Meet Lisa Teasley

We were lucky to catch up with Lisa Teasley recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lisa, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?

I wrote an essay called “The Only Black Person in the Room” for Parabola Magazine because I had long thought that this would be the title of my autobiography. What I discovered in the writing is that I believe in such a thing as a bridge-builder soul and that there is purpose in being a translator of difference and that there are countless ways to build bridges, whether it is between personalities, races, genders, cultures, ages, language, ways of creating community, feeding, clothing or sheltering someone outside of your circle of reference. Being effective or successful in life and work is leading with love and imagination.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am the author of four books, most recently FLUID, a story collection; my first book, also a story collection titled GLOW IN THE DARK, won awards. My two novels, DIVE and HEAT SIGNATURE, garnered critical acclaim. The most exciting project I’m currently involved in is the coming opera, THE PASSION OF NELL, which I wrote the libretto for. It was commissioned by the amazing artistic director, James Darrah for Long Beach Opera. The brilliantly gifted composer is Shelley Washington and the genius musical director is Chris Rountree. In June we had our first set of rehearsals at The Music Center as well as a public workshop with the cast and orchestra at 2220 Arts & Archives. The opera premieres in 2026. As a visual artist, I have exhibited my paintings widely and have done illustrations for books and magazines.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

For as long as I can remember, Know Thyself has been a key lead for my life, work, and sense of purpose. As a writer, being an avid reader as well as working at an ever deeper understanding of human nature, has been the most necessary and basic tools for creating believable, meaningful narrative works. As an artist, essence, color and form are my main concerns. I have relied heavily on intuition for both writing and visual art, and have continued to open in that area. Some call it psychic “gifts” while others may not believe it at all, but I feel we all have it, it’s a matter of not knowing or acknowledging that there is more than just our five senses to receive information from. In fields where your imagination is necessary, restricting your mind from infinite possibitlities is a sure way to keep your life and work from any significant growth or adventure.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

Where we are as humans, the state of our world in terms of the violence, corruption, hunger, poverty, abuse and negligence, is the main challenge I feel daily. When I was a baby, the ghosts of the Vietnam War vets haunted me in my room, and as a toddler I could feel the depth of the effects of assissinations from the pain bodies of the adults around me. None of this has changed. So what has taken me decades to figure out, is that I had to make love and laughter and dancing and hiking and hugging trees a priority, if I was ever going to have a healthy life or a viable work life. If all you do is feel the pain of the world, your own life becomes another casualty.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lisateasley.com
• Instagram: @lisateas
• Facebook: Lisa Teasley
• Linkedin: Lisa Teasley
• Twitter: @thelisateasley

Image Credits

Lisa Teasley portrait by Imogen Teasley-Vlautin