The Story Behind ACCESSory Insights: Why I Left a Toxic Job to Build Something Healing

There’s always a moment—that sharp, split-second realization that you’re not where you’re supposed to be.

Mine didn’t arrive in a flurry of chaos. It came in stillness. A hospital room. My body surrendering to what my spirit had long understood: I was in a toxic work environment that had become spiritually unsustainable and physically dangerous.

At the time, I was in a high-level role, embedded in national security and leadership operations. I had the title. The credentials. The meetings. The clearance. And yet—none of that protected me from burnout, betrayal, or bias. I was surrounded by performative leadership that punished integrity and rewarded silence. I watched toxic managers camouflage their dysfunction as “urgency,” deflect their insecurities onto staff, and weaponize professionalism to erase personality.

And I stayed.

Because like so many of us—especially high-achieving Black professionals—I told myself I could handle it. That I could outwork oppression. That my excellence would shield me from erosion.

But even armor cracks under chronic pressure.

Eventually, I couldn’t pray my way out of migraines or ulcers. I couldn’t spreadsheet my way out of silence. I couldn’t logic my way out of the pit my soul was falling into. Something had to shift—and God made it clear: I was trying to build change inside a system that wasn’t willing to heal.

So I left.

The Birth of ACCESSory Insights

ACCESSory Insights wasn’t a business idea. It was a healing blueprint. Born from the belief that no leader should have to compromise their health, purpose, or identity for a paycheck. That culture is more than compliance. It’s climate. That leadership isn’t about control—it’s about care, clarity, and conscience.

The name itself is layered. ACCESSory is about access—emotional, spiritual, operational. It’s also a nod to what leadership should do: complement, not control. Insights speaks to our core purpose—to provide clarity in complex environments. To turn hard experiences into honest strategy. To help people see again—see their teams, see their truth, see themselves.

What We Do (and Why It’s Different)

ACCESSory Insights isn’t a DEI firm. It’s an organizational health company with soul. We blend research, storytelling, and strategy to help leaders build cultures that breathe.

Our services include:

• Cultural Oxygen Audits to assess team health, morale, and executive alignment.

• Healing Tree Leadership Models that help leaders understand how their inner world shapes their leadership style.

• Strategic Leadership Retreats that focus on identity, narrative, and operational resilience.

• Organizational Storytelling Frameworks to realign purpose with practice.

We don’t just talk about “belonging.” We build ecosystems where people don’t have to shrink to survive.

Strategic Takeaways for Leaders Ready to Shift

1. Excellence is not a shield against toxicity. Even the most gifted professionals can be broken by broken systems.

2. Organizational culture is a living system. If it’s not intentionally nurtured, it will default to dysfunction.

3. People don’t leave jobs—they leave climates. Your policies might be inclusive, but if your energy isn’t, your team will feel it.

4. Healing isn’t a soft skill. It’s a leadership imperative. Unhealed leaders leak onto their teams.

5. Work should be breathable. That doesn’t mean easy—it means human.

Final Word: From Survival to Strategy

ACCESSory Insights is a witness, not just a company. It is living proof that healing can become a business model. That breaking can become blueprint. That faith can fuel structure. That stories can set people free.

So if you’re a leader reading this, ask yourself:

• Is my organization producing excellence at the cost of wellness?

• Is our leadership team reactive or reflective?

• Are we leading people or managing labor?

Because your answers will either create culture—or create casualties.

I built ACCESSory Insights so others don’t have to suffer in silence. I built it to honor what I survived. And I’ll keep building—because someone else’s healing is waiting on the story I was once afraid to tell.

Go be great,

Dr. Clark,

Editor-In-Chief, ACCESS Points,

CEO/Founder, ACCESSory Insights, LLC