Space To Exhale

Feeling like you just need a minute? A moment to rest, to breathe, to be?

Space to Exhale: A Handbook for Curating a Soft, Centered, Serene Life is your invitation to pause. To release the grind. To reclaim your peace.

Written by Anthem Award-winning activist and Reiki Master Lisa Hurley, Space to Exhale is for:

💚 Anyone exhausted by hustle culture — this book offers gentle guidance for embracing rest.
💚 Anyone craving quiet and reflection — you’ll find meditations, breathwork, affirmations, and soulful tools to center yourself.
💚 Black women who are tired of doing it all — here, you are seen, supported, and validated.
💚 Black women ready to retire the “Strong Black Woman” trope — this is your soft era.
💚 Anyone dealing with post-election fatigue or burnout — this is your reminder to choose you.

Space to Exhale is about creating ease—bit by bit, step by step, breath by breath.

If you’re ready to live a softer life , this book is your blueprint.

Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and all major booksellers
Learn more at spacetoexhalebook.com

Author

Space To Exhale: The Podcast

Host & Executive Producer

The Great Exhale

The Great Exhale is an award-winning private membership community where Black women can relax, lay their burdens down…and exhale. It is a virtual space that prioritizes mental wellness, soft living, and psychological safety. 

If you’re a Black woman who is ready to take your cape off, take a breath, and rest, The Great Exhale is for you. Join the sisterhood today. www.thegreatexhale.com

The Great Exhale is also a strategic partner to companies who are ready to improve their hiring and retention as relates to Black women. If you’re a company that is ready to:

✅ Increase employee engagement
✅ Enhance the onboarding experience
✅ Reduce attrition and turnover
✅ Promote workplace wellness
✅ Diversify your talent pipeline

then let’s talk. Email us at hello@thegreatexhale.com, or learn more at www.itsthegreatexhale.com

Founder & CEO

Wiley

Space To Exhale: A Handbook for Curating a Soft, Centered, Serene Life.  

Say no to hustle culture, and yes to a life of ease. Lisa Hurley, Anthem Award-winning activist and Founder of The Great Exhale, provides you with an inspiring and practical guide to help you beat burnout, embrace rest, and live a soft, fulfilling life.

Part memoir, part manifesto, part meditation manual, Space To Exhale is a self-help handbook that empowers you to remove your superhero cape, put your mask on first, and create lasting life-work balance. 

Lisa draws on her experience as a Reiki Master, community builder, and burnout survivor, sharing anecdotes about her trials and triumphs, as well as the tools that have helped her transform. 

Through healing modalities like affirmations, meditations, and breathwork, as well as her powerful Exhalation Point™ framework, Lisa guides you on a life-changing journey to help you:
 
 
* Know Yourself: Remember who you are, align with your values, and celebrate your strengths.

* Love Yourself: Practice positive self-talk, select your close circle, and prioritize rest.

* Be Yourself: Show up authentically, protect your energy, and live a soft, centered, serene life.

This valuable resource, filled with soft-life strategies and written with Lisa's warmth, wit, and well-earned wisdom, invites you to curate a life filled with joy, peace, and glimmers of delight. 

By sharing her belief that "Rest Is The New Success," she encourages us all to get off the treadmill of constant busyness: avoiding overdrive, and instead welcoming underdrive.

Space To Exhale is a balm for the spirit. It is "woosah" in the form of a book. It earns a well-deserved spot on the bookshelves of anyone seeking to take a breath, redefine success, and curate a life filled with love, alignment, and peace—so you can move from merely surviving to vibrantly thriving.


Out now! Get your copy: https://www.spacetoexhalebook.com/

Lisa Hurley Official 

Founder

For The Culture And The Coins®

Yuvoice

Yuvoice is the online townsquare for superheroes. We are a pro-democracy, community engagement platform and an alternative to toxic social media. We gamify doing good and doing well.

We educate, inspire, and reward superheroes for creating international micro and macro movements. Using a secret, AI-powered algorithm and strong online community building, we aim to hit 1 billion users in a decade.

Our full platform launches publicly in 2025, invite only. You can sign up to follow along and to read honest, on-the-ground stories from our global editorial team.

Advisory Board Member

The Anthem Awards

Presented by IADAS and founded by The Webby Awards in partnership with GLAAD, NAACP, Feeding America, NRDC, WWF and Born This Way Foundation, the Anthem Awards honors the organizations, brands and people creating a world where purpose & mission-driven work becomes the status quo for all business across society.

Juror 

The Book Academy

Led by New York Times bestselling author Luvvie Ajayi Jones, The Book Academy is a comprehensive course designed to guide students from the initial idea to the final reality of a published book. Luvvie's journey as an author has been both remarkable and inspiring, with four New York Times bestsellers to her name in just eight years. Her books have not only changed her life but have touched the lives of countless readers, empowering her to retire her mother, achieve financial success, and gain access to new opportunities.

