Leaders of Tomorrow

I am delighted to be speaking at the Boys & Girls Club Erxleben Recreation Center in Elizabeth, New Jersey, on November 22 in partnership with the NBMBAA NJ Chapter, and its Leaders Of Tomorrow (LOT) initiative. The LOT program is a comprehensive programmatic approach for providing leadership development to high school students. Please allow me to extend a special thanks to Tonya Rufus, MBA, MS, Elena D. Coley, Sonya Ruffin, MBA, PHR, Adrienne Combs, MPA, SSM, SASM as well as the Boys & Girls Club for their active involvement in designing and offering this workshop. I look forward to participating in this event! hashtag#mentoring hashtag#makeadifference

What’s Your Theme for 2020?

What’s Your Theme for 2020? A friend recently asked, “What are my New Year’s resolutions?” It made me think of a thought-provoking 2013 article that I read in The Huffington Post that suggested instead of your typical resolutions, assign a theme to your New Year. With that in mind, I jumped on the Harborside Ferry in Jersey City to the World Trade Center (WTC) to give this thought some creative energy. As I strolled the underground mall of the WTC, allowing my ideas to manifest, I eventually arrived at the West Concourse escalators that lead to the street level. Befittingly, the sight of people traveling up the escalators captured my imagination, and just like that, my theme for 2020 revealed itself, “Elevate.” It breaks down into three categories: (1) Personal & (2) Professional Development: The relentless pursuit of maximizing my potential while achieving my goals. In doing so, I will continue to have an insatiable appetite to learn, listen, network, and write in a designed effort to level up. (3) Serving Others: Volunteer my available time to two organizations that are engaged in causes that I am passionate about and align with my core values. So…what’s your theme for 2020? I look forward to growing with you as we Elevate to the next level in the New Year! hashtag#nyc

Are You on the Right Path?

As I stood at the Newport New Jersey train station awaiting the Path into New York City, I made a deliberate effort to feel the swirling wind and to listen to the roar of the train as it approached the platform. At that moment, a thought flashed in my mind, “Are You on the Right Path?" I immediately opened my note-taking app on my iPhone and started capturing my thoughts as I elbowed my way onto an over-packed locomotive. So, what do I mean? I am referring to a person’s daily activities in the quest to move along the right path to achieve one’s goals on the journey of life. That means you have to know what you want and be as specific as possible. As for me, I agree with the approach of writing your goals down and reviewing them three times throughout each day. I also have checkpoints in which I assess if my activities are moving me in the proper direction to achieve my desired results. That includes touching base with a diverse group of mentors to get instant feedback and real-world advice. Because from time to time, you may need to adjust your direction to ensure you remain on the right track. If you have strategies that keep you moving on the right path that you want to share, please add a comment. I wish you all an enjoyable Sunday and a successful week! hashtag#nyc hashtag#motivation

New York City Summit

When Norville Barrington, Director of Business Development for the Metro New York Chapter National Black MBA Association, contacted me a couple of weeks ago regarding an upcoming Summit at the S&P Global corporate office in NYC, I was duty-bound to attend if my schedule permitted. Fortunately, I had the availability and was able to participate, and I am glad I did. As a result, I was able to participate in a “Design Thinking” workshop facilitated by Aisha Taylor, Community Engagement & Partnerships with Google. Aisha provided valuable insight into the definition and a blueprint on the process of design thinking. Also, I learned about the "Grow with Google NYC Learning Center" initiative that offers free digital skills training to all New Yorkers. Then, I had the good fortune to witness Bonin Bough, the Host of "Cleveland Hustles" with LeBron James and Maverick Carter, as executive producers deliver the Keynote Luncheon, which was inspiring and full of invaluable information that is relevant now and well into the future. The energy he brought in his presentation was phenomenal, and his message of challenging the status quo as well as strategies on how to unlock personal exponential growth was fascinating. Have a nice weekend! hashtag#nyc Dianne Francel Caraos Bautista

