Honorees Dr. Michele Y. Halyard, Sharon Lechter, Pamela Lam, Pastor Sheriolyn Curry Lasley, Jane Spicer and Bettie Spruill CMEC

“We all have the capacity to be positively powerful. The magnitude of the contributions of this year’s award recipients is truly amazing. They, along with each of our previous 16 Award Recipients, prove that everyone has the opportunity to make dreams a reality.” Author and renowned international trainer, speaker and coach Dr. Joel Martin, creator of the Annual Positively Powerful Woman Awards program.

This year’s Fifth Annual Positively Powerful Woman Awards will be presented to the honorees at the Phoenix Ritz-Carlton on June 22, 2012. Gala luncheon from 11:30AM to 2PM to continue with the Conversation On Leadership Summit (COL) from 2:30PM to 6PM. The program will include an intimate panel with the Award Recipients, speakers and transformational action learning focused on enhancing personal, professional and business development. The public is invited to attend. Additional information about the fifth annual celebration follows.

Dr. Michele Y. Halyard, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Global Leadership.  Dr Michele Halyard is a consultant in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Mayo Clinic in Arizona and an Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology. Her clinical areas of interest include the treatment of breast cancer and head and neck cancer patients. Her research interests involve the treatment of breast cancer with radiation therapy including interactions with systemic therapies, quality of life of in oncology patients and cancer symptom control. Administratively, Dr Halyard has played a variety of administrative roles within Mayo Clinic. She is a past Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology in Arizona. She served 8 years on the Board of Governors of Mayo Clinic in Arizona, including serving as Vice Chair. She also served 8 years as a member of the Mayo Clinic Executive Committee and Board of Trustees. She serves as the Links, Incorporated Health and Human Services Facet Chair, Western Area. She is a co-founder of the Coalition of Blacks Against Breast Cancer.

Sharon Lechter, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Philanthropic Leadership. Sharon Lechter gives back to world communities as both a volunteer and benefactor. She is the founder of Pay Your Family First, a financial education organization and YOUTHpreneur, which sparks the entrepreneurial spirit in children.  Dedicating her life’s work to financial literacy, Ms. Lechter has authored Think and Grow Rich – Three Feet From Gold in cooperation with the Napoleon Hill Foundation, updated Outwitting the Devil by Napoleon Hill-a manuscript hidden for over 70 years and is known world-wide as the co-author of the international best-selling book Rich Dad, Poor Dad and the Rich Dad series of books. Sharon has served on the Dean’s Council 100 of the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University and as a member of the advisory Board of the Spirit of Enterprise at the W.P. Carey School of Business. She serves on the national board of the Women Presidents’ Organization and on the national board of Childhelp, a national organization founded to prevent and treat child abuse. Sharon helps shape the state of financial literacy in our nation through her appointment to the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy.

Pamela Lam, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Corporate Leadership.

Pamela Lam is the vice president of Research and Development for Henkel Laundry and Home Care in North American, reporting directly to the president of Henkel. Ms. Lam has numerous patents and a track record in delivering innovations. Her experience crosses all disciplines within R&D including an overseas assignment in China. She is a founding advisory member of the Asian American Professional Association at Henkel, an active member serving on the Scottsdale Workforce Development and an advocate for young talent development. She has personally, formally and informally, mentored dozens of young professionals. Ms. Lam holds an MS degree in Chemistry from Steven Institute of Technology. She received her Supply Chain Professional Certification at ASU in 2010. Pam was born in Vietnam and has had the pleasure of living in five cities and four countries so far. She is also a Corporate Advisory Council member of the Phoenix Chapter of the National Association of Asian America Professionals (NAAAP).

