The surprise came in the form of a career in corporate finance. When the company offered a course on business writing, Nakia familiarized herself with their house style and helped her peers draft client notes. Her desk was likely the only one in the building where coworkers could find The Little Book of Common Sense Investing and Finance and Investment Handbook alongside her college copy of The Little, Brown Handbook and the company’s preferred guide, The Gregg Reference Manual.

In time, Nakia became a financial advisor. When appropriate, she patiently and plainly spoke about investment portfolios and retirement planning instead of relying on confusing industry jargon. Later, she took on a project management role for advisors, adding Project Management Essentials to her professional bookshelf. Nakia was responsible for developing and running training programs for future financial advisors and ghostwrote numerous articles on the company intranet.