July 18, 2023 • 48 mins
oin Dr. Lewis in a conversation with Ayanna E. Jackson, Founder, AEJ Consulting LLC. Ms. Jackson is a leading Human Resource professional and career coach located in the Metro Washington D.C. area. She is driven by her love of helping people get to a career they love. She was the Head of Learning & Development at National Public Radio in Washington, DC...which is one of America's most well-known public media news sources. Email: info@ayannaejackson.com Website: www.ayannaejackson.com
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Success 4 Women is broadcast live Thursdays at 2PM ET.
Success 4 Women TV Show is viewed on Talk 4 TV (www.talk4tv.com).
Success 4 Women Radio Show is broadcast on W4WN Radio - Women 4 Women Network (www.w4wn.com) part of Talk 4 Radio (www.talk4radio.com) on the Talk 4 Media Network (www.talk4media.com).
Success 4 Women Podcast is also available on Talk 4 Podcasting (www.talk4podcasting.com), iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Pandora, Spotify, Audible, and over 100 other podcast outlets.
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(00:00):
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Any questions or comments should be directedto those show hosts. Thank you
(00:21):
for choosing W FOURWN Radio. Igot the eye of the time and then
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and did you know women represent justthree percent of four five hundred CEOs and
less than fifteen percent of corporate executivesat top companies worldwide. Have you wondered
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what the secrets are to getting intothe top ranks, whether in the private
or public sector. Do you wantto figure out how to stop being held
back in your career or passed overfor promotion, then you're in the right
place. Hi, I'm doctor Madeloniand lewis president and CEO of the Executive
Women's Success Institute. I have decadesof experience in the military, the federal
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government, and corporate America and mymission is to help women succeed and tap
into their full potential. I wantto reach a million plus women around the
world to become the leaders they aremeant to be. So if you want
to move into a management or executivelevel position, or maybe you're a female
veteran transitioning out of the military intobusiness entrepreneurship, then reach out to the
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Executive Women's Success Institute at three zeroone six ninety three three two eight four.
Let us get you on the fasttrack to success. Well. Hello,
(02:23):
and welcome to the Success for Women'sShow, where you can view us
on Talk for TV and listen tous on the Women for Women Network.
I am doctor Madeline and Lewis yourhost, and my mission is to help
women accelerate the path to success.Well. Today's topic is one Day at
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a Time and my guest is AyannaE. Jackson. Let me just give
you a little bit of background onmiss Jackson. Ayanna E. Jackson is
a leading human resource professional and careercoach located in the metropolitan Washington, DC
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area. She is the founder ofAEJ Consulting, LLC, which she started
in twenty nineteen. Prior to coachingand training full time. Allanna is accomplished
in human resources career spanning twenty twoyears across several five Fortune five hundred companies
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including General Electric, Starbucks, Coffeeat Company, and Harris Corporation. She
was the head of Learning and Developmentat National Public Radio in Washington, DC,
which is one of America's most wellknown public media news sources. I'd
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like to present to you today myguest, Miss Ayanna E. Jackson.
Hi, welcome to the show.It is bir I'm absolutely delighted to be
here. Thank you so much.Well, thank you for taking time out
of your busy schedule to so let'sget started. I always give my audience
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the standard bio on like then,I like to ask the guests to just
tell us what you want us toknow about Ayanna Chex Oh my goodness.
Okay, we'll look at first andforemost, Doctor Lewis, thank you so
much for the invitation. I wasabsolutely flattered when you reached out. I'm
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always happy to help in these situationsand have these conversations, particularly about women
and leadership. It's incredibly important.So just thank you tremendously for inviting me
on today, and I hope theguest and everyone just get a lot out
of the conversation today. So forme personally, I'm originally from Detroit,
Michigan. I'm very proud of that. I attended Clark Atlanta University. I
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got my bachelor's in Business administration Marketing. Then I got a couple of years
in work experience as an HR assistant. I kind of fell into HR by
accident. I got a temp jobdoing that. Really just enjoyed the type
of work, and I went backto Michigan, went to Michigan State University
and got my masters in Labor relationsand human Resources. So I've literally been
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working in you know, in theHR field in various industries since about nineteen
ninety nine. And that's a littlebit about me. I guess we can
get into, you know, myfurther background, entrepreneurial efforts and all of
that. Actually for you to giveus a little bit about your background and
yeah, actually what led you tostart your own business, which is the
(05:45):
EJ Consulting LLC. Yeah, so, you know, I have been an
HR since around nineteen ninety nine,two thousand and After about eighteen years,
I really just got kind of burnedout, like most of us, do,
right know, just the day today task, the business cycle,
some promotions, some not, youknow, constant problems needing to be solved.
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And when the pandemic hit, ofcourse for many of us, that's
what really gonna push me over theedge. I ended up working two different
jobs for about a year and ahalf and that was really my push to
make a change. And so acouple of years prior to the pandemic,
I actually started aeg AEJ consulting andabout two or three years prior to that
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is when I really kind of figuredout career coaching is what gave me joy,
right It was it was my sweetspot and I felt like I had
enough expertise in that area to reallykind of move forward and do my own
thing. And so it was veryplanned out, you know, I just
didn't wake up one day and say, hey, I'm gonna quit and you
know, start my own thing.But it was also too when I became
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certified as a discacilitator. I sawthat impact for me personally immediately, but
I also saw it for others andI knew unequivocally that that was something that
I really wanted to help people todo. And so while I was still
working full time, I really kindof knocked out the administrative pieces of the
business, right, So you know, I set up a website and you
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know, order business cards and gotmy LLC documentation and you know, started
the social media and all of that. And so I started to take on
clients one at a time, youknow, in the evenings, secretly,
during some lunch breaks, sometimes atwork. And I just found that it
was really helpful to do all thatadministrative you know, those administrative pieces up
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front, you know, over time. So when I did leave my corporate
job in September of twenty twenty two, I was able to hit the ground
running and really start focusing on thoserevenue generating activities and not solely you know,
the operating things to get set up. So it's been an interesting journey.
