My father passed in 2007. I came to this country in 2011. In the years between, a few men quietly became fathers to me. Elder Leon Welch is one of them.

Elder Leon has served as a minister for over 30 years, gave over 30 years to Harvard, and today works as a life strategist and coach. He has spent his life helping people find solid ground, and standing on it himself.

In this conversation we talk about what "I'm good" really costs a man, the immigrant story, the men who handed it down, what happens to men with no elders, the mask we wear, and how we pass it on.

This is part one. It ends on a question I have never asked him before. His answer is part two.

Chapters 00:00 In this episode 00:57 Welcome 03:54 Solid ground 18:22 The immigrant story 28:56 The men who handed it down 38:35 Men with no elders 43:57 The mask 56:26 Passing it on

The Unmuted Man is where high-performing men take off the mask and find their voice.

If you are struggling, you are not alone. In the US, call or text 988.

What does it actually take to walk away from a "dream" job and bet on yourself? In this first episode of The Unmuted Man, Emmanuel Awa sits down with Senteza "Chef Sentie" Kironde, a Ugandan immigrant who left a Vice President seat at JP Morgan to build Sentie's Kitchen, African BBQ fusion deeply rooted in Ugandan culture, from a farmers-market pop-up to representing Uganda at the Embassy Chef Challenge in Washington, D.C.

This is a raw conversation about the inner life of high-performing immigrant men: redefining success as owning your time, trading your value instead of your worth, the mental load we carry in silence, and why Chef Sentie believes "strength is weakness." He opens up about signing a 5-year lease with zero restaurant experience, why he thinks business plans are useless, raising kids who aren't entitled, and the quiet decision he made at 40 that changed everything.

If you've ever felt like you made it on paper but not in your own life, this one's for you.

This episode touches on alcohol and mental health. If you are struggling, you are not alone. In the US, the SAMHSA Helpline is free and confidential, 24/7: 1-800-662-4357.

CHAPTERS 0:00 Cold open: the four keys to burning the boat 0:41 Why this episode almost didn't happen 1:54 Success is controlling your time 2:55 Trade your value, not your worth 4:15 The money mindset they sold us 5:50 The real hack: needs met, not lifestyle inflation 8:30 One car for 35 years: the immigrant lens 10:33 Welcome to The Unmuted Man, meet Chef Sentie 12:00 The big pivot: JP Morgan VP to the kitchen 14:30 How cooking started by accident 16:00 The pandemic, the 5-year lease, no Plan B 16:55 There's no such thing as the perfect time 19:54 The entrepreneur's mind never switches off 22:43 The immigrant man's invisible pressure 23:50 Living your parents' dream, and forgiving them 30:00 Two Emmanuels: the tech guy vs the creative 34:00 Raising kids who aren't entitled 37:00 Men want respect, women want love? 40:18 Men can't be loved unconditionally 42:50 Putting down stability, picking up uncertainty 44:57 Why he thinks business plans are useless 47:00 Our toughest critics are our own people 50:12 School doesn't make you smarter 53:00 The conversations you have with your wife 56:00 Putting Ugandan food on the map 59:49 Front door in a suit, now the freight elevator 1:02:00 Redefining success 1:05:00 OMO: the One Money Objective 1:09:00 Owning your time 1:13:08 Choosing to be "selfish" with location 1:14:42 Protecting your wellbeing 1:17:02 Strength is weakness 1:20:14 Raised by single mothers 1:24:55 The thing he'd change: quitting drinking at 40 1:28:00 What he's proud of, and his late mother 1:31:00 A message of hope 1:37:55 The vision for Sentie's Kitchen 1:39:00 Brazilians, the plumber, and enterprising cultures 1:42:50 Pass the question: the guest-to-guest relay 1:44:00 One superpower: authenticity 1:50:00 Outro: 4 pillars and 5 keys

Watch the full conversation on YouTube: Part 1: https://youtu.be/_HkH759SacY Part 2: https://youtu.be/bw-yuuXzvzo

Sentie's Kitchen: African BBQ fusion deeply rooted in Ugandan culture.

Order at https://sentieskitchen.com/

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