was diving into and I’m researching and I was doing, you know, how you doing that little self-assessment. And I was like, girl, you you are a bad mama jamma girl. You you’ve got it going on. You’ve been through some stuff, but yeah. I, I motivated myself. I was like, girl, you did that.

Trisha Stetzel: Amazing. Well, and sometimes we have to sit down and reflect, right? And reflect on all of the things that we’ve done. Mhm.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Well welcome back.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes, ma’am. Well congratulations on um choosing to be a part of this. So can you tell me just a little bit about the actual engagement with Mel? I know you said oh, she came to you. How did you guys meet? And then I know the follow on to that. Right.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Oh, let me tell you. Oh, male. Well, my, um, president of noble, because I’m part of a Navajo national organization was the national, uh, National Association of Women Business Owners. Yes. And the president, she knew that. She said that she couldn’t do it right then because she had a lot on her plate. So she referred me, and I said, okay, I’ll check it out and see what you know, what it’s about. So when I met with Mel, She was so inviting. She was like. I mean, it was like we we knew each other already, and she just. She just made it very comfortable. And when she explained her her movement because it’s a movement, when she explained her movement, I want to be a part of. And so for me, it was the best thing in me. I’ve written books, I’ve read. I got seven books out there on Amazon, but this book was part of a movement because one I’m with others, everything else I’m doing alone, but I’m with others. And so now I feel like I got sisters. So I’m not the only one that got to be and be in this space. And I ask questions. And so she was just she, she, she showed us the, the steps. You’re welcome to call her and she’ll, you know, she break it down because you know that I feel a little special with that. I didn’t understand trail or Trello wasn’t my plan at first. And so when she said I was handling no problem. And I mean, we just talked and everything. But but most of all, I like the way that she’s creating our community. Mhm. Like we have uh, not just Houston. We got Phoenix. Okay. We got Arizona in the house. So she, she brings us all together. So we have all these sisters that are coming together for one book, but we all have something to contribute in each other’s lives. And that’s that’s why I’m on this show.

Speaker4: You know.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s how we met.

Speaker4: Oh.

Dr. Tangela Harris: No. Is is more is a movement. But of all of it, male creates this amazing community of powerhouses. That’s. That’s what we are. Hey, hey.

Speaker4: Yeah.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Powerhouses. And we’re able to ignite and help each other go beyond. Not that we’re not already there, but go beyond and be that support system as we go through.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, absolutely. And and even the, the follow on to all of this, the mentoring with young women and the sharing, as you mentioned, with other cities who are powerhouse women are writing a chapter in a book. It’s just been absolutely amazing. Well, I am so glad that Mel found you and me and that we got to meet each other. We have one other really big thing in common. Mhm. I happen to know that you’re a veteran as well. Right. So I would love as we get to the back end of our conversation today to understand how your time in service, your time in the military helped prepare you for who you are today and the work that you’re doing.

Dr. Tangela Harris: I am a Gulf War Army veteran, so that means I’m in the war. When I went to war. I never would have known. The strength that I carry. I never would have known. Just the. Not just strength, but the fact that I was facing physical danger. And I was able to stand. So going through the death of loved ones, I was able to stand going through three divorces. I was able to stand being a single mother of two. I was able to stand and not just stand. I wasn’t just surviving, literally. I was thriving in the midst of. And the reason why I say I was thriving, because I have people that come back and say, I watched you. I’m like, what? Why were you watching me? You know, that was like. Because I never understood. Where did you get the energy or the capacity to move like you move? And I had to tell him it was the military. So when I had this one person who told me that you need to get rid of that military part of you. And I was like, the military raised me. So basically, you’re telling me to get rid of me. So I had to. I mean, I kind of walked away kind of feeling pretty low because I’m like, that’s who I am. I’m an organized person. I am structured. I make sure that, hey, if you say you’re going to be at three, guess what? I need to see you at 245. You know, I have some things that the military has raised me to be that created me to this point.

Dr. Tangela Harris: And then you tell me that I need to get rid of it. And that didn’t sit well with me. But what I noticed was you’re going to have people that’s not going to celebrate you. And you gotta be okay. You gotta be able to stand in the midst of adversity. I was standing while they stood here trying to shoot at us. Okay? We we. My unit was responsible for the POW camp. So those people didn’t want to fight because the situation they were in, they didn’t want to fight. They had to fight because their family was captive. And, you know, so when you understand and you see all this going on, you start appreciating things. And so I started appreciating life. I started appreciating the freedom. I freedom, I start appreciating and then I say, well, you know what? Guess what? When I have these kids, I’m instill the same thing in them. So through my girls mentor, I have, you know, many layers through my girls mentoring program. Same thing building them, building the capacity to handle life challenges through my life coaching, through the the speaking engagements is all about building the capacity of how people move in the earth. That’s it. It’s about the capacity because some people are narrow tunnel vision. Tunnel vision. I’m like, but there’s still stuff on each side. So you have to learn to pull yourself out of it so you can see the big picture, and then you’ll know how to maneuver and how to move.

Speaker4: Yeah.

Trisha Stetzel: All of these experiences have made you who you are. They’ve made us who we are.

Dr. Tangela Harris: Yes.

Trisha Stetzel: And then you found a way to prioritize the things that come to you that are the most important. Angela, thank you so much. This has been so much fun celebrating you, doctor Angela Harris, by the way, you guys can find her at Angela Harris. Com t a g e l a h a r r I s.com. You can find all of the amazing work that she’s doing out there. Thank you for bringing us this movement of God, and I do thank you for bringing us your chapter in six figure chicks, Houston volume one, and thank you for your service. What would you like to leave the audience with today to Angela?

Dr. Tangela Harris: Um, I would like to leave everybody with choose to live by design, not by default. Default is those things that have happened. Yes it happened. Yes, it was traumatic. It left a little wound inside. But you can choose to live by design and by design. Meaning seek God and understanding why he created you. And who? The reason why you even hear. And then it’s always to serve somebody else. So if you’re feeling bad, you’re feeling low, you’re going through depression. You, you know, need healing from grief and everything. Put that energy in helping somebody else, and then that’ll start helping you to grow and grow and grow beyond this box. So live by design, not by default.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh, I love that. Thank you so much for being with me today. It’s been such a pleasure having you on the show.

Dr. Tangela Harris: It was a pleasure being here.

Speaker4: Thank you.

Trisha Stetzel: You’re very welcome. Doctor Tangela Harris, my guest today. Thank you. And that’s all the time we have. If you found value in this conversation, share it with a fellow entrepreneur, a veteran or Houston leader ready to grow. Be sure to follow, rate, and review the show. It helps us reach more bold business minds just like yours. Your business, your leadership, and your legacy are all built one intentional step at a time. So stay inspired. Stay focused and keep building the business and the life you deserve.