We recently had the chance to connect with Nailah Jones and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Nailah, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
People often look at The Shift Workbook and assume it is just a journal. That is the biggest misunderstanding. I didn’t create this for quick reflection or surface level motivation. I created it for Black women who are moving through one of the biggest transitions of their lives. There is a real shift that happens in your mid twenties through your early thirties. You start outgrowing old versions of yourself. You start paying attention to what no longer feels good. You begin wanting a life that actually reflects who you are becoming.
This workbook was built for that season. It helps you slow down long enough to hear yourself with honesty. It guides you through clarity building, not just feelings dumping. Every section includes questions that make you think differently, therapist led videos that help you go deeper, and space to reconnect with your own voice. It was created to support women who know something in their life is changing, even if they cannot fully name it yet.
Another misconception is that inner work always has to feel heavy. It does not. The Shift Workbook makes room for joy, hope, and a softer kind of growth. It gives you space to hold who you were and who you are becoming at the same time. That balance matters to me.
Once people actually sit with it, they realize it is not just a journal. It is a companion for women in transition, especially for those who are ready to step into the next chapter of their lives with intention rather than fear. It is for the woman who knows she is changing and wants something that can meet her where she is without rushing her or talking down to her.
That is what The Shift Workbook really is. A space for becoming.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Nailah Jones and I am the creator of The Shift Workbook and the founder of The Shift Collective. I have always been interested in the moments that change us and the quiet ways women rebuild themselves while still showing up for everything and everyone around them. A lot of my work is centered on helping women move through major transitions with more clarity and self trust.
The Shift Workbook is my first published project. It is a guided journaling experience that blends thoughtful prompts, therapist led videos, curated playlists, and space for honest reflection. I created it with Black women in mind, especially those who are navigating the kind of life shifts that take place in your mid twenties through your early thirties. It is a season that requires honesty, gentleness, structure, and room to hear yourself clearly. I wanted to create something that met women exactly where they are in that process.
What makes this work special is the intention behind it. I did not want another journal that tells you to stay positive without giving you tools to understand yourself. I wanted something that helps you grow at a real pace and in a way that feels rooted and sustainable. Each woman who purchases the workbook also receives access to a private community where we explore these transitions together. It expands the experience beyond the pages and gives women a space to reflect, connect, and move forward with support.
I believe that when women have spaces to slow down and reflect, they make decisions that align with the life they actually want. My work exists to support that.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Before the world layered its expectations on me, I was a girl who paid close attention. I noticed everything. I studied people, patterns, emotions and I trusted what I felt even before I had language for it. I was intuitive without knowing that’s what it was. I moved through life with a quiet confidence that came from curiosity rather than pressure. I believed I could try things, explore, create and shift directions without having to justify any of it.
As I got older, the world started handing me templates. Be responsible. Be agreeable. Be the strong one. Be the one who figures everything out. I carried roles that made me capable, but they also made me smaller. I learned to prioritize what was expected instead of what I actually wanted. I became good at meeting standards that did not come from me.
The woman I am now is someone who has been unlearning all of that. I have spent the last few years returning to the version of myself who was honest and observant and brave enough to trust what she felt. That internal return is the foundation of my work today. It is what shaped my desire to build spaces and tools for women who are also trying to reconnect with the parts of themselves that existed before the pressure to perform or fit into anything.
My work is not just about growth. It is about remembering the version of yourself that was whole long before the world convinced you otherwise.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering taught me that rebuilding is not a setback. It is a turning point.
This past year required a level of honesty, discipline, and resilience that success never demanded from me. I was carrying a lot at once. I was navigating a major personal transition, holding myself accountable professionally, and studying for one of the most challenging exams of my career. There was no applause, no instant clarity, and no shortcuts. It was just me, my commitments, and the quiet work of showing up every day.
What I learned is that strength does not arrive fully formed. It grows slowly in the moments when you choose not to abandon yourself. I began to understand the difference between moving forward and simply staying busy. I learned to honor my limits, trust my timing, and see rest as a strategy instead of a luxury.
Suffering exposed what success often hides. It brought to light the patterns that needed to be released, the beliefs that no longer served me, and the parts of myself that were ready to grow. It showed me that even in uncertainty, you can rebuild with intention and come out clearer, steadier, and more aligned.
That understanding is woven into The Shift Workbook. I created it for women who are in that same in-between season. It is for the chapter where you are no longer who you used to be, and you are becoming someone stronger, wiser, and more grounded. The workbook reflects what I learned this year: reflection is power, transition has purpose, and you can rebuild your life without losing yourself.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
The project I am committed to, no matter how long it takes, is creating spaces where Black women can grow without losing themselves in the process. For so many of us, our mid twenties and early thirties become a collision of transition. Careers shift, relationships end or deepen, confidence rises and collapses in the same season, and the life we thought we were building starts asking bigger questions of us. I wanted to build something that honors that reality instead of pretending it is supposed to be neat or easy.
The Shift Workbook is my first step in that work. It gives women a place to sit with what is unfolding in their lives and hear their own voice again. My commitment extends far beyond the pages. I want to build resources, community, and conversations that help women move through major life transitions with clarity and steadiness. Growth does not have to feel like an isolating experience. It can feel grounding and strengthening when you have the right support.
This is the work I intend to keep building. I do not see it as a quick project. I see it as a long term investment in women who are becoming more honest, more confident, and more rooted in who they really are.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope people say I was a woman who helped other women return to themselves. Not by positioning myself as a guide with all the answers, but by creating spaces that invited them to look inward with honesty and dignity.
I want the story to be that I paid attention. That I cared about the inner lives of women who are often expected to hold everything together while carrying more than most people know. I hope they say my work made room for them. That it helped them feel understood in a world that often rushes them through their own becoming.
I hope it is clear that my legacy was rooted in courage. That I kept choosing growth even in seasons that were breaking me open. That the work I created came from a real place and met women right where they stood.
If people can look back and say, “Her work helped me hear myself more clearly, and I felt less alone because of it,” then that is enough. That is the story worth leaving behind.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theshiftworkbook.com
- Instagram: @theonlynnj
Image Credits
Photographer: ShotByMK
