Entrepreneur, leadership development coach, and diversity, equity and inclusion expert Bonique Edwards discusses her time at UCLA and advice for UCLA students with Podcasts contributor Reese Dahlgren.

Reese Dahlgren: Hello, and welcome to Bruin to Bruin. My name is Reese Dahlgren, and I’m a podcast contributor at the Daily Bruin. Today, I’m interviewing Bonique Edwards. She is a storyteller, entrepreneur and DEI leader. After graduating from UCLA, she founded Kaleidoscope Digital, a leading digital marketing company that was named to Bruin Business 100 in 2023 to recognize her work as an entrepreneur. Today, we’ll be discussing how her experiences as a UCLA undergraduate informed her identity as a woman of color and later on in her work as a DEI trainer. We’ll also hear about how she decided to found her own company and become a digital marketing expert and what advice she has for students starting out on their own career paths. So first of all, Ms. Edwards, thank you for joining me today. I want to jump right in starting with your time at UCLA since many of our listeners are part of the UCLA community. I mean, first of all, tell me about your experience as an undergraduate here, what clubs where you’re involved, your major, things like that.

Bonique Edwards: My experience at UCLA was the most transformative part of my adult years. And I really had a tough time. So, I’m biracial. And up until that point, I always thought I was both. And when I got to UCLA, I realized that I was Black and just had a white mother. And I was there in the late 80s, early 90s, there was lots of racism, lots of sexism, lots of homophobia. And it actually is what created the moment where I was like, I have to do something about it. So when I was going to school there, you’d go into the bathrooms, and it would say “n-word go home.” The song that the fraternity brothers were using and singing were about raping women. Some of the fraternity houses had parties, and they were called wetback parties, and they would make people crawl under fences to get in as if they were crossing the border. And I had never experienced anything like that, because I was from Los Angeles, which definitely is one of the more diverse states.

RD: Yes.

BE: But in retrospect, I look back and realize that I was going to school with people who grew up in homogeneous populations. So diversity for UCLA isn’t just about ethnic diversity, it’s about location. UCLA wants to have somebody from every country, from every state. Well, in the 80s, and 90s, there were very few people who were Black, Hispanic, Asian, who were on TV. And so I was engaging with people who actually had never seen anybody Black or Asian, or seen anybody who was gay. And so it was a very toxic environment. Yeah, and feeling very disenfranchised about the process, I got together with some friends, one that was Japanese, one that was Chinese, one that was Hispanic, and then myself being Black, and we created a group called Circle Coalition. And that’s where my journey to diversity equity inclusion began. And interestingly enough, we were taught by a company at the time, which was called the National Conference of Christians and Jews, now called the National Conference. And that’s where my journey to diversity, equity inclusion began. At the time, we just called it diversity training, so it has definitely evolved since then. It was a tough time. I was there during the civil unrest when I was a political science major at the time, and I thought I was going to be a senator, or an attorney at a minimum. And I remember when the police officers acquitted Rodney King. I can tell you, I was at Hilgard. At the time, it was called K-3. And I worked at parking services at UCLA. And this was the first time that there was video footage to show someone Black being beaten. And this was, in my mind, a home run and a victory for Black people everywhere. And those six police officers were acquitted. And I was in my car crying on Hilgard. In that moment, my life changed, and I decided not to go to law school. And I didn’t believe in the system. And when I talked to relatives, they were like, oh, of course, this is normal. And it’s really sad because now 30 years later when we saw everything happen in 2020, you saw the young people being outraged because as young people were giving so much hope. But the cycles continue to perpetuate themselves consistently for people of color and for marginalized groups. Does that mean there’s not been growth? Absolutely not. There’s definitely been progress. But it’s painful and it’s hard. And so my time there was challenging. On the flip side, I met some of the best friends of my life, I still engage with people from UCLA. And I really was able to transform into a woman, and to learn a lot, because it’s really not about the degree. What UCLA provides is something very unique, which is a level of competition that’s unparalleled by many. And so one of the reasons why UCLA is one public school in the country, is because you need to be able to compete in a very competitive environment academically. And if you can get out of there, you can do anything. And it’s less about what I learned in class, and more about how I learned to navigate problems, how I learned to pivot, how I learned to problem solve, how I learned to think critically. And so as you’re going through the experience as a student, unless you’re going to be a doctor or a lawyer or something very specific, it’s actually less about the rigors of academia. It’s more about how you’re problem solving, to have a social life and have friends and deal with the academics and it’s actually all about the non-tangibles that are not discussed. In my mind, that is what it is. And because it’s such a competitive place, you get the skills that are unlike others, from other schools and people that I engage with, you know, at this point in my career.