Wow, that is interesting. Sotell us what was the hardest part
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about leaving time career and striking outon your own as an entrepreneur. Yeah,
you know what, if I hadto attribute it to anything, it
was just good old fashioned fear.That was the hardest part. Right,
It's just where our own worst critics, right. I didn't announce anything,
I didn't put anything on LinkedIn orFacebook. I just went out and started
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doing the work or just really kindof continuing the work you know that I
that I wanted to do. Andthe reason that I didn't announce it is,
you know, I had so manycareer connections and friends in different industries
and in the human resources space.You know, I was honestly just fearful
of their judgment, right, Andnot to say that I thought everybody's gonna
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call me and tell me I wasterrible, But you know, I honestly
didn't want to be seen as afailure, particularly because I didn't make it
to the chief HR officer role.Now I knew in my spirit that's not
even a role I want, right, And it's not because I couldn't do
it. It was just literally becausethat's not the type of work I wanted
to do. That's not what gaveme joy. It didn't excite me,
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right, But we as human beings, particularly women, you know, we
could fall prey to what the pressuresof society and where we should be in
our career, especially after you know, so many years of experience, so
you know, moving into entrepreneurship,it was it was I was scared.
I was nervous and another big partof that was growing up. For years,
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I never believed I could be anentrepreneur. I didn't think that was
something for me. As I mentioned, I'm from Detroit. I grew up
in Detroit, and everybody there worked, right, They worked in a company
in an office for you know,big university or one of the big three
auto manufacturers, and you know atthe time that was four GM and Chrysler
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and so. And people were successful, right, They bought homes, they
put their kids through college, youknow, they retired, so it was
a feasible plan. But no onethat I grew up around had their own
business, right. Everybody had towork for somebody else, and one certainly
didn't leave a job to go starttheir own job, right, right.
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It just you know, it justwasn't modeled, you know, it wasn't
shown to me. And so Ireally bought into and just kind of believe
that narrative that I couldn't be anentrepreneur. It wasn't something for me.
So really overcoming that programming from whenI was younger and being used to what
was modeled and just fear that wasthe hardest part. And once I got
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over some of those things, that'syou know, when I really started to
flourish. I think as an entrepreneur, Wow, that is awesome because you
know, there are a lot ofpeople's like you say, and especially women
who would have that fear, wouldhave just gripped them to the princilal way
not have stepped out there that andgone into entrepreneurship. Yeah, yeah,
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to you for thank you. Iencouraged me. I want to I want
to encourage others. So yeah,absolutely, And then we too, we
think everything has to be perfect.We have to have the perfect website and
the perfect business card and the perfectsocial media. Straight just do it.
Just start off there. You knowyou will come just like they just do
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it. So what's the biggest whathas been the biggest lesson you've learned in
your full time career that now whenyou were in your full time career that
now plays a big part in youbeing an entrepreneur. What do you think?
Um, I would probably say Ithink the number one thing is consistency
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and having a routine and how Iwork. Okay, right, And I
figured that out because if I canget up every morning for twenty plus years
and get drussed and be somewhere andyou know, on time, and and
then later have a kid and getmy kid dress, you know, and
be somewhere on time, and beingin an office for eight nine, ten
hours and write and respond and connectand solve problems. If I can do
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that all consistently, I can unequivocallydo that for myself, absolutely right.
And so it's that consistency that youtake from being in that environment for so
long that you just apply to yourself. And you know, the good thing
about it, looking back on itis, you know, I really did
have a good work ethic. Ifyou don't have that, you are going
to struggle as an entrepreneur. Youabsolutely have to get up and do it
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every day, right, And Istill get up, you know, I
still get up not as early,but you know every morning at the desk,
already exercised, eight, showered,ready, and I just really approach
my days as an entrepreneur the sameway that I did when I was working
for somebody, Like you said,that's what you have to do, I
mean, because if you don't takeas serious for yourself, I mean you
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were serious when you were doing itfor someone else, exactly serious. So
you know now it's it's you.So you really want to knock that ball
out of the park. Absolutely absolutely. Why do you add in that consistency?
You create new routines, right,So for me, because now I
have to come to this space everyday and figure out for me how I'm
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going to succeed. I've got noodroutines, right, So I have marketing
Mondays and every Monday, I'm sittingdown. How do I market my business?
What do my socials look like?I also have money Mondays? What's
my money doing? What am Iinvesting in? What bills? You know
do I have that I need topay? What's coming up Wednesdays? Is
writing Wednesdays? I love to write. So I have a blog. I
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made sure I try to get somethingout every Wednesday, or it's website Wednesdays.
I'm updating my website. I'm gonnaadd an events tale like we talked
about. And so just having thoseroutines it's super helpful. And then the
best part, you know, likeany entrepreneur, entrepreneurial tell you you've got
more time for family. You know. Now I can take my daughter to
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lunch. Now I can go ona motorcycle ride with my husband. Now
I can take the kids to thepool in the middle of the day.
You know. So when you havethose routines and you know what you're gonna
do, that's what sets you offersuccess to really have that work life balance
that I think we really all aresearching for, exactly, Like I a
friend of mine, she has herown business, and one of the things
she used to always says, shesays, when the government shut down,
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I shut down to she did shequiet quit what she quiet? Quitting the
same holidays as the federal government.Right, yeah, I believe it all
the time, you know that whenshe used to say that. But it's
like you said, it's how sheset her routine, right right, That's
part of her routine to do itlike that, And so it also gave
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her a bit of a break,you know. I mean, yeah,
just think all of different months thatthe government is closed unfortunately furloughs, but
yes, well no, not withthe little pop but with the actual legal
holidays, you know. Yeah,yeah, definitely definitely that I used to
think. At first I laughed atit, but then I thought, hey,
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you know, it's that's not abad idea. It's it's you want
to structure your particular organization, yourbusiness. How you want to struct absolutely,
hey, is to keep the consistencyand that wow. So what's the
biggest area of opportunity you see formost of your career coaching clients that they
(15:31):
may need to prove upon. Yeah, and you know what, that's such
an easy answer because I've been doingresumes for so long. I see it
pretty consistently every almost every single time. It's what I go in looking for
and I usually always find it.People list what they do on a day
to day basis instead of what they'veaccomplished and achieved. Yeah, that is
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the biggest differentiator that I see onevery single resume, right, And it's
such a huge miss and our abilitiesto showcase our talent, you know,
our resumes, our marketing documents,and it's literally what I coach on the
most. It's honestly, you know, just improving that document about you.
