About a month after launching the MEBDKX blog, I hit the ground running with Falling Black in Love, my very first business and community development agency. Within the first six months of incorporating, I launched a national community service project in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King. Eight weeks later, I hosted the inaugural Falling Black in Love conference in Tallahassee, Florida. The five-day event included a healthy hair expo and natural hair forum for men, Blowing Off S.T.E.A.M. an event combining science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with the arts, and a panel discussion on colorism and womanhood featuring Destiny’s Child member Michelle Williams. Later that same year, I launched Falling Black in Love Magazine, a digital resource guide for Black millennials that featured articles on Black history, business ownership, marketing, and social entrepreneurship. The digital download had a total social media reach of over 700,000 people. I ended the year with The Juke Joint, a weekend of festivities in line with  FAMU Homecoming Weekend that included a party, a poetry session, and free wine-tasting from Florida A&M’s very own winery.  The event was a tremendous success; we profited over $3,000 and served over 600 patrons.Falling Black in Love and the founding of a community development  agency was one that was not without its trials. On paper, Falling Black in Love and the MEBDKX blog were moderately successful. But there was a major problem: there was no income coming in: At all.  I relied on student loans to pay my rent, feed myself and take care of all of my basic needs.  That financial plan soon fell through and  I found myself unable to pay my rent. That amazing national community service project? My very first mentee died unexpectedly leaving my house in a car accident less than two weeks later.  The Falling Black in Love Conference? My lights were off for the duration of the week. The Falling Black in Love Magazine? I buried my grandfather two weeks prior.  The Juke Joint? My roommate and I were on the verge of a fallout due to my inability to take care of my financial responsibilities.  Yet, I kept working. I kept pushing. I kept grinding and I kept writing. By this time, I assembled another “Bad & Black”  team who had Falling Black in Love running like a full-grown business.