RD: Yeah, yeah, that’s really true. I think UCLA is – definitely just going to college – is a very transformative experience, especially going from high school to college. UCLA is such a massive school. And like you said, competition is a key aspect I think of UCLA as well. And I’m curious how that sense of competition and you know, the transformation that you talked about, translated over into your career after UCLA, and, you know, postgraduate.

BE: You know, I hate to sound pedigree, but we’re with a bunch of students listening, and, you know, if it gets broadcasted elsewhere, that’s fine, too. But there is a difference between going to a Cal State and going to UCLA. But with that said, there’s a difference between going to Harvard and going to UCLA, right, but what I engage with people, if you match my UCLA degree up against their degrees from no name schools, it’s unparalleled. And it’s because when you come out of UCLA, you know how to problem solve, and think very critically. And you understand the value of adapting to a new situation. You were more open to change. When I engage with colleagues who don’t come from competitive universities, where it’s the same. It’s very stagnant. They are the ones who get caught up the most with change. And UCLA helps you understand on that quarter system, which is really fast, you’re always changing. So what you don’t know is why you’re in this moment. And while it seems really fast, the ability to change so quickly, and be so nimble, transcends in the corporate world. So when your boss comes to you and says we got to do this in another direction, you might ask a few clarifying questions, but you get on board. When people are used to the same old thing day in and day out, they become more uncomfortable with the change, and those things actually impact your career in ways that you can’t even predict at this moment as a student, but what I can say to you, as a student who is in the system of chaos, that chaos is going to create an environment where you’re going to be so much more competitive than your friends and family members or people that you meet, who don’t come out of such an aggressive environment where you have to grind.

RD: Yeah.

BE: You have to get gritty to graduate from UCLA.

RD: I’m curious for you especially, how this kind of sense of change and constantly evolving and you know, adapting to your situations, how that’s come across in your work as an entrepreneur and creating businesses. How did that come across in your life right now?

BE: So I run a digital marketing agency in addition to some of the leadership development, and diversity, equity and inclusion work I do. And what I learned through the pandemic is my ability to embrace technology. So I’m a GenXer. I’m 51 years old. So when I was a student at UCLA, there was no Microsoft Office. I graduated in 1994. Microsoft Office was released in 1995. So when I was a student there, we were using word processors or going to the library for a computer. We had pagers, not cell phones. That means that things like Word and Excel were not commonplace in academia. Well, people who are my age and older, who never embrace technology, they are struggling in the workplace because I’ve still got another 15 years of work in me, but it’s because I know technology, my company was able to pivot very quickly, during the pandemic. I was able to host Zoom calls. I want to help make my clients transition their events to being online events. I was able to create all these experiences because I embrace technology. And so the biggest competitive edge is my willingness to change, and to embrace new things. And so now, I’m getting AI certified, and I’m going to school for that, and being willing to be a constant student. So getting a degree from UCLA doesn’t mean you stop being a student. The day you stop learning, the day you get stagnant, is the day your career gets put on hold and I get a lot of fulfillment from learning new things, from being a part of things, and from taking on those challenges. And I think that that thirst for knowledge came from the rigors of UCLA.

RD: I want to also touch on, you’re talking about your digital marketing company, and I wanted to just ask, how did you initially decide, I want to found this company, I want to work in digital marketing. I mean, it is so important in today’s world, especially with what you were saying about how, you know, older generations have struggled to use, you know, digital marketing. So I’m curious how that came about for you.