And I think the reason that ithappens. And I've talked and interviewed enough
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people to know. You know,people tend in their day to day at
their job and I'm guilty of thistoo, right, but in their day
to day at their job, they'refocused on the day to day and there
to do list right, And veryrarely are they stopping to assess how they
tie back what they're doing to organizationalgoals, to divisional goals, to department
goal what is the key thing thatthe organization is trying to achieve? And
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this is applicable no matter what typeof work you do. I've worked with
all types of people over the years. Right, So whether you're sudden clothes
at the mall or you know,you're a director of finance, marketing,
whatever, how does the work you'redoing really impact the bottom line? What
are the metrics and results of whatyou do? How much money did you
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make? How much money did yousay making you unique out of that?
What makes you unique out of that? That thing you did that you listed
that you thought was important it mightbe, how do you shape that in
a way that shows this is howit impacted the organization? And that's why
I hired you. They want youto help them get to this level with
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one of the things too, likewhen they get ready to have their performance
a place and all of that stuff. You need to be writing stuff for
that too, you know, givethem to This is what I've been doing
and maybe you didn't even know it, but this is what like. For
example, I've had friends that havebeen presidents of organizations. They have literally
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run a large organization that they were, you know, involved in, but
they don't include that kind of stuff. It's like, let them know.
They make they don't know what you'redoing. You need to add that in
there, because that's a plus foryou. That shows your leadership abilities.
Yeah, that's what you can do, is for it's organizing and different things
that you know. But they think, oh, well, that's an outside
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think. Maybe I don't need to. Yes, you let them know.
I always tell them to toot theirown horn. Don't exactly. I was
just about to say that. Ithink we as women, sometimes we rely
on what is said on paper,the idol, the hey look read this
as a pause to really articulating outloud. This is what I do,
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this is why, right, thisis who I help, This is how
I succeed. I think as women, we are much more hesitant to literally
to our own horn because we're thinking, oh, they see it, they
don't see it, trust me,tell you have to see may see it,
but they don't think it's like,oh, all that important, right,
you got paper. Then they're actuallylooking at it and they may when
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you tell them, well, Ihad to oversee like eighty to one hundred
people, Yet where I organized thisentire five hundred count event that they didn't
know. They don't have to putthe mentrics behind it. That's why you
have missed those metrics how much itwas to show that scope and that depth.
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Now you're you're absolutely right. Wow. Um, So what's the biggest
area of opportunity for managers with teamsof people and how they can get better
at what they do? You know, COVID and the pandemic was just you
know, it changed the world.It changed so much. And I think
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one of the biggest things that Isee with managers being most challenged in their
area of opportunity is really managing theneeds of the mental health concerns of their
teams. Yes, you know,one of the things I love about younger
millennials and gen Z They're going toput their mental health to the forefront and
it is the number one priority andyou're going to pay attention to it.
And I admire them that right becauseI grew up in a time frame as
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gen X where that doesn't hurt ofjust took a sick day or two sucked
it up, got over and wentback to work. And I'm not saying
that was healthy, that's just theway it was, right, And so
I feel like today's managers are reallyill equipped to handle these concerns because there's
rarely a one size fits all solution, right, But what we do know
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is that the solution isn't bringing ina mental health counselor over lunch on zoom
and making it mandatory for everybody toshow up, right. I'm saying that
shouldn't be done, but that's notthe real solution. And so when I
think about that that piece and thatchallenge that managers have, it's a lot
simpler. I think managers just needto have more empathy, right, And
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we're typically really unempathetic because we don'tunderstand, we don't know what that person's
going through, we don't have experiencewith it. It's odd, it's disruptive,
you know. And instead, Ithink managers really need to be better
listeners and really be better at grantingtime off, Like if it's not a
fire, death or robbery, youcan sometime off. It's okay, Right,
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We get so caught up and wantingto get to the bottom line.
We sacifice the very people we needto get the work done. Yes,
and that's that's the big miss,you know. And very rarely in my
time of work, very rarely haveI seen people take advantage of time off
systems. Very rarely do I seepeople, you know, jump on a
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bandwagon so they can take time offtoo, or you know, claim it's
unfair. I rarely see that.But what I have seen is organizations create
rules and policies that punish the actionsof many based on the actions of a
few. Ye right, And we'reso untrusting of our employees. We're petrified
of what the masses are gonna do, and so we put these rules in
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place that really prevent all scenarios inanything. And that's what employees are fighting
back against. That's what unionization effortsare, That's what quiet quitting is.
That's why gen Z is quitting viatext because we don't trust them, we're
not talking to them, we're notempathizing with them. And not to say
all those issues are so are aroundmental health, but it is causing some
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mental health concerners. So I feellike that's one of the things managers and
organizations really need to jump on toreally put some better solutions in place.
Absolutely. Now, one of thethings you mentioned earlier is that you were
as certified facilitator, and you alsomentioned that that's one of your favorite training.
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Why do you feel personal assessments areso important? And just in case
some of the audiences up there don'twith DISC is, would you let them
know what? Yeah? Absolutely?So. The DISK assessment is kind of
like a personality assessment, and theversion that I give really helps you determine
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and figure out not only your ownstyle, but the styles of people around
you. And so I'm sure we'veall taken some form of a DISC assessment
of Mine's brigs, strength Finder orsomething like that. And the thing that
I found with us, and I'mnot complete, but the thing that I
found with them is that they're hardto remember. Right Like if somebody asked
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me my myyer's brigs letters, noclue, I just don't remember what they
are. And so self awareness isthe key to success. The better you
understand not only your strengths, butyour opportunities, your weaknesses. How do
you act when you're stressed out?One of those characters? What drives you,
what motivates you? What are youfearful about what makes you happy.
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This disk assessment, that's the beautyof it. It helps you understand that
not only for yourself, but yourspouse, your kids, your co workers,
your boss, your boss's boss.So it's a really powerful tool.
So when we think about disc theversion that I give, instead of using
numbers and colors and all these things, we use birds, right, We
use the birds. And so thedominant eagle, the interactive parent, I,
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S is supportive, dove, andC is conscientious out. And when
you identify the traits of those birdsand apply to people, your world is
going to change. It's gonna helpyou communicate better, talk to your team
better, be more empathetic, takethe personal out of it. So when
people are stressed and angry in theworkplace, they're not taking it out on
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you. Look at their style andlook at what their stressors are and how
their style plays out under stress.So it's a really powerful assessment. I'm
a huge, huge advocate of it. It's a really fun training, it's
a simple training, and it hasa lot of sticking power. It's something
that people easily remember how to assess. Wow, now I don't ever recall
(24:48):
taking the disks assessment. I havetaken Maya's Briggs. Yeah, I stj
don't. I'm also can Obe andI think I'm like a five five blond
one something like, but what doesthat mean? But but if I tell
you I'm a ninety nine I interactiveparrot, now you're like, oh,
(25:15):
well, what are the characteristics I'ma parrot. They're colorful, they're talking.