Jane Spicer, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Entrepreneurial Leadership. Jane is the Owner and President of Daphne’s Head Covers, a family-owned, labor of love that manufactures just about every sort of animal head cover that can be imagined for golf clubs. Jane has offices located in Phoenix and internationally. In growing her business to the global status it has become, she had two goals: One was to remain solvent. The other one was, as her mother always said, “We must do good while we’re doing well.” That was hugely important to her. In that regard, Jane has created a fund raising head cover for Gabriel’s Angels an organization that delivers healing pet therapy to at-risk children. Jane’s entrepreneurial ambitions were awakened when she was a pre-teen and wanted a sailboat. Her mother said if she wanted one, she had to think of a business and make her own money. So she started making and selling toys and those morphed into puppets and ultimately to Daphne’s Head Covers, the firm named for her mother. Today approximately 200 PGA men and women have Daphne’s Head Covers. And, yes, Jane got the sailboat.

Pastor Sheriolyn Curry Lasley, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Spiritual Leadership. Reverend Curry Lasley is the founding pastor of Mt. Moriah A.M.E. Church in Maricopa, AZ. Mt. Moriah was voted into the Desert Mountain Annual Conference in August 2007 and will celebrate 5 years of serving the community on October, 14, 2012. Reverend Curry Lasley is an Itinerant Elder and has earned a Masters of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary. She is also the founder of several businesses, which spiritually align with her ministry. They include Comfort Keepers, which for the last ten years has provided home care services for the elderly and Covenant Family Services, a behavioral health agency that hires and trains caregivers who provide services to seniors so that they may safely stay in their homes. Previously Reverend Currey Lasley was Senior Adult Minister for Tanner Chapel A.M.E. Church and fulfilled many leadership roles at this historical church including Director of Young People and Children’s Division (YPD) and Youth Minister.

Bettie Spruill, CMEC, The 2012 Positively Powerful Woman Award For Educational Leadership. Bettie Spruill, CMEC. is an international coach, management consultant, entrepreneur, public speaker and writer with 30 years’ experience in the field of transformational technology, and sacred commerce. She is also a certified Master NLP practitioner and member of the Transformational Leadership Council. Her retreat, The Feminine Face of Leadership, Power and Sex is an innovative approach to dynamic living. Her company, Ideal Coaching certifies coaches both here in the USA and Mexico. Bettie has led experiential effectiveness seminars and workshops in leadership, purpose and vision, and high performance for more than 20,000 people in Russia, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Chili, Mexico, England, Hong Kong, Canada, Ghana and the U.S. as well as multi-national and American companies and educational institutions. In 2000, Bettie adopted the village of Begora, Ghana. Since then, she has raised thousands of dollars to bring the people of Begoro coaching and training and helped develop vision, leadership, strategies and practices of sustainability. Her mentoring and coaching work with women in prison is having a positive impact on the lives of families and communities. Previously Bettie was Senior Vice President for Lifespring, Inc., one of the largest training and seminar companies in the world. Bettie is a student of the practices of Buddhism, deep ecology and global harmony, Universal Law, Egyptian and Christian mysticism.

2012 Positively Powerful Nonprofit Organization: Diana Gregory Outreach Services.  

This year, donations gathered at the 2012 Awards will be earmarked for Diana Gregory Outreach Services, a non-profit organization that provides programs in health, nutrition, education and housing. Every donation will go towards providing senior citizens with bags filled with free fresh produce (fruits and vegetables). These bags will be hand delivered to their facility/home by Gregory’s Fresh Market Place (GFMP) after the Awards.

Event Information: The public is invited to attend this year’s Fifth Annual Positively Powerful Woman Awards at the Phoenix Ritz-Carlton on June 22, 2012. Gala luncheon from 11:30AM to 2PM. It will continue with the Conversation On Leadership Summit (COL) from 2:30PM to 6PM. The all-inclusive Awards Presentation, Luncheon and COL Summit registration is $75. Register online or by mail.

Thank you Sponsors!

When the spotlight shines on the Positively Powerful Woman, we get to shine a light on her and the causes that matter to her to empower all others to follow her lead. Dr. Joel P. Martin

Corporate Sponsors include Southwest Gas Corporation Community & Consumer Affairs, Arizona State University Diversity and Small Business Program, the National Bank of Arizona founders of the Women’s Financial Group and Henkel where excellence is their passion.  If you are not able to attend, consider sponsoring a seat for a relative or community member.

