“You don’t need to give me courage, just give me an opportunity and I’ll show you what I’ve come for”

“Does my voice have strength? When I am asked this question, I repeat it out loud to myself. Sometimes, I want to be certain.” Certainty that I do not doubt that people found like Rachel de Oliveira Maia, Rachel Maia.

She carries forces in her presence, who dominates the space that is in command. Something that we noticed, logo not the first minute of the interview, so that she – intentionally – defined where we would record: a reading space surrounded by books by black writers.

“It is essential to encourage women, especially black women, who are always at the bottom of the pyramid. So, if you hear me here behind me, you will see several books of black women who, for many times, pass unnoticed and we cannot let this happen. Or our Brazil is full of black women, with powerful voices, who write their stories or write the stories of their ecosystem.”, says Rachel Maia, CEO of RM Consulting.

This smell of empathy the next time we come from home.

“A minha base é o que eu trago de mais forte. Minha mãe always olhou or near, she helps or near. We have to do it independently from the position we occupy because position is a present moment that does not define us in life.”, highlights the daughter of Dona Preta and Seu Antônio – their greatest mentors in life –, who grew up in the neighborhood of Jordanopolis, na region of Grajaú, extreme south of the periphery of São Paulo.

“My relationship with my house is what I have most precious. This is where when my financial balance was unbalanced, I try to turn for myself.” Reveals Rachel Maia, who also fears God for two of her greatest allies (she was a catechist for more than 23 years).

“Quelzinha” – I am loving that she receives two of her relatives – has education as the driving force in her life.

“By luck, just in case, she is nothing. I have the insight to understand the opportunities that passavam na minha in front of and I seized. Give me an opportunity and help me create opportunities for the ecosystem where I live and where I am. It is in this way that I prove that people are going to do the turning of the page”, tells the founder of Instituto Capacita-me.

Opportunities that led to cadeira number 1 – Rachel Maia was CEO of large companies in the luxury segment, representing the still low number of black CEOs in the country (less than 1%).

“My path I tied to the hip number was one of more “não” than “sim”. I had more meetings with men, where my idea was repeated by men who were sitting next to me and I was applauded by them, while my voice was not heard.”, says Rachel Maia.

“In this way, I learned to understand what would be the exact moment to make my voice heard. So, I always have the need to be alert at all times.”

Powerful voice in the world of two businesses, Rachel Maia is now the founder of Instituto Capacita-me, focused on training, developing people from the periphery in jobs.

“People want to train and restore the dignity of people, train and make it possible for people to buy or support themselves, train and make it possible for them to go out with their children and, simply, provide a benefit, a diversion.”

Besides being an important person in the world businessMaia is very dedicated to promoting and empowering women (especially black women) to also reach leadership positions.

“People don’t want more or rest, we love each other too or better. We also want to be well paid, have the best places in leadership, be in the best universities, attend the best jobs. For this, it is necessary to open up the vague best things for us in an equitable way. In a purposeful way. For isso, we have to be inside two indices. This is what the black women deserve.”

Diversity, inclusion and multiplicity are three words that define purpose in the life of Rachel Maia and that she always carries in her speeches.

“A diversity for me, is not the accumulation of black bodies. When people trace inclusion, people have to generate belonging and this fear to be aware. Today, we cannot only give value for results. Browse the results and people.”

And to this end, Rachel Maia credits more to the strength of two allies. “I believe in the strength of two allies, I believe so much that I have many white allies around me. Hoje, only they who are seated, in their great majority, on the leadership’s hips. So, if they will not support us in opening space for more diversity, they will continue to be the only ones to sit on these shoulders.”

Executive woman, counselor and mother of Sara Maria (11 years old) and Pedro Antonio (3 years old), Rachel Maia says that she has a very challenging schedule, which she bears without any fault in relation to her maternity.

“Sometimes, I manage to give 5% of my day, take part. Sometimes, I’m here, they’re sleeping, take part. Às vez, eu dou um tempo bom tempo para el no fin de semana, faz parte. Olha, I stopped blaming myself. I want to leave a legacy for my children who love me unconditionally. Do meu jeito.”

A job that she herself defines very well: “I wish that I am a worker, dear. I am the result of a full day of work.”