BE: So it’s very interesting. I remember when former Vice President Al Gore came to UCLA to talk about the information superhighway, which we now call the Internet. So he came to UCLA to talk about it. I’m definitely aging myself. And I started off in corporate America, and then I worked for a nonprofit. And then one day, I’m writing the LA Times. And this is when the paper was actually a physical paper. And there were all these .com millionaires. And so I say to my girlfriend, I’m going to leave my job with the nonprofit and I’m going to become a .com millionaire. And my girlfriend worked in finance. And she’s like, ‘Where’d you get that from?’ I was like, the Los Angeles Times. She goes, ‘You don’t just read the LA Times, and, you know, make this decision.’ I was like, sure you do. So literally, within 30 days, I’m not joking, I got a job at carsdirect.com. And this was very cutting edge, because you could actually buy your car online, which was unheard of at this time. And I was employee 76. And very fast-paced, young people, all this stuff. But because I had worked for State Farm Insurance Company, I knew that carsdot.com was blowing through money too fast. And I knew my window was limited. So then I went to work for another company, which was stamps.com, and they print postage online, also something very new, you put it on your computer, it’s really great. And then after about a year or two there, I got laid off. And in this space, I can tell you that at the time when I was at carsdirect.com, it was me and two other Black people in a building of 500 people at stamps.com, and in a building of 600 people, there might have been four Black employees. And I’m the only one that wasn’t an admin support person. And this is important because of the diversity work that we sort of talk about and blend in. So I am in these high tech, very fast-paced spaces being the only Black woman in these places. And exposure is everything. So I’m first generation educated. So I didn’t grow up with a bunch of entrepreneurs. My father was a bus driver. My mother was a homemaker. So I didn’t have this sort of experience, and so when the layoffs happened at stamps.com, all of my white colleagues said, ‘I’m going to consult on the side,’ I was like, what does that mean? It made no sense to me because I had been exposed to people who consulted on the side. And at the time, I was trying to go back to graduate school. So I was on the waitlist at UCLA. And I made the assumption that because I went to undergrad there that I was going to get a business degree at the Anderson School. I was definitely wrong. With a public school, there’s no legacy. I didn’t get in. So I got laid off from stamps.com, and then two days later, I got rejected from my last business school. And this is an example of where you get lemons, you have to make lemonade. So with an email, I sent out an email to everybody I knew. And I said, Hey, I just got laid off from stamps.com. My expertise is in marketing. These are my core competencies. These are my areas. If you see a fit for me, that would be great. I’m going to consult. Again, not really knowing what consulting means. And this is why you don’t burn bridges. My phone started to ring. And the first call was, can you help us build a website? And I said, No, I’m not a coder. I’m not a programmer. I do marketing, I can help you market your website. Second call comes through. We need help building a website. I don’t know how to build a website. I don’t know code. And the third call comes through, and I’m really big on the power of three. If something comes to you three times, you need to kind of pause and really assess, you know, some things around you. Three times is a big number for me, it works for me, consistently overuse. Third call. And the woman says, “Well, clearly, you must know more than me, because you’ve worked for two.com companies.” Well, I have been laid off with a bunch of other programmers. So I started calling programmers and saying, “Hey, I can help the client with the programming. Can you help me with the marketing—I mean programming.” And the next thing you knew, I started a web development business in the late 90s, which was very cutting edge because people were realizing they needed to get their companies online. So then as time goes on, clients start to push you. We need you to do search engine optimization. We don’t really do that. You do now. And then time comes on and there’s this thing called social media. And there’s, you know, people want you to market there. Okay, we do now. And then it just becomes we’re a full service digital marketing agency. And it really came out of a very organic email that was sent to friends and family 23 years ago, and it’s been great. I’ve had a great time doing it. And it’s been really amazing. And no, my company is not curing cancer, but we absolutely transform the look and feel of small businesses. And the internet is the ultimate equalizer. So you can be working in your garage, but you can look like a million dollar company. And I understand the power of technology. And I have this great opportunity to also help Black and brown people understand the power of technology and what they can do with it. And it has been an amazing experience. After George Floyd happened, I went back and put my hat in the ring to do more diversity training and more leadership training. And I realized that my second act needs to be helping organizations and people transform those spaces. Because it’s not about picking the right numbers, but it’s about how do we create an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to bring their true selves to work?

RD: Yeah, yeah, I wanted to touch on that, because I know that you are a leadership development coach and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion trainer. And I’m wondering how you combine both of those roles into your career right now. I mean, obviously it’s important to me also as a woman of color, but also, of course, to you.