Founding Member

International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences

With a network of 2000+ intellectually diverse members, IADAS is an international organization that was founded in 1998 to help drive the creative, technical & professional progress of the Internet. 

Presented by the Academy, The Webby Awards, The Lovie Awards and The Anthem Awards recognizes excellence in digital creativity, European Internet, and purpose-driven work respectively, establishing best practices on a yearly basis, and thus pushing the standards of the work continually higher.

Executive Member

Founder, The Great Exhale™ | Award-Winning Activist | Entrepreneur & Speaker | Top 10 LinkedIn Creator in Inclusion & Diversity | Judge, The Anthem Awards | Forbes Featured | #ActuallyAutistic | INFJ | 🇧🇧🇯🇲🇹🇹🇺🇸

Lisa Hurley is a three-time Anthem Award-winning activist, second-generation Reiki Master, author, podcaster, and rest advocate. Her work centers Black women, and converges at the nexus of self care, community care, joy, and rest. Through her writing, speaking, and community-building, Lisa champions soft living for Black women. 

Hurley is the author of Space To Exhale, a transformational book created to help people beat burnout, embrace rest, and curate a soft life. Part memoir, part manifesto, part meditation guide, Space To Exhale is a self-help book that inspires readers to practice the pause and take time to exhale.

As a champion of rest for Black women, Lisa is the founder of The Great Exhale, a global virtual community dedicated to sisterhood, serenity, and soft living. TGE offers curated rituals, inspiring affirmations, and healing conversations for those ready to say no to hustle culture and yes to a life of ease. It is a healing hub where Black women can relax, lay their burdens down—and exhale.

An Executive Member IADAS, Lisa is also a board member of Yuvoice, and a Juror for the Anthem Awards. A respected figure, she has been honored as one of the Top 20 Entrepreneurs to follow on LinkedIn, voted as one of LinkedIn’s Top 50 Black Creators, and recognized as one of the Top 10 Anti-Discrimination Activists in the world. In addition, Lisa has been honored by Hush Loudly as an Introvert to Watch, and as one of pocstock's Future of Black America Top 50 Leaders. As a result of her activism, her thought leadership has been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, Adweek, and more. 

With a passion for speaking out that belies her natural introversion, Lisa is a prolific podcaster. In addition to being the Host and Executive producer of Space To Exhale: The Podcast, a five star-rated show that focuses on self care for Black women, she is also the Co-Founder & Co-Host of The Introvert Sisters Podcast, and a former Co-Host of The Tea on Tap podcast. 

With a strong belief in good vibes, Lisa is known for her inspiring affirmations on TikTok. In her free time, she enjoys bonding with her family, reading a good book, and expressing her creativity through fashion.

Of Caribbean heritage (Barbados, Trinidad, and Jamaica), Lisa is a world traveler with an understandable preference for warmer climes. Her love languages are sunshine, laughter, and naps.

Ready to exhale?
📚 Learn more, and order Space To Exhale: www.spacetoexhalebook.com
🎙️ Listen to Space To Exhale: The Podcast: bit.ly/STEPodcastOnSpotify
🔗 Stay connected: https://linktr.ee/lisahurley

Lisa Hurley

It’s the season finale of Space To Exhale: The Podcast!! 🎉🎉 Tomorrow, on Tuesday  November 25, I’ll be joined by my good sis (and my actual sis!) Sharon Hurley Hall (she/her) for the 30th and final episode of Season 1. 

For this very special show Sharon and I will share a rich and restorative conversation about gratitude as a tool for elevation. 🙏🏾🙏🏾 This Thanksgiving week, we invite you into a reflective space to pause, soften, and rediscover gratitude as a transformative force.
 
As second-generation Reiki Masters, we bring a spiritual lens to this dialogue, connecting gratitude with energy, embodiment, and ease. In this episode, you will get insights on:

🙏🏾 The link between gratitude and grace
🙏🏾 Staying centered during challenging times
🙏🏾 Making appreciation part of your daily rhythm
🙏🏾 Mindfulness and meditation tools to help you exhale
🙏🏾 How Black women can reclaim softness as a form of care

This 30th episode marks a powerful close to the first season. Join us, breathe deeply, and allow yourself to receive the gift of gratitude. 

Join us TOMORROW on Tuesday, November 25 at 12 PM ET. Click here to tap in 👉🏾 https://lnkd.in/eYq-cJKB

Click “Attend,” and we'll see you then! This is your time to exhale.

P.S. Remember to add the event to your calendar so you don’t miss the show!
P.P.S. Invite or tag someone who you know would enjoy this convo. 

