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See Life Different

See Life Different

By: Zaakirah Muhammad
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This weekly podcast features womenpreneurs as they share stories of advocacy, mindfulness, and entrepreneurship! They will teach and inspire you to step outside of your comfort zone. Your host, Zaakirah Muhammad is a creative strategist, photographer, PCOS Warrior, and cancer survivor. For show notes visit zaakirahnayyar.com/podcast© 2023 Zaakirah Nayyar Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • Essence Fest 2026 Recap As a Speaker And How to Become One

    Essence Fest 2026 Recap As a Speaker And How to Become One
    Jul 10 2026
    Zaakirah recaps her third Essence Festival experience — this time as a speaker across three different platforms. She breaks down how she landed the opportunity, what she covered on each stage, and gives a full budget-friendly itinerary for anyone planning their own Essence Fest trip. In this episode: 0:00 – Intro: Who is Zaakirah & what See Life Different is about 0:42 – Overview: Speaking on 3 stages at Essence Fest 2026 0:58 – Zaakirah's backstory: childhood eye cancer, vision/hearing loss, and her Essence Fest history (2016 → 2024 → 2026) 1:27 – History of Essence Festival & the Essence magazine legacy 1:49 – How she got the opportunity: shoutout to New Voices Family (PACE program) 2:50 – Winning the New Voices Excellence Award 3:13 – Setting intentions to be part of Essence Fest 3:53 – Speaking opportunity #1: Moderating the "Reimagining Inclusion" panel 4:42 – Speaking opportunity #2: Wellness talking circles with Refinery29's Unbothered & Well 5:53 – Speaking opportunity #3: New Voices community programming 8:31 – Gifting & networking with fellow entrepreneurs 8:07 – Beautycon lines & wristband access tips 8:31 – Concert Floor seats: Brandy & Monica, T.I., 10:24 – Why accessibility (captions, sign language interpreters, wheelchair access) matters at events 12:39 – How to work with Zaakirah as your brand/accessibility strategist 14:13 – Budget travel breakdown: hostels, flights, the airport express bus 17:12 – Planning your itinerary using the Essence Fest app 18:34 – Friday: off-site events, Sprout Social meetup, Sister Song concert 20:19 – Meeting Lachi for Zaakirah's upcoming documentary project 23:11 – Catching a live podcast taping of Because We Feud 24:17 – Friday night networking dinner & prepping for speaking day 24:36 – Food recap: Daily Beets, True Food Kitchen, Cafe du Monde, po'boys & more 26:13 – Sunday: exploring the DMV community presence & Baltimore mayor session at convention center 27:14 – Fun fact: descendant of Frederick Douglass via Stephen Bailey 27:36 – Mario Performance at the Coca-Cola stage 28:41 – Touring Black New Orleans & the Ninth Ward 29:20 – Recap & what's next: goals for the next Essence Fest 29:48 – Outro & how to connect with Zaakirah Connect with Zaakirah: 🌐 Website: https://zaakirahnayyar.com 📱 All social links: https://zaakirahnayyar.com/social Learn more about New Voices Family: https://www.newvoices.family/ https://smart.bio/newvoicesfamily/
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    30 mins
  • WITS Travel Creator Recap and Keynote: How to Make Your Content More Accessible

    WITS Travel Creator Recap and Keynote: How to Make Your Content More Accessible
    Jun 19 2026

    Listen to the full audio of Zaakirah's main stage talk on creating more accessible travel content from the WITS Travel Creator Summit in Chattanooga, Tennessee, as well as the recap of the conference experience.

    EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:

    [0:00] – Introduction: Who is Zaakirah Muhammad?

    [1:09] – First time attending the WITS Travel Creator Summit in Chattanooga, TN

    [1:35] – About Zaakirah: brand strategist, travel creator, blind in one eye, hard of hearing

    [1:50] – Being in a room with women and gender-diverse creators; her first major keynote session

    [2:23] – Why she wasn't nervous: her 2024 TEDx talk experience

    [2:45] – Her keynote topic: accessible content creation

    [3:14] – Conference culture: WhatsApp group, community support, content collaboration

    [3:51] – WITS paid their speakers — a rare and valued practice

    [4:00] – Leaving WITS feeling seen, welcomed, and valued

    [5:42] – Bessie Smith Cultural Center: Chattanooga history, Usher, and Kane Brown

    [6:31] – Black Travel Alliance ice cream social at Scoop-alicious

    [7:10] – Speaker networking event at the Hotel Chalet (the old train depot)

    [9:16] – The Bessie Coleman Awards: honoring women trailblazers

    [9:55] – Should you attend WITS? (Coming to Michigan near Detroit in 2027!)

