Dr. Iris Wright on Turning a Second Chance Into an Ecosystem of Opportunity

At 18, Dr. Iris Wright faced the possibility of up to 20 years in prison after being wrongfully accused of a crime. Her daughter was removed from her care, and she spent years rebuilding her life before receiving a pardon. Long before that day came, she decided that her circumstances would not define what she could become. That decision became the foundation for everything she has built since.

Today, Iris is the founder behind Black Diamond Publishing, Coaching & Consulting and a growing ecosystem that spans publishing, media, healthcare through Wright Circle of Care, logistics, and AI, including Black Diamond AI and The AI-Powered CEO Workforce Lab. After reading Steve Harvey's book JUMP, she quit her job and became a full-time entrepreneur with no large savings and no guarantees, only family, faith, and grit. For her, the common thread across every venture is the same: closing the gap between potential and opportunity for entrepreneurs, authors, and communities seeking a genuine second chance.

Now she is preparing for her next leap. Iris is launching the collaborative book The Power of the JUMP on January 1, 2027, with a celebration of the authors at the Black Diamond Gala & Awards on April 3, 2027, and she is heading to law school in 2028 to advocate for people facing the same system that once threatened her future. In this conversation with Founded by Women, she shares what happens after you jump, why purpose matters more than titles, and how she hopes to build a legacy that outlives her.

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Q: What inspired you to build your ecosystem of businesses across publishing, media, healthcare and logistics, and how has your own journey shaped the work you do?

I did not set out with a master plan to build businesses across several different industries. Each business grew from a need I recognized, an experience I had, or an opportunity I believed I could create for someone else. What may look like separate businesses from the outside publishing, media, healthcare, logistics, and now artificial intelligence are connected by one common thread: creating access, solving problems, opening doors, and building opportunities.

My own journey has shaped that philosophy tremendously. At 18, I was wrongfully accused of a crime and faced the possibility of spending up to 20 years in prison. My daughter was removed from my care, and I spent years fighting to rebuild my life. Eventually, I received a pardon, but long before that happened, I had to decide that my circumstances would not determine what I was capable of becoming.

That experience taught me what it feels like when opportunity seems inaccessible. It also taught me resilience, advocacy, resourcefulness, and the importance of creating your own path when the traditional path does not seem available to you.

Years later, another pivotal moment came when I read Steve Harvey's book JUMP. I will always be grateful to Steve Harvey for writing that book because reading it woke something up in me. It challenged me to stop simply thinking about my goals and dreams and start pursuing them.

So I took my JUMP.

I quit my job and became a full-time entrepreneur.

I did not have a large savings account waiting for me. I did not have every step figured out or a guarantee that everything would work. What I had was my family, faith, a willingness to work hard, and a tremendous amount of grit.

That JUMP changed the trajectory of my life, but it also taught me something that I now share with other entrepreneurs: leaping is only the beginning. You still have to build after you jump. You have to learn, make mistakes, pivot, sacrifice, develop systems, make difficult decisions, and sometimes keep believing in the vision when there is very little evidence yet that it will work.

Those lessons are reflected throughout my businesses. Publishing gives people a platform to tell their stories and establish their voices. Media allows me to create visibility for people and ideas that deserve to be seen and heard. Healthcare is about helping people remain connected to care, resources, and support. Logistics taught me another side of entrepreneurship: operations, systems, compliance, and what it takes to keep businesses moving behind the scenes. My work in AI is now helping entrepreneurs and organizations rethink how they work, build capacity, and prepare for what is coming next.

I have also learned that I do not have to fit into one box to be effective. For a long time, entrepreneurs were encouraged to choose one thing and stay in one lane. My journey taught me something different: when your purpose is clear, you can build in multiple spaces without losing the thread connecting them.

For me, that thread is impact.

I want to build businesses that solve real problems, create opportunities for other people, and leave something meaningful behind. My past taught me how quickly circumstances can change a person's options. My entrepreneurial journey taught me that we can also create new options for ourselves and for others.

That is ultimately what I believe I am building: not simply a collection of businesses, but an ecosystem where experience becomes expertise, expertise creates opportunity, and opportunity becomes legacy.

And it all required me, at different points in my life, to be willing to JUMP.

Q: What problem are you solving for the entrepreneurs, authors and community members you work with?

The problem I am ultimately solving is the gap between potential and opportunity. I work with people who often have the story, expertise, vision, or determination to do something meaningful, but they may lack the strategy, systems, visibility, resources, or access needed to move forward.

