Today’s guest is fellow Bentley University alum, Mel Latham. Mel is an international poet, voice, creator and author of 'Brown Butter.' Born in Boston but now living in Brooklyn, Mel has been sharing spoken word poetry on stages across the U.S. and Europe, in major cities like Boston, New York City, Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, London, Berlin and more. In 2019, Mel released her debut book of poetry, Brown Butter, a collection of affirming words and poems for self love, worth, expression and healing. She then booked her own European book tour, with shows in Copenhagen, Berlin and London, selling out of her books at her first stop. As a firm believer in the healing power of words, Mel founded a collective space for positive self-talk and views for self, called Vow to Self. She’s the host of the Vow to Self podcast and The Daily Shine, a meditation podcast by The Shine App, voted one of Apple’s best self-care apps of 2020. In addition to all of this work, Mel is also the Director of Marketing and Communications at Riverview Capital, a Boston based investment and wealth management firm. In this interview, we get into Mel’s passion for poetry and storytelling, what led her to studying marketing at Bentley, the healing power of words, her book Brown Butter, and the Vow to Self platform.

Timestamps

00:03:03 Growing up in Boston and values

00:06:16 Passion for poetry and storytelling

00:08:52 What led her to Bentley University

00:11:20 Racism in institutions

00:13:36 Marketing and career aspirations at Bentley

00:17:11 Working at Riverview Capital

00:18:20 Shift to pursuing poetry and moving to New York City

00:20:27 What she's working on today

00:21:32 What inspired her to perform poetry

00:23:02 Spoken poetry and the healing power of words

00:25:37 The Shine App

00:27:10 Power of affirmations and journaling

00:29:05 Her book Brown Butter

00:32:40 Book tour experience

00:36:11 Biggest takeaways from writing her book

00:37:02 What her writing process looks like

00:38:52 Vow to Self

00:40:05 Adjusting to the pandemic

00:43:25 What she wants to have accomplished 10 years from now

00:44:56 Her daily routine

00:46:52 Her driving force

00:48:38 Parting words of wisdom around compassion