If they're interactive, they're social.And now you start to see that
in my personality. Now you startto see that in the way I teach,
in the way I talk, inthe way I you know, interact
with others. And so once youlearn those are just very easy characteristics,
you can apply that to everyone inyour life. And it's it's such a
(25:37):
powerful tool. That is very interesting. I have to take a look at
the distance. Yeah, absolutely,my website reason that is one that I
have never had the opportunity to takethat one. So yeah, now it's
fantastic. Yeah. So what's thebiggest change, maybe the biggest challenge you've
(26:00):
seen leads have to handle in thelast few years since Yeah, again,
that pandemic was just incredibly disruptive alot. Yeah, and in ways that
I think we're still figuring out anddetermining, you know. But when I
when I think about the challenges todaywith managers, aside from the mental health
(26:25):
challenges that they need to kind ofyou know, get a handle on and
get some training behind, um,I would say it's really managing those remote
and hybrid teams right. Um.When the pandemic first hit and everyone was
working from home, I think sometracking software immediately came out to see how
many people are online and win andI thought, okay, that's intrusive,
(26:47):
but okay, we did a tonof hiring, you know, lots of
people got hired during the pandemic,and now we seem to be, you
know, completely reverting back. There'sa huge lack of trust and lack of
product you know, not a lackof productivity, but that unbelief that productivity
is actually happening, you know.And people are worried about time theft,
(27:07):
and some of those are legitimate concerns, but again it's one of those situations
where let's going back to the oldway of doing things is not necessary the
solution or the solution for everybody.And so I think one of the big
challenges for managers is you know,how do you manage those remote teams?
How do you understand those different stylesof the people on your team? How
(27:29):
do you, you know, managedifferent age groups. You know, we've
got several generations in the workplace.Now, who are your team? Have
you hired remotely that you haven't evenmet yet? You should really mean them
in person? Right, bigly oneall ones, those should actually be required.
And so you know, it soundssimple, and honestly it should be,
but it's not happening, you know, but the mindfulness that it should
(27:52):
and there has to be trust,you have to build those relationships. And
you know, I've just always beenof the belief that, you know,
managers number one priority shouldn't really bethe development of their people, because people
feel invested in and trusted and seea path forward in their career. When
they're giving meaningful, broadening assignments,you're not gonna have quiet quitting. So
(28:15):
it's twofold. On the one hand, we have managers not doing what they're
supposed to do for employees, butwe also have employees completely checking out because
they're not having those conversations with theirmanagers in there exactly. It's funny,
I know, you have mentioned tooabout having a tracking software set are working
(28:36):
remotely, because I've seen in myexcess class. Normally I go to like
a naticle class and the people comewith their laptops. They've put them on
a side or you know, sothat they can like as long as I'm
signed in, I'm good. Yeah, yes, exactly. The mindset of
um why they do that and dotheir look class and then I guess they
(29:00):
go on home and get one onthe computer. But I always we got
to treat people like adults, likewe have to not give always give people
the benefit of the doubt, butwe've just got to set the expectation and
then follow up accordingly. Are therepeople out there of using the system,
Absolutely, but it is the onusof the least management system. And the
(29:23):
fact that these companies are losing thesecorporate leases, is that are our backs?
I don't think so. And soI just think, you know,
there's not a one size fit solutionmaking everybody go back into the office.
That doesn't work anymore. People havechanged lives, moves, caring for elderly,
caring for children, like it's justa different day now. And I
(29:45):
don't think managers and organizations are reallyon board with that. Yet I don't
think they get it yet. Ireally don't because they're looking at that bottom
line. A lot of them evenfeel like two are they realized, Hey,
I can still do the work Ineed to do for them and be
home what I need to do.But again, like you said, it's
the discipline part and the con systembecause even if you're at home and you're
(30:10):
supposed to be on the clock fromwhat to five or three or whatever,
then you really need to make thatsacrifice to make sure that you know,
people put that effort in there todo that because like you said, want
you know, a couple can makeit bad for a few and so that
you have some employees are insisting thatsome of these people come back into the
(30:33):
office. But then your other hand, you have a lot of for example,
the federal government, they're playing forspace. Yeah, a lot of
people for space right. Absolutely,they want to they want to come back
and want them to come back sothey can feel that space up to the
cases. So you know, you, like you say, it really did
(30:56):
change or whole that pandemic. Itdid. It did, And then I
looked to it some organizations. Mylast organization NPR National Public Radio. We
didn't miss it be. We didn'tmiss it be. If you were a
regular listener to NPR, you wouldnever know that those hosts were in their
homes, in their closets with mattressesover the door, Like we got it
(31:18):
done. And I'm not saying thatthat's unequivocally how should we should do a
moving forward, But for those whoare capable and who for those who you
know, show that level of productivity, it can be done. It absolutely
can be done. Absolutely absolutely Wow. So what are some ways that people
can better seek out new career opportunities? Market being so unpredictable? Yeah,
(31:44):
So when I think about that question, I think my answer is going to
sound very philosophical, but it doesring true, and it's to me the
kind of foundation of when you startedjob, sirch So the first one is
just your mindset right, and thesecond piece of it is really understanding and
(32:06):
being able to articulate your purpose,your values, and your motors. And
we go into job searching so oftentaking what the market gives us, whatever,
whatever it says, whatever it says, I gotta do, I gotta
do this this, I gotta havethis, this I gotta have these responsibilities,
these tasks, these skills, insteadof really asking for what we are
(32:30):
seeking. Right, because we don'tbelieve us out there, We don't negotiate
salaries, we don't have a debtreduction plan for when we do get the
salary we want, right, wego into it wanting to really maintain our
lifestyle and focus on making more andhaving a better lifestyle with more money.
So my whole philosophy as a careercoach is to get you to a career
(32:51):
you love. And that doesn't justmean peppering the internet for the same resume.
So the titles and salary and tryingto see if you can and check
off every single one of the responsibilitiesand skills that that job description says.
