49er Industry Chats: From Passion to Paychecks: How to Get Paid to Do What You Love

From Passion to Paychecks: How to Get Paid to Do What You Love

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Deionna Gipson

Deionna Gipson, BA ‘07, MPA ‘14

CEO, Beauty and Brains, LLC

Deionna has spent over a decade working with large organizations in the Private, Non-Profit and Education Sector. She received her BA in Communication Studies and her MPA from CSULB, as well an MBA from ASU in 2020, and became a Licensed Realtor in 2018. While working at UCLA as a Project and Contract Compliance Manager, she organized and streamlined workloads in multiple departments in addition to working on proposals, budgets, grants and other government funding for programs. This inspired her to start her own business, Beauty and Brains LLC, where she assists small business owners in properly creating and registering their business. Deionna is an actively involved member of her community, leading the Business Concierge Team for the South LA Chamber of Commerce. She also had the opportunity to work on the 2020 Census as a Small Business Partnership Specialist to understand the demographics and needs of business owners throughout South LA. Deionna’s mission is to Educate, Engage and Encourage the South LA Small Business Community.