#SpaceToExhale #Thanksgiving #HappyThanksgiving #Grateful #Gratitude #TheGreatExhale #SharonHurleyHall #SARN #TheSpaceToExhaleShow #TheIntrovertSisters

Promotional image for Space to Exhale: The Podcast, hosted by Lisa Hurley. The design features a soft mint-green background with smooth fabric-like folds. The title “space to exhale: the podcast” appears at the top in modern sans-serif type, alongside a teal heart noting the air date: “Tuesday, Nov. 25 at 12:00 noon EST.” A banner reads “weekly inspiration for self care & soft living.” Below are two circular portraits: on the left, host Lisa Hurley, smiling in a white blazer, labeled “Host: Lisa Hurley – Author, Space To Exhale & Founder, The Great Exhale.” On the right, guest Sharon Hurley Hall, in a teal top and necklace, labeled “Guest: Sharon Hurley Hall – Author, I’m Tired of Racism & Founder, Sharon’s Anti-Racism Newsletter.” A pink banner reads “Episode 30 | The Gift of Gratitude: Appreciation as Alchemy.” Footer text includes “spacetoexhalebook.com | #spacetoexhale.” The image evokes calm, softness, and community.

Hannah Litt Ltd

At the heart of profound change is a transformative journey requiring courage, resilience, and a commitment to dismantling barriers and fostering true inclusivity. As a leader in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Antiracism, I bring a passionate activist perspective to corporate settings. Every day, we face the harsh realities of intersecting religious and racial injustices, particularly among marginalised groups such as intersectional Black, Brown, and LGBTQ+ communities. I am dedicated to inspiring and guiding organisations to create a culture that values and celebrates diversity, unity, and collective healing.

Recognising the need for compassionate, judgment-free spaces, my mission is to support you with empathy and understanding to cultivate an inclusive corporate environment where every individual feels respected and valued. Despite organisational efforts, systemic biases persist, and leaders must prioritise accountability to dismantle these barriers. My role is to collaborate with you as both a leader and activist, advocating for inclusive policies and fostering empathy among stakeholders. Together, we can drive sustainable change that enriches corporate culture and promotes societal equity and justice.

Project Humanise

Co-Founder

BAC-IN C.I.C.

BAC-IN is a grass roots service that offers innovative solutions inspired by lived experience, positive impact of Transformative Recovery and shared voices of the under-served/seldom engaged Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities . 
Our dedicated staff and volunteers (former service users) are deeply committed to making a difference in transforming lives of individuals and their families.
 
Service users (we prefer to call ‘friends of BAC-IN’) are at the heart of BAC IN’s philosophy, service design, peer led engagement through to planning and decision making.  We are deeply committed to service user involvement, consultation and participation.

NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Working with a panel of experts and practitioners to evaluate the Inclusion Plans submitted as part of scientific proposals for the Astrophysics Division within NASA.

IDEA Consultant for NASA Astrophysics

Mindweaver

As a senior leader within a anti-racism technology organisation working with corporate clients, leading EDIA, Resourcing, Wellbeing and Communities, Outreach and Marketing and Comms,  I have successfully integrated strategic initiatives and antiracism diversity, inclusion, intersectionality, and technology approaches into their businesses to create better outcomes.

Supporting the technology industry. I work closely with corporate clients to develop and implement bespoke solutions through people processes and technology that address systemic racism and promote equity. This includes conducting intersectional anti-racism training for all levels of employees offering bespoke solutions and also consulting services. By fostering a culture of antiracism and actively engaging in conversations around race and racism, we can create inclusive environments that dismantle barriers and foster equal opportunities.

In addition to antiracism, I also prioritise intersectionality in my work.  This includes creating spaces for open dialogue, implementing inclusive policies and practices, and providing resources and support tailored to the unique needs of different intersectional identities, including understanding unique barriers that are in place. 

Working with clients and internal employees to understand the significant impact that technology has on society and the potential it holds to either reinforce or challenge existing biases and inequalities. As a technology-focused leader, I advocate for the ethical and responsible use of technology, ensuring that it does not perpetuate discrimination or harm marginalised communities. I actively promote antiracism & diversity and inclusion in tech product development, data collection and analysis, and algorithmic decision-making processes. By integrating an intersectional and accessible lens into technology, we can create products and systems that are more inclusive, equitable, and beneficial for all users.

 Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Antiracism (EDIA) and Resourcing Senior Leader

Northampton International Academy

Joining in a voluntary governor position to support the school SLT through a period of cultural and transformational change for positive outcomes for young people.

Co-opted Governor (Voluntary)

Black Inclusion Week

We are are group of volunteers that have come together to make a difference but we can not continue the work we do without the support of individuals and organisations committed to Black Inclusion 

Black Inclusion Week, Will:
Make us stronger as one community
We want to support understanding, care and support for each other as we rebuild our strength. We know that together we will heal, so we can rise.