Right, tendary one dimensional in ourcareer search and just like I said,
accepting what the market gives us,the job market is unpredictable, now you
(33:14):
right, you need to go intothis search with the sense of who you
want to help, where you addvalue, what makes you excited about the
role, What can you do inyour sleep, what's easy for you?
You know, what type of environmentdo you want to be in? And
so I don't think we go intoour job search, you know, with
that mentality, we go in jobboard, job board, job board title,
(33:37):
title title, Oh, I thinkthis paid enough? And we go
and we you know, and it'sjust a mindset change in terms of really
understanding what our authentic vocation is andtaking some real time to do that.
And I don't want people to getdiscouraged. That can't take time. But
you're making the decision, Hey,I'm in this role now and I want
(33:58):
to go find a new opportunity.There's some key mental work I think that
you have to do first before youstep out there. Because the jobs are
there, they're gonna be hiring.The market is up and down, but
if you've got skills, there areroles and opportunities out there. We just
need to get really much more specificabout what we want and how we want
it. And it's out there.It can be done, but we got
(34:20):
to change that mindset first, absolutelyso now and we could pretty much hear
it in your voice, But tellwhat are you passionate about and how do
you incorporate that into your work?What am I passionate about? Well,
first, the first thing that comesto mind, I love to read and
(34:40):
I love to write, and soI'm really big on sharing books and reading
and I'm in several book clubs andall of that, and I always kind
of kind of share that with myclients, particularly the career development books I
know that worked for me and sharingthat information. My model is the answers
in the book. I've heard somany people say so many times, I
(35:00):
read this book and it changed mylife. It changed my perspective. It
gave me the nugget that I needed. And so you're not reading, I
beg of you go read, becausereading, to me is just so so
critical. The other thing that I'vegotten super passionate about, which is a
little bit of a surprise, Ireally like graphic design. I can spend
(35:22):
all day in Campvade doing stuff andcreating stuff. Unfortunate I get to do
that for my business. I alsodo that work for my church, so
for median communications team, and sographic design for me has just really like
I love it so much. Ialmost thought about it. I go this
as a side hustle to my sidehustle. This is fun for me,
(35:45):
but yeah, yeah, but thegraphic design piece I really love to do.
And then the last thing I wouldsay is just really being into technology
and particularly AIM. So I'm ahuge advocate right now out of learning tech,
understanding tech, understanding AI, understandingchat GPT. I write about it,
(36:06):
I blog about it, I tellmy clients about it. I'm still
learning about it. I was justin a webinar earlier this week that was
giving an overview of it, andI've been through a dozen overviews, but
I always learned something new every time. This AI have its scary parts,
absolutely. Is it going to eliminatesome jobs, absolutely? Is it going
to create new opportunities? Absolutely?And so I would rather need my clients,
(36:30):
you know, the people that Iimpact and touch and talk to.
I would rather than be on theside of understanding it and learning about it
and knowing about it and ignoring itand not paying attention to it, because
that's how you really get, youknow, knocked out of the park.
So those are three things that youknow. I'm super passionate about it,
and I love to share with peopleall the time. So good, good
(36:52):
to here. So tell me whatdo you have coming up? Anything on
the horizon that you want to tellus about that you you know anywhere you're
gonna be that you might have aboutYeah, no, thank you for asking.
I'm getting there right. So Iwill be a guest speaker in December
at the mid Atlantic Career Councilors Association. I'll be speaking on technology, so
(37:15):
I'm excited about that. Later thismonth, I'll be doing some training around
resumes and interview for the US BotanicalGardens, which is a division of the
architect of the Capitol here in Washington, DC. So I'll be doing some
training there, and then just what'stoday, Today's Thursday? Thursday. On
Tuesday, I just got an emailabout being a guest speaker at another conference
(37:37):
for women's leadership, So I'll bekind of wrapping that up and getting the
details about that, but it'll allbe on my website. Super excited about
the opportunities that I'm being granted,especially to speak and to write. Those
are the biggest areas that I loveto do in training. So I'm just
super grateful and just you know,so blessed that you know, again,
I overcame that fear and just gettingout here and trying to do all the
(38:00):
things you know that I love andstill get paid for it. That's an
entrepreneur. So I'm super super grateful. For it. So tell us if
you had one piece of advice thatyou leave with our viewers and our listeners,
what would that advice be. Iwould say, overcome your fears.
(38:24):
I'm not the first to do this, I'm not the last to do this.
And when I just think back overmy journey over the last you know,
two three years and the changes thathave come about, is really about
overcoming fear. Like we are ourown worst critics and greatest you know,
enemies of you know, self doubtand not doing things, and so just
(38:45):
start. It doesn't have to beperfect, it doesn't have to be the
greatest, it doesn't have to besuper new, but just get on board
with a few people who are inthe space that you want to be in.
Absolutely listen to what are talking about. Listen to some podcasts like it's
it's a lot easier than people makeit out to be. And I'm not
(39:07):
saying it's easy it's a cakewalk,But if you just apply yourself, if
you start to start, just overcomethat fear and start. It's where I
would tell people to land because it'sit's such a blessing on the other side,
it really is. Wow. Sotell us how can the viewers and
listeners find you if they want tocontact you with any questions, anything that
(39:32):
they might want to know about,let us know how they can reach out
to you. Absolutely, So,first off, my email address, it's
info I Info at Ayanna E.Jackson dot com. Super simple. And
then on social media platforms just abouteveryone, you can find me as Ayanna
(39:52):
Career Coach. I just join Threads, the new Twitter. If you're on
Threads, come follow me. Therehave a ball over there, that's a
great platform. I'm also of courseon LinkedIn. You can find me at
Ayanna E. Jackson or my companyA E J Consalting LLC. So I'm
pretty easy to find Ayanna Career Coachacross the board is how you can find
(40:14):
me. And yes she is.I found her on LinkedIn and that's how
we make this. So I knowthat you are very easy to find because
when I reached out to you,you responded. You know, you got
back right away. So uh,it was great having you on the show,
super quick. Thank you so much. Have you shared your nuggets with
(40:36):
us? And actually I'll probably reachout to you again something else you might
another platform you may want to comeand talk about the things that you do,
especially business wise. The Black MissinessFix is a entrepreneur, absolutely sure
so, and I mean the thingsthat you've done and what you're doing.
