The Unexpected CEO: Leadership, Risk, and Reinvention with Sharita Humphrey

This episode of the Top Voice Podcast features Sharita Humphrey discussing her “unexpected CEO” journey from government auditor and analyst to entrepreneur and CEO. Humphrey shares that she initially had no desire to start a business, but felt a persistent tug to serve rural communities and prepared for the leap by saving two years of salary, setting aside funds for bills, and learning from auditing businesses and interviewing CEOs, along with resources like The Big Leap and The 12 Week Year. She explains how she founded Change in Motion, an economic development consulting and small business advisory firm focused on helping rural communities drive growth while keeping a community feel, and later launched Eco Power to develop geothermal-powered data centers and related infrastructure in rural areas to generate taxable revenue for 30–50 years, create job growth, and improve quality of life with fair wages. The conversation covers identity shifts from employee to CEO, handling fear and introversion, seeking advisors and a team, learning through iteration, avoiding perfectionism and analysis paralysis, and the importance of mindset, planning, and not building alone. Humphrey also answers a closing question about AI by emphasizing that relationships, teams, and human capital remain essential, and shares where to follow her on LinkedIn and at cheritamhumphrey.com.

Timestamps:
00:24 Welcome to Top Voice Podcast + Meet Sharita Humphrey
01:37 From Government Auditor to Taking the Leap (Rebel vs. Trailblazer)
02:58 How She Prepared: Savings, Learning from CEOs, and ‘The Big Leap’
05:04 What She Builds Now: Change in Motion & Rural Economic Development
06:06 Eco Power Vision: Geothermal-Powered Data Centers for Rural Growth
08:50 The ‘Tug’ You Can’t Ignore: Sleepless Nights, Volunteering, and Going Quiet
11:57 Playing Offense in Entrepreneurship: Safety Nets, First Clients, and Calculated Risks
16:06 First Client Milestones + Bringing Government Planning into Business Building
19:40 Owning Your Voice as an Introvert (and Why It Matters for Your Business)
21:15 Leadership vs. Entrepreneurship: You Don’t Have to ‘Just Take the Leap’
21:36 Identity Shifts: From Employee to Building It Yourself
24:17 Stage Fright as a CEO: Toastmasters, Butterflies, and Showing Up Anyway
27:01 Planning vs. Perfection: Launch, Learn, and Iterate
30:21 2–3 Takeaways for Making the Corporate-to-Entrepreneur Leap
33:11 Bonus Question: What Stays Human in an AI-Driven World?
34:59 Where to Follow Sharita + Final Wrap-Up

Connect with Sharita:
https://sharitamhumphrey.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharitamh/
https://x.com/sharitamh2