    [11:06] – 🎤 MAIN STAGE KEYNOTE BEGINS: "Making Your Travel Content More Accessible"

    [11:20] – Opening audience poll: travelers with disabilities you can't see

    [13:37] – Accessibility is not one size fits all — who gets left behind

    [14:35] – Real-world example: Aburi Botanical Garden in Ghana & asking for accommodations

    [15:25] – The Hidden Disability Sunflower Lanyard: a tool for invisible disabilities at airports

    [16:10] – Tip #1: Use and edit captions — don't rely on auto-captions alone

    [17:20] – Tip #2: Video and image descriptions — good for SEO and screen readers

    [18:00] – Tip #3: Include accessibility info in your travel content (ramps, noise, lighting, crowd level)

    [18:58] – Captions: every platform has them — use them or tell your audience how to enable them

    [19:15] – Using Canva's alt text feature for accessible graphics

    [21:09] – Empathy as an accessibility tool: the business case for inclusive content

    [21:46] – "Design your content so that no one is excluded"

    RESOURCES & LINKS:

    • 📖 Book: Seeing Life Through a Different Lens by Zaakirah Muhammad https://amzn.to/4eAjnLx
    • 🗓️ WITS Travel Creator Summit 2027 – Ann Arbor, Michigan (near Detroit) https://witsummit.com/annarbor
    • 🌻 Get Your Accessible Content Guide: https://zaakirah-nayyar.kit.com/
    • 💻 Book a 1-on-1 mentorship with Zaakirah: https://bit.ly/4eFWmrw
    • 📬 Email Zaakirah with questions: zaakirah@zaakirahnayyar.com

    CONNECT WITH ZAAKIRAH: Instagram | YouTube @illuminousone

    Tell us in the comments: What is ONE thing you will do to make your travel content more accessible?
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    23 mins
  • You are Leaving Disabled Travelers Out of Your Content

    You are Leaving Disabled Travelers Out of Your Content
    May 29 2026
    This episode challenges content creators and travelers to make their content more empathetic and inclusive for disabled audiences. Timestamps 0:00 — Intro & welcome to the See Life Different podcast 0:28 — Zaakirah's background: cancer survivor, brand strategist, author, world traveler 0:42 — Episode topic: Are you leaving disabled travelers out of your content? 1:20 — Zaakirah's personal story: visually impaired and hard of hearing, visited 15+ countries and 4+ continents 1:48 — Her role as an accessibility advocate and travel consultant 2:21 — How the pandemic amplified the need for accessible content for disabled audiences 2:51 — Living with invisible disabilities: hearing loss, low vision, and the challenge of being seen 3:50 — What most people get wrong about disability — visible vs. invisible conditions 4:15 — Neurodivergence, recent injuries, and why empathy matters 4:35 — Upcoming speaking engagement: Women in Travel Summit (WITS) in Chattanooga, TN 5:18 — Zaakirah's history with travel content creation, dating back to the early 2010s 5:39 — How a Kodak Polaroid camera at age 5 sparked her love of storytelling 6:18 — From blog to vlog to podcast to TEDx stage 6:19 — Travel should expand how we see the world — but the world isn't designed for disabled travelers 6:49 — The Sunflower Lanyard: a tool for identifying hidden disabilities while traveling 7:08 — Lip reading, airport navigation, and advocating for yourself on tour 7:08 — The simple question most people forget: "How can I help?" 7:47 — Creating accessible visual content: font contrast, color readability, and DIY graphics 8:08 — Captions: why they matter beyond just muting your phone 8:30 — How social media platforms handle auto-captions — and where they fall short 8:37 — Captions as a tool for language learners AND those with hearing loss 9:11 — Describing images and videos the way you'd explain it to a five-year-old or an elder 9:35 — Screen readers and alt text: creating content accessible to those who cannot see 10:00 — SEO bonus: accessibility features also improve content discoverability 10:21 — Inviting disabled travelers into your hometown content 10:41 — Where to start: use your five senses to describe people, places, and things 11:02 — Enable captions and edit auto-generated ones for accuracy 11:28 — Why Zaakirah is personally passionate about accessible content 11:45 — Scrolling past content you can't hear or read — and the revenue creators lose 12:07 — How to work with Zaakirah: mentorship sessions and accessibility guides 12:39 — Booking a session: 30-min to 1-hour with an included accessibility guide 12:59 — Speaking at the WITS Travel Creators Summit 13:05 — The financial case for accessibility: disabled audiences represent real spending power 13:29 — Confidence, advocacy, and telling your story as a disabled person 13:48 — Zaakirah's personal experience with low vision at night and hearing high pitches 14:05 — Processing time and neurodivergence in accessible spaces 14:26 — Book written with her mom: resilience, confidence, and being the only one in the room 14:37 — Book available on Amazon (ebook, paperback, audiobook) 14:37 — Visit zaakirahtnayyar.com/social for all links 15:08 — Mentorship, brand strategy, and being a "brand therapist" 15:31 — Finding joy in creativity and entrepreneurship amid life's responsibilities 15:49 — 10 years of helping people build their brands and tell their stories 16:09 — Women in Travel Summit: stay tuned for more details 16:24 — In-person community with fellow creators and speakers 17:04 — Call to action: speak up in comments, advocate for accessibility, share this episode 17:09 — Closing: share this episode widely and see you next time Zaakirah is a hard-of-hearing, visually impaired traveler who has visited over 15 countries. She is an accessibility advocate, brand strategist, and travel consultant. Connect with Zaakirah Website & all links: https://zaakirahtnayyar.com/socialMentorship sessions + Accessibility Guide available for booking: https://zaakirah-nayyar.kit.com/profile?Book available on Amazon (ebook, paperback, and audiobook): https://www.amazon.com/Seeing-Life-Through-Different-Lens-ebook/dp/B081MR9TKP/ If this episode resonated with you, share it — accessibility starts with awareness
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    17 mins
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