Highest Leverage with Kishau Rogers

A publication for people exploring new ways to move big ideas forward.

Who I Am

I’m Kishau (pronounced Kih-shaw). I’ve been a full-time entrepreneur for more than two decades. Throughout my career, I’ve built and led teams to deploy enterprise technology solutions for hundreds of U.S. organizations, navigating business models ranging from bootstrapping and grants to raising millions in venture capital.

As the Founder and CEO of Time Study, I made history as the first Black woman in Virginia to raise millions in venture capital. I’m also the Owner and Creative Director of Websmith Studio, a creative studio exploring the intersection of creativity, culture, and human-centered technology.

My superpower is execution: making ideas real and simplifying complex problems. I partner with entrepreneurs and innovators to reframe challenges, reimagine resources, and reshape the future through systems thinking, creativity, and (sometimes) technology.

What You Can Expect

📢 A Quick Note on Where to Find Me: My central hub and primary newsletter live entirely at kishau.com. This Substack, Highest Leverage, is a space for my digital field notes.

Here, I dissect the state of innovation and explore how to reframe challenges, optimize resources, and redefine who gets to shape the future.

I publish here 2–4 times per month, including:

• Work Journal Notes: Unfiltered entries and reflections from my daily work journals.

• Stories: Stories that highlight lessons, non-obvious moves, overlooked resources, and unconventional strategies for moving ideas forward/

• Snippets & Previews: Quotes and snippets from talks, blog posts, my book project, and industry discussions.

• Systemic Commentary: Reflections on current events, the evolution of entrepreneurship and innovation, and who gets to shape the future.

Why subscribe?

I don’t pretend to have all the answers. Here you'll find stories, cautionary tales, and new inspiration for everyday people executing big ideas.

Subscribe if you want:

• Reality over generic advice: Stories and insights grounded in the constraints most entrepreneurs actually face when moving an idea forward.

• Execution over startup theater: Honest reflections on how concepts scale, stripped of industry hype.

• Whole-system thinking over silos: A clearer view of the forces that actually shape progress.

• Practice over possibility: Actionable ideas to help you activate your resources.

Stay Connected

My work lives at kishau.com. The best way to stay connected is to subscribe to my newsletter there.

You can also find me on most social media sites at @kishau. These days, you can usually find me on Threads, or LinkedIn. Feel free to connect; I'd love to hear what you're building.

• Website: kishau.com

• Threads: @kishau

• Instagram: @kishau

• Bluesky: @kishau.com

• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kishau