Dr. Joel P. Martin, Awards Creator and Producer, Positively Powerful Woman Awards. Dr. Joel P. Martin is considered “a genuine genius in her approach to personal transformation.” She is a training designer, facilitator and executive coach, speaker and author. She has worked with hundreds of individuals in Fortune 500 companies, nonprofit and entrepreneurial organizations across many industries in the U.S, South Africa, France, the U.K., Latvia, Finland, Malaysia, Russia and China. Through her company, Triad West Inc., she provides corporate services specializing in diversity and inclusion, leadership development, organizational alignment and executive coaching in breakthrough performance. Dr. Martin serves as a Commissioner on the Human Relations Commission, City of Scottsdale, a board member of ABHOW - a pioneer in senior living,  and she is the Director of Education and Training for the annual FraserNet PowerNetworking Conference, where urban professionals grow and prosper.

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Says Ms. Halim, “The parents are the driving force behind the Rites of Passage. They are encouraged to talk to their daughters about what they have learned in their classes and to assist them with homework assignments. Special parent classes are available to give them the opportunity to learn along with their children. Classes are designed to (a) strengthen parenting skills, (b) create open communication between parent and child, (c) increase cultural awareness, and (d) provide information and referral resources for the family. Monthly talking circles are scheduled for parents and participants.”

This year’s graduates, as always, were awe inspiring in their dancing and eloquent speaking. The parents and grandparents spoke in glowing terms about the program. The Rites of Passage teachers stood proudly by as the young women graduated with an initiation ceremony honoring their parents and an African dance. This was followed by a feast of celebration.

One big surprise was Ms. Halim’s announcement that she would be expanding the program and taking the Rites to the next level — The Passage to Womanhood (PTW). Beginning in 2013, her 20th year, she will be expanding the program to include travel to the African Diaspora. Ghana, West Africa, will be the PTW’s maiden voyage. Following Ghana, trips are being planned to other countries where people of African heritage are influencing cultures, languages and economics. Travel will be free for Rites of Passage participants who meet the established criteria. Parents and others who pay their own fare are also welcome to travel with the group.

A magnificent fund raiser was held with authentic African statues, quilts, baskets, walking sticks and gowns auctioned to provide seed money for this ambitious commitment to the young women who are the future leaders  selected for this honor. Donations and sponsorships can be made online.

“If you educate a man, you educate an individual.

If you educate a woman, you educate a nation.”

African Proverb

Fatimah Halim preparing the young ladies for the Rites of Passage completion ceremony

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Pam Gaber and Gabriel

Gabriel’s Angels mission is to deliver healing pet therapy to at-risk children, nurturing their emotional development and enhancing the quality of their lives forever. Please read on. Perhaps this chapter from Pam Gaber’s book will lead you to create your own revolution.

CHAPTER 5 –THE CHRISTMAS VISIT

My volunteer work at Crisis Nursery coincided with Gabriel’s first year of life. The Friday after we adopted him, I told the kids, “I just got a new puppy!”

“What did you name him?” they asked excitedly.

“We named him Gabriel.”

The next Friday, they asked, “Miss Pam, how’s Gabriel?” I told them that Gabriel had his first bath. The kids’ eyes were wide as I told them how Gabriel had been in the tub, shaking soap and water everywhere. I described how I dried his soft fur and how good he smelled afterwards. “What did he do next?” they asked.

“He fell asleep in my arms.”

“Awww,” the kids responded.

Every time I visited the nursery, they asked about Gabriel and wanted to see pictures, “What did Gabriel do this week? What did he do?”

“Gabriel ate my shoe.”

“Oh – Gabriel ate your shoe. Did you hit him?” on tiny guy asked. In that moment, I was reminded that this little boy was a victim of abuse and neglect.

“Oh, no,” I said. “I just threw away the other shoe. So now I don’t have those shoes anymore. Gabriel didn’t mean to eat my shoe. I left it on the bedroom floor, and he thought it was a toy.” I told them about the times Gabriel ate his bed and tore up the outdoor drip system. They were always interested in hearing how, when Gabriel was challenging, I never hurt him. I now realize that those little stories were lessons about compassion for these kids. They learned that Gabriel was a member of our family, and in my family we did not resolve issues with violence.