BE: So because I’m self employed, I can run the digital marketing agency, and then I work with people who really go get the business as it relates to leadership development, transformation, or diversity, equity and inclusion. And unfortunately, because of the Supreme Court, now, diversity, equity, and inclusion is a bad word. And so now I am changing the verbiage to help people say we’re going to just do some inclusive leadership development. And we can get to the nitty gritty of leadership development, but understand this concept of how do you make deposits or withdrawals and the trust bank with your employees as a leader. And so if you are my leader, in which I had a situation and you happen to be someone white, and you asked to touch my hair, you are making withdrawal in the trust bank for me. And then three months later, when you need a favor for me, and you’re very confused as to why my response is no, it’s because unconsciously you, the leader, don’t realize that you have maybe given me these sorts of microaggressions over time. And me not feeling psychologically safe to approach it with you, I become passive aggressive, not deal with it, and so unconsciously, leaders every day, are making withdrawals at the trust bank. And so if we could talk about how do we do inclusive communication where we get creative space to talk about these things, then we can move forward. So, for example, I am a 51-year-old Black woman who snowboards. I think it’s safe to say that if you think about a snowboarder in your mind, and I’m 185 pounds. So I think it’s safe to say that I don’t fit the working stereotype model of somebody who is a snowboarder, right? Black, female, 185 pounds, 51 years old—I don’t look like Shaun White. So let’s say, Reese, you’re my supervisor, and I keep asking you for time off of work, when it’s raining. And your response is, Bonique, you keep asking for time off during our busy season. I wish you would stop. But let’s say for example, you’re a beach person. So when the summer comes, you want me to help you and I go, I can’t. I’m really busy this weekend. Your movie in your head that you’ve created is I’m not pleasant to work with. My movie in my head is you won’t let me do what I’m passionate about doing. It comes from leaders not getting to know the 90% of their clients. So you can see my 10%. But my 10% is just what you could see. What I’m wearing, my hair, my face, what lipstick I’m wearing, the clothes I’m wearing, but the 90% is that I’m a middle aged woman who snowboards. So if you the leader get to know my 90%, then you would intentionally say, of course, “Bonique, it’s our busy season. But can I just give you a long weekend? Will that work? And then we could compromise?” Well, here’s the challenge. Reese, if we can’t talk about the fact that I snowboard, we can’t talk about Black Lives Matter. We can’t talk about Stop Asian Hate, we can’t talk about what’s happening in Gaza, because we don’t even talk about the fact that I snowboard. And so what happens is that when people get very frustrated in the workplace, it is when you have these situations. We have two really big wars happening, and everyone’s afraid to talk about it. But I wouldn’t be afraid to talk about it with you if we had a relationship that extended beyond what we do at work, and I knew a little bit more about you. And that’s where I want to come in and help organizations and help leaders to understand that inclusive communication means just getting to know you as an individual. And that could be about race, but it can be about gender, it can be about sexuality, it can be about religion, it can be about a plethora of things, but if I can’t get to know you that way, then it becomes really hard to lead you in a way that allows you to give me your best.

RD: Yeah, this really comes across, the ability to adapt and transform and break down structures, you know, that have been predisposed on us. I feel that really comes across and what you’re saying right now, is that a lot of the work that you’re doing right now?

BE: Yes, definitely. And that’s why I want to sort of make the transition into that. So in my mind, my second act is helping leaders and helping employees too right. Because a lot of times too, as an employee, who may not like change, we get caught up in it, I just want to be the same. Why can’t we go back to the old way, and help them to reframe their thought process. So for example, let’s say I’m coming to work, you’re my supervisor, and I’m 20 minutes late because of traffic. I could get to you and go, “Reese, I’m so upset. I’m having a bad day.” And then your mind you’re like, “It’s only 8:30. Are you having a bad day or are you having a bad five minutes?” Because if I say to you, I’m having a bad day, then the universe will deliver me all the things that create a bad day. And it doesn’t mean you can’t have bad days, right? But most of the time, we’re just having a bad five minutes. And it’s up to us to reframe the thinking to say, “You know, well, since I’m late, why don’t I make some phone calls? Why don’t I take care of some other things that I can give my full undivided attention to, and then realize that I might be missing a future accident, I might, you know, have another opportunity because I’m late.” It’s all about how do I reframe it, versus my boss is against me, they just don’t like us the way they used to, what happened and what’s going on. And so part of it too, is as an employee and an organization, it’s very easy to do the us versus them. And then we become toxic, and we spread our toxicity amongst other people. And it’s just not a great place to work. And I want people to feel like, no, you don’t have to sing and dance at work every day, but you should feel like your contributions matter, and you should feel like this is a very good place for you to actually be. And so that’s the ideal scenario of what we want to accomplish when we’re working. And so helping leaders and employees make that shift.