New Jersey Pharmacist Association Annual Convention

I am always excited to attend the New Jersey Pharmacist Association Annual Meeting & Convention, and this year is no different. Special thanks to Elise M. Barry, MS, CFRE, RCE, James Ward, Samantha Miller, and the team for their efforts in organizing another spectacular event at Harrah’s Resort & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Furthermore, please allow me to acknowledge the relentless work conducted by the New Jersey Pharmacists Association on behalf of Independent Pharmacy Owners in the Garden State in the area of advocacy, continuing education as well as its collaboration with its corporate partners and volunteers. Their work is making a difference! Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not recognize my colleague and friend that attended this year’s convention with me, Wanda Mitreuter. After 20-years with AmerisourceBergen, she is retiring at the end of this year, so this is her final convention. It’s been a privilege to learn from and work with Wanda. I wish her nothing but the best in the next phase of her journey. Have a fantastic weekend! hashtag#newjersey hashtag#amerisourcebergen

Networking

I had a splendid time meeting David Meltzer and making new connections at the renowned 40/40 Club in the heart of Manhattan. The evening began at a meetup location that gracefully transitioned into an Athlete Platform Event. Although I was familiar with Dave's work; generally speaking, he landed on my radar in a big way when I listened to his interview with Jennifer Gluckow and Jeffrey Gitomer on their Podcast. His story regarding his encounter with a lady on a flight to India was captivating! Bear in mind; I had to rewind this portion of the interview multiple times because it was that powerful. As a result, I’ve been consuming Dave's content ever since. So when I got wind that he would be in NYC from a common thread, Al Herrera, I knew I was going to jump on the subway after work to introduce myself and support his event. Dave...it was a delight to meet you in person, and I enjoyed listening to you speak. What is more, I appreciate our sidebar conversation, the knowledge transfer and the signed copy of your book, “Connected to Goodness” that I will begin reading this weekend. Best wishes with your remaining events in the Big Apple and safe travels back to California. Let’s keep in touch. Continued success! Jessie Simon, Vanessa Woodbury, hashtag#nyc, hashtag#motivation

National Black MBA Association 41st Annual Conference

The National Black MBA Association 41st Annual Conference delivered another value-packed experience for its members, college students, jobseekers, and corporate partners. Over 10,000 people descended upon the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, TX. As a first time attendee representing the NBMBAA NJ Chapter, I was awestruck by the degree of passion the members exuded and the active engagement by its corporate partners. Please allow me to recap three of many incredible experiences I had at the conference: 1 - It was great to witness Jesse Tyson pass the torch to Kay Wallace, the new President & CEO of the NBMBAA. 2 - Kim Jenkins Manigault, CPA, delivered an inspiring talk about KeyBank’s diversity and inclusion (D&I) efforts. The theme of her speech was, “Bring your authentic self.” What I found most refreshing were the personal anecdotes she shared on the practical application of D&I in the workplace. 3 - Brett Biggs, CFO for Walmart and Tim Sweeney, President, Global Retail Markets for Liberty Mutual Insurance session titled, “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How to Break Through to Senior Leadership” was phenomenal! Both of these thought leaders offered sage advice and candidate responses. Have a great weekend! hashtag#diversityinclusion

LinkedIn Global - Networking

This past week, I had the good fortune to meet several LinkedIn influencers at LinkedIn Global. It was exciting to interact with such a diverse and passionate group of individuals from all over the country.

The panel discussions were phenomenal and delivered valuable insight on many levels! Also, I had meaningful one-on-one conversations, made new friends, and deepened existing relationships with several of my LinkedIn connections. I was truly touched and inspired by this experience!

Moreover, a lasting impression from this experience is my admiration for those persons who have a natural ability to inspire others. Some inspired by the words they spoke, others by genuine acts of kindness, and the sincere desire to help others without expectation. I met numerous people with these qualities at this event, including Shaneé Moret, Judi Fox, Joe Apfelbaum, and Olga Kirshenbaum to name a few.

Keep inspiring my friends; your efforts are making a difference. The pleasure was all mine, and I look forward to growing with you all. Have a successful week!

#linkedinglobal #nyc