I began taking a little album with photos of Gabe to share with the kids. It had various pictures of Gabriel at home sleeping, eating, and playing. The pictures illustrated for the children that Gabriel was part of our family and was always treated as such. One photo was of a huge, beautiful lake with a tiny dot – Gabriel fetching a stick – right in the middle. I would ask, “Where is Gabriel?” And they would point their tiny little fingers right at the dot.

* * *

Since I’d been sharing all the details of Gabriel’s first year with the children, I wanted them to meet him. After all, they had been bonding with an animal they had never met. The perfect opportunity presented itself, so I seized the moment. Marsha Porter was the Executive Director of the Crisis Nursery, and I needed her permission to carry out my plan. “I know you’re having your annual Christmas party in December. And I came last year – without a dog. How about this year I bring Gabriel dressed as Rudolph so the kids can finally meet him?”

She looked at me and said, “That’s interesting.”

Interesting? I thought. That certainly doesn’t mean no.

Off I went to our local doggie boutique, where I purchased a pair of doggie antlers, a “Just Call Me Rudolph” t-shirt, and a big jingle bell collar. Quite honestly, I was amazed at all the Christmas regalia available for dogs at that store. That night, Gabe modeled his reindeer outfit for Mike. I thought he might mind the costume, but Gabriel was beaming, as if to say, “Look at me!” He strutted his stuff down our hallway and around the living room.

The day of the party, we arrived at the Crisis Nursery, and Gabriel jumped out of the car in full reindeer regalia, anxious to greet the children. We walked into the nursery. The children noticed me first, and then their eyes lit up like Christmas trees when they saw Gabriel. At first they were a little confused about whether it was a dog at the end of the leash, or a real reindeer. Some were quite hesitant. “Hi, everyone,” I said. “I brought Gabriel to meet you, and he decided to get dressed up like one of Santa’s reindeer. Would you like to pet him?”

After volunteering with these children every Friday for a year, I had gotten to know them pretty well, but that day they were different. They did not display any anger or violent tendencies; they were simply kind and loving toward Gabriel. They would gently pat his head and hug him. They carefully took his velvety ear and touched it against their cheeks. The nursery became an oasis of peace and serenity. And the only difference that day was the presence of a gentle gray dog.

I remember one little boy who was about five years old, with dark hair and a Spiderman t-shirt. He had just been admitted to the nursery and was in his room crying, uninterested in coming to the party. Even when a child is removed from a violent home and taken to a safe haven, he’s scared to death because he doesn’t know what safety is. Familiar violence feels safer than a peaceful place with strangers. Though the nursery accepted children from birth to age ten, most of these kids seemed to be between four and six years of age. It makes sense, because stress often elevates during the holidays, and it’s generally the little ones who get pulled from the home because they’re just not safe there.

But this little guy kept peeking around the corner to see Gabriel, and before long, he came out and draped his arms around Gabriel’s neck and buried his head in the soft fur. The boy not only stopped crying, but began to smile and laugh. Gabriel’s eyes were a limitless pool of understanding that day. Soon the line for photos with “Rudolph” was longer than the line for photos with Santa!

We all stood in amazement at how Gabriel, without any effort on his part, was reaching these children in a way no human had been able to. It was as if we were watching a movie unravel its plot. Gabriel and I were preparing to leave the party, when the shelter director said to me, “I don’t know what happened here today, but would you bring Gabriel back?” Wow, really? I felt like someone had just told me my child was a genius. I checked Gabe’s calendar, which happened to be free – so I said YES!

As we got in the car to head home, I sensed that something profound had happened. I had witnessed Gabriel reach those children like no person seemed able to. Normally angry, impatient, scared kids had been only kind and loving. I was deeply moved by all of it. I remember thinking that something magical had happened in that nursery, and I could either do something to create more magic, or I could do nothing and let it end there. I decided in that moment that I was going to do something. I just didn’t know quite what.