RD: I kind of want to keep going along with that. I mean, you’re combining your passions for digital media marketing, entrepreneurship, DEI, how do you balance all of this together? Do you think about them more as separate or all combined as one?

BE: They’re definitely separate. And I’m definitely transitioning out of marketing more into DEI, but sometimes they work together. So right now I’m working on a project with an agency locally, and I’m working with their branding department and working with their leaders. Well, this tracks because I’m a branding expert. And then I can also help them do leadership training. So when those two merge, it’s amazing. However, they are different hats. And I have always done diversity, equity and inclusion as a passion project since UCLA. But sometimes it gets overwhelming. And sometimes it gets very heavy and you feel like nothing will change. And so I left the DEI or at the time diversity training, because it was emotionally heavy in training. Now I’m moving back into it, but under the umbrella of more leadership, and not hammering home sort of like the DEI efforts but more just hammering home the inclusive, and then while we get there we can do a deeper dive on maybe gender issues or sexuality issues, which are really big right now in schools and academia, and the workplace, right. And even just understanding that your brand does impact how you show up. So for example, in the Black community right now, this decade, the 20s, a lot of Black men want to wear longer hair, braids, dreads, etc. And they see that represented on TV, sports, entertainment. All the men on TV are doing it. The Black men who are working on Wall Street are not wearing those same dreads. So it becomes tough because the Black men who are working on Wall Street, or the Black man who’s an attorney or, you know, whatever, those professional services, those things are not shown on TV every day where sports are shown every day. So what’s happening is there’s all these laws to protect these Black men, but you can’t, no one’s going to sit there and say I didn’t hire you because you had dreads. And so there’s a huge disconnect for young kids who young Black men who want to wear their hair the way they want to, and of course, they should be able to, but they’re being unconsciously discriminated against because no one in those environments look like them without some sort of credibility in advance. So if you’ve been working in the business for 10 or 15 years, and then you get dreads, well, then now you’ve got some skin in the game, you’ve got a bunch of deposits in the trust bank, people know who you are, you develop the brand, you can go with it. But if you’re coming out of school, with a fresh college degree, and you think you could have your hair whatever way you want, you’re going to get hit up against some of those things and it’s so wrong. Not saying it’s right. But these are some of the challenges of how branding starts to show up in your interviews, your space, your career, what’s going on. And, unfortunately, people judge us based upon the 10% they see, not the 90% they can’t see.

RD: I mean, presentation is always, you know, the way that you look has been such, I mean, unfortunately, it is a huge aspect of how people perceive us, because it’s one of the first things that we see, and I’m just curious, for students at UCLA, what advice would you give to them right now?