It would be a great thing foryou to come on and talk about.
(40:59):
Thank you, Okay, thank you, yeah, so, thank you again
for joining us today. It's beengreat to have you on the show.
And I will be back in touchwith you. Thank you. What's going
on? So, but right nowI'm going to talk about some upcoming events
that I have coming up, andthat is for to let everyone know that
(41:24):
they should not forget to pre ordertheir copies of the Own It anthology It's
Your Life, Own It Unapologetically andthe Journal three hundred and sixty five days
to transformation. To pre order thepaperback book and journal separately, each will
(41:45):
be twenty four ninety nine for ifyou purchase just the one, or to
order the complete set both the bookand the journal, it is forty nine
ninety nine. To order your copies, you can email me at info at
each XWSI dot com, or youcan go to my link of www dot
(42:07):
my website, I should say wwwdot EXWSI dot com. The Success Store
click on at the top the successstore and also the links are there where
you can order them through my website. Also, make sure to tune in
to the Black Business Olympics this month. It's going to be July twenty fourth
(42:29):
through July thirtieth. And of course, the Black Business Olympics is a fundraiser
to provide scholarships and laptops to highschool seniors going to college and K through
twelve entrepreneurs. The Black Business Olympicsshowcases black businesses, black business owners and
(42:50):
corporations all around the world. Andif you'd like to be a speaker to
showcase your business, you can emailme at info at EXWSI dot com and
here it comes. I want youto get ready. Get ready, then
start packing or get your bags ready, get your suitcases ready because the next
(43:13):
show up to rise up twenty twentyfour Women's Retreat, we will be heading
to Jamaica. So make sure thatyou start now to update or get your
passport because as I understand, it'sa bit of a weight. May take
about three, I don't know,three to six months for you to obtain
your passport if you don't already haveone. So you want to get that
(43:35):
started now so that won't be adeterrent Again, make sure you get ready
for the twenty twenty four Show Upto Rise Up Women's Retreat and I also
coming soon you'll be able to jointhe women Show Up to Rise Up Network
and the mission of course of theWomen's Show Up to Rise Up Network will
(43:57):
be to empower and to connect allwomen in their career, business, professional
and personal lives by helping them togain resources, gain buying power, increase
their revenue and accelerate their personal businessand career growth through unlimited opportunities. And
as a member you will be youwill have access to coaching, training,
(44:21):
different events, workshops, resources,networking and much more. All set too.
If you have not viewed my TEDxtalk that I did in Vancouver,
Canada, make sure to do so. My topic again is show Up to
Rise Up. You can watch iton YouTube. If you do, you
(44:43):
can put my name in the searchbox doctor Madeline and Lewis, or you
can email me at info at EXWSIdot com and I will send you the
direct link. Make sure to checkit out as I'm excited because as of
today it has one hundred sixty eightthousand, eight hundred and sixty nine views
(45:05):
and of course, my goal isto reach one million plus, So thank
you and for all of those whohave already viewed it and thanking thanking you
in advance for those that will supportand share the video, and we'll be
doing so. I am also acontributing writer to the own It magazine where
(45:27):
I share nuggets and resources every month. Own It Magazine is a resource for
personal and professional business development, somake sure you get a copy or either
you can get a subscription. Andfor the subscription of the magazine, you
can go to my website www dotEXWSI dot com or again you can email
(45:52):
me info at EXWSI dot com.I'll be glad to send you a digital
copy so you could take a lookat the magazine and see what you'll be
getting. And that will be allof the announcements. So again, I
want to thank my guests, MissAyanna E. Jackson for joining us today.
(46:13):
She shared some great nuggets, soif you did not take notes,
you can always go back and listento this episode. I want to thank
all my viewers and listeners for joiningme today. This has been the successful
women's show. I am doctor MadelineAnne Lewis and if you like to reach
out to me. You can alwaysemail me at info at exwsi dot com
(46:37):
or go to my website www dotexwsi dot com and while you're there may
show you download my three part videoseries on three things every woman should do
to position herself for executive leadership.And don't forget to sign up for my
(46:59):
online core which is Cracked the CareerCode how to Lead with Confidence, Charisma
and Credibility. To sign up forthe course, you can go to www
dot Crack the Careercode dot com.You can also reach out to me on
any of the social media sites.I'm easy to find. Again, just
(47:21):
put in my name and it shouldpull it right up. Don't forget to
subscribe to the channel, my YouTubechannel and also the talk for TV channel.
Like this episode, and make surethat you share, Share Share,
because we had some great nuggets todayfrom Ayanna E. Jackson. Again,
(47:42):
this is a success for women's show. We are here every Thursday at two
pm Eastern Standard time. I'm yourhost, doctor Madeline and Lewis helping women
to accelerate the path to success.Thank you all again for joining me.
I love you all to life.So as always be well and stay safe
(48:06):
out there I got the eye ofthe time, and
The topics and opinions expressed on thefollowing show are solely those of the hosts
and their guests, and not thoseof W four w N Radio It's employees
or affiliates. We make no recommendationsor endorsements for radio show programs, services,
or products mentioned on air or onour web. No liability, explicit
or implied shall be extended to Wfour w N Radio It's employees or affiliates.
Any questions or comments should be directedto those show hosts. Thank you
(00:21):
for choosing W FOURWN Radio. Igot the eye of the time and then
(00:45):
and did you know women represent justthree percent of four five hundred CEOs and
less than fifteen percent of corporate executivesat top companies worldwide. Have you wondered
(01:07):
what the secrets are to getting intothe top ranks, whether in the private
or public sector. Do you wantto figure out how to stop being held
back in your career or passed overfor promotion, then you're in the right
place. Hi, I'm doctor Madeloniand lewis president and CEO of the Executive
Women's Success Institute. I have decadesof experience in the military, the federal
(01:34):
government, and corporate America and mymission is to help women succeed and tap
into their full potential. I wantto reach a million plus women around the
world to become the leaders they aremeant to be. So if you want
to move into a management or executivelevel position, or maybe you're a female
veteran transitioning out of the military intobusiness entrepreneurship, then reach out to the
(02:00):
Executive Women's Success Institute at three zeroone six ninety three three two eight four.
Let us get you on the fasttrack to success. Well. Hello,
(02:23):
and welcome to the Success for Women'sShow, where you can view us
on Talk for TV and listen tous on the Women for Women Network.