For entrepreneurs, I help address the overwhelm that comes with trying to build and operate a business while doing everything yourself. Through business strategy, AI, automation, publishing, media, and visibility opportunities, I help entrepreneurs think beyond simply owning a business and begin building the systems, authority, and infrastructure needed for sustainable growth.

For authors, the challenge is often bigger than writing a book. Many people have powerful stories and valuable expertise but do not know how to turn those experiences into a published work, a recognizable platform, or greater authority. I help authors understand that their book can become the beginning of something larger: speaking, media, thought leadership, business opportunities, and legacy.

For the communities I serve, particularly through my advocacy and reentry work, the problem is often access to a genuine second chance. Too many people are defined indefinitely by a difficult chapter, past decision, incarceration, or circumstance. I understand personally what it feels like to have your future threatened by your past, which is why creating pathways to restoration, opportunity, workforce development, and reintegration matters deeply to me.

Although these areas may appear different, the mission is the same.

I want people to recognize that where they are today does not have to be where they remain. Sometimes people do not need someone to rescue them; they need access, information, strategy, a platform, a system, or simply an opportunity to demonstrate what they are capable of doing.

My work is about helping create that bridge.

Whether I am working with an entrepreneur building a company, an author finding their voice, or someone rebuilding their life, I want to help move them from potential to opportunity, opportunity to action, and action to impact.

Q: What's next for you, including your upcoming book The Power of the JUMP?

One of the projects closest to my heart is my upcoming collaborative book, The Power of the JUMP, launching January 1, 2027. The project was inspired by my own entrepreneurial JUMP and by the impact Steve Harvey's book JUMP had on my life. Reading his book woke something up in me. It gave me the courage to stop waiting for the perfect moment, quit my job, and pursue entrepreneurship full-time even though I did not have savings or every step figured out. I had my family, faith, hard work, and grit.

Now I want to continue that conversation from another perspective: What happens after you JUMP?

The Power of the JUMP brings entrepreneurs together to tell the stories behind entrepreneurship that are not always shown on social media: the good, the great, the bad, and the ugly. We are talking about the courage it takes to leap, but also the financial challenges, mistakes, sacrifices, pivots, failures, victories, leadership lessons, and personal growth that happen after you land.

I want this book to become more than a book. I see it becoming a movement and a platform that encourages people to have honest conversations about entrepreneurship while giving entrepreneurs opportunities to share their stories through media, speaking, publishing, and other visibility platforms.

The virtual launch will take place January 1, 2027, followed by a celebration of the authors at the Black Diamond Gala & Awards on April 3, 2027.

Beyond the book, I am continuing to expand the ecosystem I have built. I am growing my work in publishing and media, developing Black Diamond AI and The AI-Powered CEO Workforce Lab™, expanding healthcare innovation through Wright Circle of Care, and creating more opportunities for entrepreneurs, authors, leaders, and community members to gain access, visibility, education, and support.

But there is another JUMP I am preparing to take one that brings my story full circle.

I am stepping into the legal field.

I recently completed my Paralegal Studies and Criminal Justice degrees, and I am preparing for law school in 2028. This decision was never about how much money I could make with another degree or another title. It is about purpose.

At 18 years old, I experienced what it feels like to need someone to stand up, speak up, and fight for you. I know what it feels like when decisions being made within the justice system can alter the direction of your entire life. Those experiences never left me.

Now I want to use my education, experience, and voice for people who need someone willing to advocate for them.

There is something deeply meaningful to me about going from a young woman whose future was once threatened by the legal system to a woman intentionally preparing to enter that same system equipped with education, experience, compassion, and a voice I am no longer afraid to use.

I am also intentionally stepping into more national speaking, media, and thought-leadership opportunities. I want to use my story and what I have learned from building across multiple industries to have larger conversations about entrepreneurship, AI, and the future of work, leadership, resilience, justice, second chances, and legacy.

At this stage of my life, I am not interested in collecting titles simply to say I achieved something. I want every new chapter to connect to purpose.

I want what I create and what I stand for to outlive me.

My next JUMP is about taking everything I have learned, survived, built, and become, and using it to create a larger platform that opens doors, advocates for people, and reminds others that their circumstances do not get the final word on their future.

I took my first JUMP for myself and my family.

This next one is about purpose, advocacy, and legacy.

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