What Pam Gaber did was form an organization and launch a revolution. Today, Gabriel’s Angels serves 13,000 abused, neglected and at-risk children in Arizona through the application of innovative pet therapy. Presently Gabriel’s Angels has nearly 150 registered volunteer Therapy Teams and 40 Helping Hands delivering pet therapy to over 100 agencies. All services are free of charge to the agency and the children. The future vision of the organization is to expand the therapy program to meet the needs of approximately 7,000-10,000 additional Arizona children that need their services. The current cost to train and support one Therapy Team for a year is $2,500. To learn more about Gabriel’s Angels visit https://www.gabrielsangels.org/. Their “Unleash the Love” Fundraising Breakfast will be held Wednesday, May 2, 2012. Please learn more, volunteer, donate from wherever you are and attend the breakfast if you can.

Be aware of the “little things”.

Related

Gabriel’s Angels Positively Powerful Pam Gaber

Gabriel’s Angels – The Story of the Dog Who Inspired a Revolution

Leadership and what it means “to be a leader” is greatly misunderstood in 2012. We’ve begun to substituted the fairytale notion of the

team building

“White Knight” whose singular obligation is to show up in the last second and save us, our organization and communities at the end the game. We just love the narrative that surrounds the last shot,  the fourth quarter drive, or the home run in the 9th as signals for the win.  All of these are about good fortune and talent though not necessarily about leadership.

Nestled in this notion of the “White Knight” is our belief  that we personally don’t have to take any responsibility for how we participated in the game, that doing the right thing or believing and trusting our team doesn’t matters.  If the end game is so important, then why play the other three quarters? Because most organizations win in an unspectacular fashion – day to day to day, making the small wins that add up to the big one. Leadership, trust, genuineness and the desire to serve all needs to be present at all times.

Here are four keys to winning any game.

• Preparation: In sports, the hours spent on the practice field, getting physically fit, watching tapes  and learning about your opponent makes the difference.  Same is true elsewhere. In the recently released “Game Change” (HBO Movies) the lack of preparation was sited as a major contributor to the difficulties that  John McCain and his runny mate Sarah Palin faced in their 2008 presidential  campaign.
• Team alignment: The expression that your organization is only as strong as your weakest link is not a saying it’s the truth. Every  one has to have the same vision, goals, mission and to be ready mentally when called on.
• Execution: Knowing what to do and doing it are not the same thing. Do the right thing for the right reasons.
• Open to Coaching: When you are in the middle of the game it is impossible to see what you are doing correctly or incorrectly. No one can afford to wait until the game is over to find out what they are doing. Call “time out” and get coached if you want to win.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Check out this quote from Larry Foyt, team director of AJ Foyt Racing.

“We had a really good day of testing yesterday. It was a lot of long nights of hard work to get ready for this test as all the teams are trying to figure out this new car as quickly as they can. Our guys did a really good job as the ABC Supply car ran well all day. I love the communication going on right now between the driver and the engineers. Mike was really smart, pushed the car to where it needed to be but didn’t go over that fine line. We made some good changes and learned a lot about the car.”

The most powerful tool a NASCAR driver has is his car — but his car wouldn’t surv­ive even one race without the care it gets from the crew. NASCAR pit crews are sometimes called the unsung heroes of the sport. That’s because they keep the car (and the driver) going, but they often get very little credit. However, those who are in the know recognize that NASCAR crew members are an integral part of every NASCAR victory and are superb athletes in their own right.

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Black History Month Presentation Slide Dr. Joel P Martin

This Asante proverb was an inspiration to me as I wrote the text of my recent keynote speech for a global corporation’s African American Professional Forum’s Black History month celebration. I asked my audience to be mindful that the demographics and psychographics of the African American and Black populations have been defined by history and asked them to take a journey with me. Even though none of our generations can even begin to imagine what it would be like to live in the part of Black history that I would open with, I asked that they do their best to empathetically understand – to feel – what a true reason we have for honoring the journey of the African American and Black people to the 1.2 trillion dollar spending power they have today. I had one hour to make this difference with my audience. Here are a few of the highlights. I welcome your comments.