I am doctor Madeline and Lewis yourhost, and my mission is to help
women accelerate the path to success.Well. Today's topic is one Day at
(02:47):
a Time and my guest is AyannaE. Jackson. Let me just give
you a little bit of background onmiss Jackson. Ayanna E. Jackson is
a leading human resource professional and careercoach located in the metropolitan Washington, DC
(03:08):
area. She is the founder ofAEJ Consulting, LLC, which she started
in twenty nineteen. Prior to coachingand training full time. Allanna is accomplished
in human resources career spanning twenty twoyears across several five Fortune five hundred companies
(03:31):
including General Electric, Starbucks, Coffeeat Company, and Harris Corporation. She
was the head of Learning and Developmentat National Public Radio in Washington, DC,
which is one of America's most wellknown public media news sources. I'd
(03:53):
like to present to you today myguest, Miss Ayanna E. Jackson.
Hi, welcome to the show.It is bir I'm absolutely delighted to be
here. Thank you so much.Well, thank you for taking time out
of your busy schedule to so let'sget started. I always give my audience
(04:17):
the standard bio on like then,I like to ask the guests to just
tell us what you want us toknow about Ayanna Chex Oh my goodness.
Okay, we'll look at first andforemost, Doctor Lewis, thank you so
much for the invitation. I wasabsolutely flattered when you reached out. I'm
(04:39):
always happy to help in these situationsand have these conversations, particularly about women
and leadership. It's incredibly important.So just thank you tremendously for inviting me
on today, and I hope theguest and everyone just get a lot out
of the conversation today. So forme personally, I'm originally from Detroit,
Michigan. I'm very proud of that. I attended Clark Atlanta University. I
(05:02):
got my bachelor's in Business administration Marketing. Then I got a couple of years
in work experience as an HR assistant. I kind of fell into HR by
accident. I got a temp jobdoing that. Really just enjoyed the type
of work, and I went backto Michigan, went to Michigan State University
and got my masters in Labor relationsand human Resources. So I've literally been
(05:23):
working in you know, in theHR field in various industries since about nineteen
ninety nine. And that's a littlebit about me. I guess we can
get into, you know, myfurther background, entrepreneurial efforts and all of
that. Actually for you to giveus a little bit about your background and
yeah, actually what led you tostart your own business, which is the
(05:45):
EJ Consulting LLC. Yeah, so, you know, I have been an
HR since around nineteen ninety nine,two thousand and After about eighteen years,
I really just got kind of burnedout, like most of us, do,
right know, just the day today task, the business cycle,
some promotions, some not, youknow, constant problems needing to be solved.
(06:08):
And when the pandemic hit, ofcourse for many of us, that's
what really gonna push me over theedge. I ended up working two different
jobs for about a year and ahalf and that was really my push to
make a change. And so acouple of years prior to the pandemic,
I actually started aeg AEJ consulting andabout two or three years prior to that
(06:30):
is when I really kind of figuredout career coaching is what gave me joy,
right It was it was my sweetspot and I felt like I had
enough expertise in that area to reallykind of move forward and do my own
thing. And so it was veryplanned out, you know, I just
didn't wake up one day and say, hey, I'm gonna quit and you
know, start my own thing.But it was also too when I became
(06:53):
certified as a discacilitator. I sawthat impact for me personally immediately, but
I also saw it for others andI knew unequivocally that that was something that
I really wanted to help people todo. And so while I was still
working full time, I really kindof knocked out the administrative pieces of the
business, right, So you know, I set up a website and you
(07:16):
know, order business cards and gotmy LLC documentation and you know, started
the social media and all of that. And so I started to take on
clients one at a time, youknow, in the evenings, secretly,
during some lunch breaks, sometimes atwork. And I just found that it
was really helpful to do all thatadministrative you know, those administrative pieces up
(07:38):
front, you know, over time. So when I did leave my corporate
job in September of twenty twenty two, I was able to hit the ground
running and really start focusing on thoserevenue generating activities and not solely you know,
the operating things to get set up. So it's been an interesting journey.
Wow, that is interesting. Sotell us what was the hardest part
(08:00):
about leaving time career and striking outon your own as an entrepreneur. Yeah,
you know what, if I hadto attribute it to anything, it
was just good old fashioned fear.That was the hardest part. Right,
It's just where our own worst critics, right. I didn't announce anything,
I didn't put anything on LinkedIn orFacebook. I just went out and started
(08:22):
doing the work or just really kindof continuing the work you know that I
that I wanted to do. Andthe reason that I didn't announce it is,
you know, I had so manycareer connections and friends in different industries
and in the human resources space.You know, I was honestly just fearful
of their judgment, right, Andnot to say that I thought everybody's gonna
(08:43):
call me and tell me I wasterrible, But you know, I honestly
didn't want to be seen as afailure, particularly because I didn't make it
to the chief HR officer role.Now I knew in my spirit that's not
even a role I want, right, And it's not because I couldn't do
it. It was just literally becausethat's not the type of work I wanted
to do. That's not what gaveme joy. It didn't excite me,
(09:05):
right, But we as human beings, particularly women, you know, we
could fall prey to what the pressuresof society and where we should be in
our career, especially after you know, so many years of experience, so
you know, moving into entrepreneurship,it was it was I was scared.
I was nervous and another big partof that was growing up. For years,
(09:28):
I never believed I could be anentrepreneur. I didn't think that was
something for me. As I mentioned, I'm from Detroit. I grew up
in Detroit, and everybody there worked, right, They worked in a company
in an office for you know,big university or one of the big three
auto manufacturers, and you know atthe time that was four GM and Chrysler
(09:50):
and so. And people were successful, right, They bought homes, they
put their kids through college, youknow, they retired, so it was
a feasible plan. But no onethat I grew up around had their own
business, right. Everybody had towork for somebody else, and one certainly
didn't leave a job to go starttheir own job, right, right.
(10:11):
It just you know, it justwasn't modeled, you know, it wasn't
shown to me. And so Ireally bought into and just kind of believe
that narrative that I couldn't be anentrepreneur. It wasn't something for me.
