Blogs & Insights From Mama Gold
“Success” vs Significance
For those who have been following my journey, I want to introduce myself properly. That means being honest. Raw. Unfiltered.
My name is Ali. Some know me as Alleycat. Some as Mama Gold, a name given to me during a Gold TV series that stayed with me. My close friends know me as Jessica, my middle name. Jessica is lighter, freer, more playful. Alison can be serious. Ali is warm, open, and less guarded.
For a long time, I didn’t believe my story mattered. I didn’t believe my voice mattered.
In 2025, I received harsh criticism from family about my visibility. It broke me more than I expected. I retreated for months into silence, into safety, into healing. I had to look myself in the mirror and ask myself whether being visible was worth the cost.
Butterfly Dreams
Five years ago, a shy young woman entered my life. I never realized how much our journey together could change the very nature of the work I do now and my why.
Five years ago, when I met Jean at a church in the inner city, I could see her remarkable talent as a graphic designer. And how much her creativity was not being given the wings it deserves, the wings it was meant for, the wings that were meant to fly.
The Jackets of our Lives
It was about five years ago, when I sat shyly at the dining room table of a well-known speaker named Nikki Bush, where she spoke about the jackets of her life and what they represented.
I had heard Nikki speak for the first time after her husband, Simon, had been brutally gunned down in their home in December 2017 in a home invasion.
Nikki stood in a church in Parktown, only 18 months after having lost her husband and told her story of the six seconds that changed her life. The same church where she had married her husband. The same church where her children had been christened.
Second Chances
So many people ask me, “Why don't you retire? Why are you still working? What are you trying to prove? You don't need to prove anything anymore.” And lately, I've had to question myself: Why do I work?
Why do I work?
I work because I'm living a second chance, I believe. A second chance at being a better wife, a better mother, a better leader.
The Psychology of Winning
Last week, when Shereen Hunter spoke so deeply and so honestly about the psychology of winning, it really resonated with me. It wasn't just what she said, it was the raw honesty and the heart-felt vulnerability with which she told her story.
As a previous Woman of Stature nominee, she did not win an award the night of that Gala event that year.
She was honest about it. She had to navigate some disappointment, but her true win came in a very different and profound way.
The Power Of Teams
Today I want to explore another critical element of thought leadership that I found so inspiring in Rich Mulholland's recently-launched book, "Relentless Relevance".