The denial of freedom through Slavery accounted for the transportation of a staggering 20 million Africans brought by force and unable to retain a link with family, homeland or language; brought to the Caribbean and Brazil for the big money in sugar and to North America for tobacco and cotton. Half didn’t complete the journey from the African coast dying along the way. Ex-slaves and Black freed people joined by White Abolitionists protested slavery and assisted slaves to freedom using safe houses and the Underground Railroad: Harriet Tubman, an ex-slave and humanitarian, Fredrick Douglas, also an ex-slave, a great speaker and writer, a living rebuttal to slaveholders’ arguments that slaves did not have great intellectual capacity and William Lloyd Garrison, a good friend of Fredrick Douglas. We are the legacy of those who survived the journey over, the illness, the cruelty, the loss of family, status, and position. the loss of life. How would you feel, what would you do it this happened to you?

The denial of the right to Access through the Jim Crow laws passed in 1908. These laws mandated that Black people use separate facilities for travel, lodging, eating and drinking, schooling, worship, housing, and other aspects of social and economic life. However, while after World War I, the Supreme Court declared the Jim Crow laws unconstitutional, the practices too often continued. There was advertising not to Black people; but about them with harsh, negative and stereotypical Black characterizations. YET, despite insults to their humanity. Despite being socially, culturally and environmentally displaced. Despite the physical and mental forms of enslavement, lives lost around them, their cultural patterns persisted– some were reinterpreted, others adapted to fit the new environment. What adaptations would you/do you find necessary to survive, to exist, to heal?

Frederick Douglas said, “Men are not valued in this country, or in any country, for what they are, they are valued for what they do.” And BECAUSE THEY HAD TO THEY DID. Not being allowed access, Black people created Black industries for example, Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican publisher, speaker and advocate of the Black Nationalist and Pan African movements and Madam C.J. Walker, the first female millionaire, who invented and produced Black hair care products and a school. Black Churches were founded and they created Historically Black Colleges and universities. Black media was established. In time Black-owned ad agencies and PR firms were created to present the Black image in a positive portrayal. In Greenwood, Oklahoma there was Black Wall Street ultimately destroyed by vigilante racist white mobs. Other products, artists, and Black-oriented enterprises flourished. Because they were driven, the legacy of these Black entrepreneurs continues today. Dr. Maya Angleou said, “We did what we could with what we knew — and when we knew better we did better.”

• 

  Black History Month Celebration - Entrepreneurs

The Assertion of Rights in response to segregation came with World War II when Black male and female soldiers returned to America. What would you do? They demanded an end to discrimination. Willa Beatrice Brown was the first African-American woman to hold a commercial pilot’s license in the United States and the first African-American female officer in the Civil Air Patrol. She was responsible for Congress’ forming the renowned Tuskegee Airmen squadron, leading to the integration of the U.S. military service in 1948. (See Red Tail.) After A. Philip Randolph threatened a March on Washington, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the Executive Order stating that there should be “no discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or Government because of race, creed, color, or national origin.” In 1941. EEO for the military was born.

The passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 prohibited discrimination in public places, provided for the integration of schools and other public facilities, and made employment discrimination illegal. This document was the most sweeping civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. Rosa Parks, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and people of all nationalities, cultures and races made this possible. The world hasn’t been the same since.

We had to go there to get here.

There are 23.9 million active African American internet users. They are early adopters and more likely to watch video online and to access online content via smart phones and other alternative platforms. Some of the brilliant African Americans I’ve come to find out about are Aprille Ericsson-Jackson — the first Black woman to receive a PhD in Engineering at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Philip Emeagwali who developed the fastest supercomputer software in the world. His IQ is too high to be measured by conventional standards, and he’s won a Gordon Bell Prize, which is like the Nobel Prize for computer science. Mark Dean without whom there may not have been a PC. He holds three of IBM’s original nine PC patents and led the teams that developed the first one-gigahertz chip. And Baratunde Thurston, Director of Digital, The Onion.