Create a commitment towards change
Encourage everyone to join us by being the change and working to eradicate racism and foster Black inclusion

Be a celebration of Black people in the UK
Amplify the voices of Black people across the UK. Celebrate the achievements and impact that we have had and continue to have in Britain.

Empower all and facilitate action
Increase education and raise awareness through tools and resources to enable individuals and organisations to make tangible progress towards Black inclusion

Connect us through collaboration
Partner and collaborate with individuals, organisations, communities and allies who are ready for and committed to change.

To see how you can support Black Inclusion Week click on the attached document

Committee Member - Volunteer

Motorpoint

Working with the CEO & SLT to drive ED&I cultural change inclusive of retention, talent management, leadership development, employee engagement, reverse mentoring and internal communications

Leading the Talent function to review and improve the recruitment process to ensure a more diverse talent pipeline is coming into the business.

Capturing data at all points of the employee lifecycle to make equitable decisions and make data led decisions in order to set targets

Established relationships with external partners such as Stonewall, Sunflower Lanyard Scheme, NIB, Automotive 30% Club and more

Subject matter expert on best ways to recruit and able to support sites to develop bespoke attraction strategies aligned to labour market in the local community and being representative in the communities we serve. 

Breaking down the walls of communication, create safe spaces and get people together,  facilitate important conversations around empathy, backgrounds, experiences and perspectives; leverage small behavioural changes to gain more participation and show sustained progress

Reviewing all policies to ensure they are inclusive and aligned with our ED&I strategy and cultural change.

Programme/Project Management of all ED&I initiatives working in collaboration with stakeholders across all business areas 

Implementation of a new ATS systems and careers sites  to support ED&I Strategy

Head of Resourcing and Inclusion

Sainsbury's

Talent Manager Argos & Habitat (Contract)

Balfour Beatty plc

Responsible for Resourcing Strategies for the Gas and Water Business unit of Balfour Beatty which are predominately joint ventures. Responsible for the day to day management of a team of Talent Acquisition Specialists
 
A member of HR leadership team for business streams 

Contributing to the strategic development of the business through resourcing and ED&I


Working in partnership with the business unit leaders, the HR Business Partner and the Talent Acquisition Team to define the business unit resourcing strategy whilst contributing to the wider BB UK resourcing and ED&I strategy

In partnership with the HRBP supporting business unit change programmes e.g. mobilisations/ demobilisations and wider group HR Strategies and initiatives e.g. Diversity

Leading the Talent Team to drive the Talent Acquisition Function and bring in diverse talent into the Gas and Water business unit of Balfour Beatty

Implemented Ex Offender Scheme in partnership with Skanska to increase diverse representation 

Worked with the Early Careers team to increase the representation across ethnicity and gender representation 

Worked with Business United MD and Project Directors to run Bias Training to roll out with management team to remove barriers to talent coming in

Administer the “Employer Brand” activities in-line with the Balfour Beatty brand guidelines

Exploring new routes to recruitment via social media, working closely with the marketing team to ensure the right tools and frameworks are in place.

Using online and offline marketing and social media channels to increase brand awareness

Senior Resourcing Business Partner - Gas and Water

Award Winning JEDI (Justice,Equity, Diversity & Inclusion)UK Top 100 Influential Muslims 2022 | Resourcing Leader | Anti Racism | Neurodiversity| Islamaphobia | Wellbeing | Mindweaver

Hey, I'm  Hannah, 

I’m an award-winning resourcing EDI and social impact consultant and a seasoned leader in justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism. My purpose-driven journey has been fueled by a commitment to creating positive change. My experience spans industries such as Automotive, Construction, Retail, Financial Services, and Technology, where I’ve worked with some of the largest organisations and dynamic start-ups. My unique approach to antiracism and decolonisation drives transformation wherever I go.

As a South Asian, Muslim woman from the East African diaspora with ADHD, OCD, and hidden disabilities, I combine lived experiences with strategic knowledge in people-led functions and employee experience. I am committed to making the workplace more inclusive and equitable for neurodivergent people of the Global Majority by creating awareness and driving change in systems where they are most impacted but often excluded from the conversation.

I’ve featured and contributed to books, podcasts, panels, and keynotes on intersectional neurodiversity, disability antiracism, and inclusive workplace cultures. Today, I am excited to be working on my debut book and preparing to launch my eagerly awaited podcast.


I offer direct, transparent guidance grounded in social justice principles through my organisation Hannah Litt Ltd.

If you like my content and have learnt from me and want to pay it forward click here https://ko-fi.com/hannahlitt or you can use my paypal https://www.paypal.me/HannahLitt

taplio

The Battle

Lisa Hurley

Hannah Litt

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreLisa Hurley's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Lisa Hurley

Hannah Litt

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Lisa Hurley's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreLisa Hurley's LinkedIn Performance