BE: One is, it’s really hard to network when you’re a student, because you don’t have the skills to network, right. So one of the things is like people go, oh, get a mentor, but then we don’t give you tools to get a mentor. So picking up the phone or meeting someone and saying, “Will you be my mentor,” is not how networking works, right? So, networking is about exposure and consistent exposure. So for example, you and I are on this call, we’re having this call, whatever it is. Networking would look like you reaching back out to me in another quarter or so and saying, “Hey, can I take your coffee? Hey, I want to learn more, I want to talk more about this, I want to learn whatever it is,” and then the relationship grows, and as the relationship grows, then you start to say, “Hey, can you help mentor, coach, whatever it is.” So I would say the biggest thing is networking. So if you have a meeting with anybody, or your parents, or friends or colleagues, whatever it is, I don’t meet those people without looking at their LinkedIn profile first. And then if I look at their LinkedIn profile, and I see that my job is in social work, and I look at your LinkedIn profile, and see that, you know, some really key people in social work, I’m going to say to you, “Hey, can I get an introduction to these people? This is a path I’m interested in, what’s going on.” So I’m all about using technology to then help you place it, and then see how you can grow from there and get access to those people. But it also depends on what you’re networking for. In my mind if you’re a UCLA student, and you’re looking for a job first. And so right now should be the time, what is it, February, we’re going into March, that you should be looking for either an internship or a paid job, depending on what year you are. And if push comes to shove, if you know this one company has everything that you need, and you need the experience, don’t be afraid to work there for free. Now you don’t have to work 40 hours for free. You need to earn income, you could say I’d like to volunteer 10 hours a week at your firm so I can learn and grow. And then you go and you kick butt and you take names, and then you leverage that for the experience or a paid position. So I’m not saying go work for free for a week, 40 hours a week, I’m saying give some time to do whatever it is. Don’t take on internships, or positions that don’t help you get to what your career goals are. Now, if you don’t know what your career goals are, that’s fine. But working in a baking shop with your mom over the summer is not going to propel you for a career after you leave UCLA, unless you’re going to UCLA to understand the business aspect, which would be silly because we don’t have an undergraduate business program. So, helping the family during the summer would not be my recommendation. It would be how do I secure ideally, a paid internship, or a regular internship that helps advance what I want to do. And this is what internships are all about. So I thought I was going to be a lawyer. My first internship was with the Vice President of the United States in Washington DC. I ended up hating that. And then I ended up going to work for marketing, for Black entertainment television. And then I started a marketing agency. So this is the time to explore. If you want to be a lawyer, and you go work for a law firm, you might decide I want to be a lawyer anymore. If you want to be a doctor, or nurse, and then you go work at a hospital and you see all the blood, you might learn, oh, I don’t want to be a nurse or a doctor anymore. So the internships are about you learning what you want, and about you getting the exposure that you need. But this is not the time to help out family. On the plane, they tell you, and this is very tough for Black and brown family communities, because we’re trying to give back before we’ve made it per se. And when they tell you if the pressure changes, put the mask on yourself first. So if you don’t even have a degree, you have to focus on how are you going to be successful to get to your next level, you actually can’t be concerned back home. The best thing you can do is get a degree, get the best GPA you can, get the best job you can, and then say, now, here’s how I can help my community. But trying to help your community simultaneously when you’re trying to graduate from UCLA. These things don’t work hand in hand together. You have to keep the main thing, the main thing. And the main thing is going to be dating, eating and graduating from UCLA. Those are the main things. Anything else is secondary. Everything else is, I don’t have time. And yes, your parents are going to give you the guilt trip. Yes, your family is going to give you the guilt trip. And you’re going to say to them, our journeys are different. Please know that I am not being disrespectful. I am trying to keep the main thing, the main thing. And that might mean I can’t fly out here. Now I’m not saying to forgo your grandma’s 90th birthday. I’m not saying that. But what I am saying is that our communities for people of color keep pulling us back. And trying to deal with their chaos and UCLA is enough chaos, all on its own.

RD: Experience, regardless of where, as long as it matters and goes towards your goals, you know, I think that’s the most valuable takeaway that you can get.

BE: Give yourself the grace to make mistakes. So life is about mistakes, and making a bunch of them and literally, hurry up and fail fast. The key to growing from the mistakes is not beating yourself up too long for them. So you could keep living in the past, but living in the past. So where your mind goes, your energy flows, where your mind goes, your energy flows. If your mind goes to the past and your mistake, all your energy is focused on beating yourself up from that mistake. You have to learn from the mistake, and then forgive yourself and move forward to learning from that mistake. You are going to make so many more mistakes, and I’m going to make so many more mistakes. But you make a lot at UCLA. And that could be, I didn’t study enough for the test, that could be, I thought I could handle two guys on the side or two girls on the side, whatever you’re into, it can be whatever. I’m not saying they have to all be academic. It could be I went to work late and I knew I should have been there on time. It could be a litany of things that could go wrong at UCLA. The key is that the universe will keep giving you the same mistake until you learn from it. So you need to take a moment, pause, reflect and then you need to move forward.

RD: That’s a great way to wrap up this episode. Thank you so much for your time, Bonique.