African American and Black people are aware of their racial identity. This is evident in their sense of pride and their awareness of discrimination issues – a majority say that discrimination is still a part of most African Americans’ day-to-day lives. Black and African American people are more than likely to say they know how to stand up for themselves…because most have had to. We all know what it is to feel unwelcome in a store regardless of how much or how little one earns. How do you feel when you are stereotyped and discriminated against. Would you stand up for yourself?

This is the pause for the cause of celebration…we all also know what it feels like to have an organization and brand show support and appreciate of African American and Black peoples’ contributions and to celebrate with them their history.

In his book “Brainwashed: Challenging the Myth of Black Inferiority “ Tom Burrell reminded us

“One of the greatest propaganda campaigns of all time was the masterful marketing of the myth of Black inferiority to justify slavery within a democracy.” The last several centuries still haunt us, and hinder our advancement and achievement.”

We’ve still got a long way to go. Meritocracy is a dream. Stereotypes those fearful of the growing majority minority coexists with champions of diversity and change agents who are visionary leaders. We’re moving in the direction of diversity with inclusion and the measurement of different evidences of power along with the purchasing power of other people of color. But that’s a blog post for another day.

We do because we have to. I am because we are…  Powerful. The ability to create the future without being limited by the past. To make the seemingly impossible possible through action. Power is knowing with all certainty that our success is dependent on our ability to create meaningful relationships in our lives. Like those connections our African and Black fore-fathers and fore-mothers have made possible for us. Power is having faith that “A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.” (Proverbs 11: 25) And with that it transforms into empowerment. There is consumer power, love power, community power and green power.

We have many faces. We are many things. We come from many places. We contribute. We spend. We love. We influence. And… We are not all the same.

Note: The Selig Center for Economic Growth annually produces a comprehensive The Multicultural Economy of consumer buying power in the United States. Buying power is defined as disposable income that is available for spending after taxes.

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Hubble Space Photograph of the Sombrero Galaxy

This is excerpted from my book HOW TO BE A POSITIVELY POWERFUL PERSON. It would not have been possible without the greatly appreciated explanations of Nelson Frye who first explained the terms abstract and functional purpose to me.

Purpose answers the questions: Why do I exist? What is my calling? How am I called to serve?

Discovering my purpose and changing my life so that I could live it was one of the biggest breakthroughs of my life. I asked myself: “What do I want to do with the rest of my life?” The answer was evident. My purpose was (and is!) to make a difference, to get people where they want to be … faster! Working with entrepreneurs and corporate leaders who are growing their businesses, building harmonious, winning and inclusive teams fits comfortably within this purpose.

Your purpose in working may be to earn a living, run a company, make a product, or take care of your family. Your purpose in exercising may be to stay in shape, to have fun, or to lose weight. These are short-term purposes. A more powerful purpose is one that you ‘be’. This purpose answers the question, “Why am I alive?” This purpose will guide you for a lifetime. Through it, you will influence others and you will know the actions to take when you are supporting your purpose.

I’m sure that you have asked yourself the question of purpose in some way or at some point in your life. Maybe as a child you looked up at the stars and wondered how far the universe went and what your place in it was.

Regardless, if this is the 1,000,000th time or the first time, take this opportunity to consider the following questions regarding your true purpose: What brings you joy in the giving? How do you spend your volunteer time? What interests have you consistently been about since you were a child? Why? When you think about the legacy you would like to leave, what comes to mind? What is the highest and best use of your time and talents?

Regardless of what it is that you do and why you do it (functional purpose), what is the reason you are ‘here’ that will leave a legacy and be so important that you feel compelled to take action (abstract purpose)? Expressing your purpose in an abstract way will empower you to be ‘on purpose’ in all areas of your positively powerful life. Here are examples of purposes my workshops have inspired. As you will notice, they are abstract: To be creative. To express, inspire, and communicate ideas. To teach others. To make things work. To make a difference with others, to contribute. To lead change. To be a counselor, mentor, and coach. To heal. To run things as the leader. To create happiness.

