Business Unchained
Calling all small business warriors who feel chained to their business! Do you run your business or does your business run you? You've poured your blood, sweat and tears into it and it is time to set yourself free. I'm Bobby Mascia – owner of a wealth management firm, family office, manufacturing business, 18 store Dunkin Franchise, and de facto business coach. My goal? To liberate your business— whether it be operationally, prep for a sale, a legacy handover, or self-management. The roadmap to this freedom is something we will uncover together in Business Unchained." Join me as I learn about fellow entrepreneurs, dissecting their past, present, and future.
Business Unchained
The Business Doctor Is In: Dr. Tammira Lucas on Wealth, Freedom & Impact (S3:E3)
About Dr. Tammira Lucas
Dr. Tammira Lucas is a force in entrepreneurship, education, and community impact. A Baltimore native, she’s the Founder and CEO of The Cube Cowork, the largest Black woman-owned coworking space in the U.S., uniquely offering on-site childcare for working parents. She’s also the Co-Founder of Moms As Entrepreneurs, a national nonprofit that supports mompreneurs in starting, sustaining, and scaling businesses in underserved communities.
A three-time university professor with a doctorate in business, Dr. Lucas has testified before Congress on small business policy, sits on multiple civic and economic boards, and remains a fierce advocate for Black business districts, generational wealth, and economic equity.
Reference Links:
- Green Ridge Wealth Planning
- BobbyMascia.com
- Instagram - Bobby Mascia
- Instagram - Business Unchained
Dr. Tammira Lucas Social Media
- Website - TammiraLucas.com
- Instagram - @TheBusinessDr
Episode Highlights:
How do you go from reading encyclopedias while the neighborhood kids play outside… to testifying before Congress and running the largest Black woman-owned coworking space in the country? How do you raise a daughter who can run your business blindfolded at 14… while still showing up as a professor, nonprofit founder, and truth-teller on Instagram?
In this episode of Business Unchained, Bobby Mascia sits down with Dr. Tammira Lucas—aka The Business Doctor—to unpack the raw, real, and radically different way she’s building businesses, community, and generational wealth.
(02:07) "Growing up in a community like that, the odds of you being anything besides the product of your environment is always against you. Especially being raised by a single mother who was living below the poverty level." — Dr. Tammira Lucas
(50:16) “"And what's the worst thing that can happen? You fail. If that's the worst thing that can happen, why not go for it?".” — Dr. Tammira Lucas
(13:01) "Perfect doesn't exist. Even when it comes down to how you physically look, right? You know, having filters on your picture. Like, these things drive me crazy." — Dr. Tammira Lucas
Tammira opens up about what it really means to be a mom and an entrepreneur—and why perfect is a lie. She talks about the moment she woke up with a wild vision for The Cube, pitched it to her sister, and bet their savings to make it real.
From the classrooms to the co-working floors, from nonprofit boardrooms to neighborhood zoning meetings—this episode is a crash course in how to build boldly, stay grounded, and leave the door open for others to walk through. Let’s dive in.
In this episode:
- (00:00) - Introduction
- (05:25) - Early academic focus and escaping poverty
- (10:36) - First hustle: kids’ mobile spa in college
- (16:49) - Social media perfection vs. authentic motherhood
- (20:45) - Home as HQ: running life like a business
- (25:03) - Vision, sweat equity, and pandemic growth
- (30:04) - Sister co-founder dynamics and building legacy
- (41:35) - Group economics and the mindset of shared wealth
- (45:21) - Rebranding Baltimore and fighting negative narratives
- (55:20) - Teaching by doing: students solving real-world problems
- (58:35) - Internships, mentorship, and giving students a