We are each on this planet for a higher purpose, a purpose that speaks to the highest and best use of us.

Why fear?

Much of our life has become routine. We spend very little time exploring anything new on our own. We have become addicted to how we do things and being confronted with something we can’t or won’t do, creates a stop for us. If you want proof, take a look at your old “to do list”. Notice what got done vs. what was discarded. Most of the items we discard are the items, tasks, relationships, etc. that require us to change, and changing is at its least uncomfortable and at its worst, fearful. We are comfortable with who we think we are, even if we are unhappy in not getting what it is that we say we want.

Leap of Faith

The routine that we give ourselves is a  boundary that we’ve set up to save us from having to change. If we look across and past this imaginary wall we’ve supposedly constructed for our identity, we will see that there is nothing dangerous over there to be afraid of and the possibility of accomplishing more can, if we let it, excite us to take a leap of faith. Dare yourself to find out more about yourself.

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Skrillex in Concert - Photo by Vincent Mo

One of the diversity challenges many people are dealing with today are the four or five generations we have in the workplace. (If you don’t have different generations in your organization you might be missing out on a competitive advantage.) I’m one of the Baby Boomers who fit the research findings in refusing to retire quietly and ride into the sunset. I delight in learning about trends, music, art, people, cultures and the like so when I happened upon this article in the NYT I was totally engaged and listened in. Perhaps you will be too.

Manic Peter Pan Rules Dance Clubs. Consider the numbers: He’s a DJ (a title that minimizes his creativity as far as I’m concerned), nominated for five 2012 Grammy Awards. “In 18 months he has gone from being an obscure D.J. in the Los Angeles club world who played parties for 500 people to selling out 5,000-seat clubs across the country. At a show in Puerto Rico this month he drew 12,000 people.“ He’s gone viral with more than 59 million people listening to his most popular single, “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites,” on YouTube.

Click here to view the embedded video.

He is a Gen Y Millennial, a generation that for the most part is tech savvy, diverse, demanding equal treatment for those who are different and unique, possessing great multitasking abilities, confident and hopeful. (Source: Global Consortium LLC).

He is Skrillex, an artist who is fantastic in producing electronic tracks. Listen for his lyric, “You don’t need to hide my friend ‘cause I’m just like you.” If that’s not a comment endorsing diversity and inclusiveness, I don’t know what is. Let’s learn more, listen to each other, appreciate our differences and dance to the music.

If you have a comment on the differences between generations. Please post. And if you would more information or I can assist you in crossing the generational divide, let me know.

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A few words on alignment: Consider a car’s alignment – out, it’s difficult to drive, you don’t trust it to take the hills. When a car is in alignment, you know it – it’s smoooooth driving! Likewise, any accomplishment will be easier for you to achieve with an aligned team. This business concept can be applied to your corporation, family, networks of support, co-workers, peers, spheres of influence or any other group.

I work with organizations to assist executives with building stronger teams and aligning employees to the vision, core values, mission and other imperatives. The indicators of organizations that are out of alignment include lack of personal accountability, complacency, gossiping, not keeping commitments, being afraid to give and receive feedback, the “do as I say, not as I do” attitude, being a bully, being disrespectful, telling off-color jokes, being arrogant, not listening, being non-inclusive and being a victim. Have you been noticing any of these?

Aligned companies are characterized by mutual respect, win-win attitudes, courageousness, integrity, commitment, a team spirit, trust, and personal responsibility. Importantly they have a quality of connectedness that leads them to creation of results on the bottom line. Everyone sees a clear link between their roles and their part in creating the corporate imperatives. When everything is aligned, people will more easily be able to determine whether or not they are being a contributor or an obstacle. And leaders, this is intentional!

As a consultant who specializes in alignment, leadership and diversity I’ve got plenty of evidence that being and staying in alignment is not always easy but it is possible and imperative with solid working partners and top-down, bottom-up commitment and communication. Walking the talk and empowering others to do the same even when one doesn’t feel like it – easier said than done. However, consider the alternative.

To Learn More

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