So really overcoming that programming from whenI was younger and being used to what
was modeled and just fear that wasthe hardest part. And once I got
(10:33):
over some of those things, that'syou know, when I really started to
flourish. I think as an entrepreneur, Wow, that is awesome because you
know, there are a lot ofpeople's like you say, and especially women
who would have that fear, wouldhave just gripped them to the princilal way
not have stepped out there that andgone into entrepreneurship. Yeah, yeah,
(10:58):
to you for thank you. Iencouraged me. I want to I want
to encourage others. So yeah,absolutely, And then we too, we
think everything has to be perfect.We have to have the perfect website and
the perfect business card and the perfectsocial media. Straight just do it.
Just start off there. You knowyou will come just like they just do
(11:22):
it. So what's the biggest whathas been the biggest lesson you've learned in
your full time career that now whenyou were in your full time career that
now plays a big part in youbeing an entrepreneur. What do you think?
Um, I would probably say Ithink the number one thing is consistency
(11:45):
and having a routine and how Iwork. Okay, right, And I
figured that out because if I canget up every morning for twenty plus years
and get drussed and be somewhere andyou know, on time, and and
then later have a kid and getmy kid dress, you know, and
be somewhere on time, and beingin an office for eight nine, ten
hours and write and respond and connectand solve problems. If I can do
(12:09):
that all consistently, I can unequivocallydo that for myself, absolutely right.
And so it's that consistency that youtake from being in that environment for so
long that you just apply to yourself. And you know, the good thing
about it, looking back on itis, you know, I really did
have a good work ethic. Ifyou don't have that, you are going
to struggle as an entrepreneur. Youabsolutely have to get up and do it
(12:33):
every day, right, And Istill get up, you know, I
still get up not as early,but you know every morning at the desk,
already exercised, eight, showered,ready, and I just really approach
my days as an entrepreneur the sameway that I did when I was working
for somebody, Like you said,that's what you have to do, I
mean, because if you don't takeas serious for yourself, I mean you
(12:56):
were serious when you were doing itfor someone else, exactly serious. So
you know now it's it's you.So you really want to knock that ball
out of the park. Absolutely absolutely. Why do you add in that consistency?
You create new routines, right,So for me, because now I
have to come to this space everyday and figure out for me how I'm
(13:20):
going to succeed. I've got noodroutines, right, So I have marketing
Mondays and every Monday, I'm sittingdown. How do I market my business?
What do my socials look like?I also have money Mondays? What's
my money doing? What am Iinvesting in? What bills? You know
do I have that I need topay? What's coming up Wednesdays? Is
writing Wednesdays? I love to write. So I have a blog. I
(13:41):
made sure I try to get somethingout every Wednesday, or it's website Wednesdays.
I'm updating my website. I'm gonnaadd an events tale like we talked
about. And so just having thoseroutines it's super helpful. And then the
best part, you know, likeany entrepreneur, entrepreneurial tell you you've got
more time for family. You know. Now I can take my daughter to
(14:03):
lunch. Now I can go ona motorcycle ride with my husband. Now
I can take the kids to thepool in the middle of the day.
You know. So when you havethose routines and you know what you're gonna
do, that's what sets you offersuccess to really have that work life balance
that I think we really all aresearching for, exactly, Like I a
friend of mine, she has herown business, and one of the things
she used to always says, shesays, when the government shut down,
(14:24):
I shut down to she did shequiet quit what she quiet? Quitting the
same holidays as the federal government.Right, yeah, I believe it all
the time, you know that whenshe used to say that. But it's
like you said, it's how sheset her routine, right right, That's
part of her routine to do itlike that, And so it also gave
(14:46):
her a bit of a break,you know. I mean, yeah,
just think all of different months thatthe government is closed unfortunately furloughs, but
yes, well no, not withthe little pop but with the actual legal
holidays, you know. Yeah,yeah, definitely definitely that I used to
think. At first I laughed atit, but then I thought, hey,
(15:09):
you know, it's that's not abad idea. It's it's you want
to structure your particular organization, yourbusiness. How you want to struct absolutely,
hey, is to keep the consistencyand that wow. So what's the
biggest area of opportunity you see formost of your career coaching clients that they
(15:31):
may need to prove upon. Yeah, and you know what, that's such
an easy answer because I've been doingresumes for so long. I see it
pretty consistently every almost every single time. It's what I go in looking for
and I usually always find it.People list what they do on a day
to day basis instead of what they'veaccomplished and achieved. Yeah, that is
(15:52):
the biggest differentiator that I see onevery single resume, right, And it's
such a huge miss and our abilitiesto showcase our talent, you know,
our resumes, our marketing documents,and it's literally what I coach on the
most. It's honestly, you know, just improving that document about you.
And I think the reason that ithappens. And I've talked and interviewed enough
(16:15):
people to know. You know,people tend in their day to day at
their job and I'm guilty of thistoo, right, but in their day
to day at their job, they'refocused on the day to day and there
to do list right, And veryrarely are they stopping to assess how they
tie back what they're doing to organizationalgoals, to divisional goals, to department
goal what is the key thing thatthe organization is trying to achieve? And
(16:38):
this is applicable no matter what typeof work you do. I've worked with
all types of people over the years. Right, So whether you're sudden clothes
at the mall or you know,you're a director of finance, marketing,
whatever, how does the work you'redoing really impact the bottom line? What
are the metrics and results of whatyou do? How much money did you
(17:00):
make? How much money did yousay making you unique out of that?
What makes you unique out of that? That thing you did that you listed
that you thought was important it mightbe, how do you shape that in
a way that shows this is howit impacted the organization? And that's why
I hired you. They want youto help them get to this level with
(17:22):
one of the things too, likewhen they get ready to have their performance
a place and all of that stuff. You need to be writing stuff for
that too, you know, givethem to This is what I've been doing
and maybe you didn't even know it, but this is what like. For
example, I've had friends that havebeen presidents of organizations. They have literally
(17:44):
run a large organization that they were, you know, involved in, but
they don't include that kind of stuff. It's like, let them know.
They make they don't know what you'redoing. You need to add that in
there, because that's a plus foryou. That shows your leadership abilities.
Yeah, that's what you can do, is for it's organizing and different things
that you know. But they think, oh, well, that's an outside
(18:07):
think. Maybe I don't need to. Yes, you let them know.
I always tell them to toot theirown horn. Don't exactly. I was
just about to say that. Ithink we as women, sometimes we rely
on what is said on paper,the idol, the hey look read this
as a pause to really articulating outloud. This is what I do,
(18:32):
this is why, right, thisis who I help, This is how
I succeed. I think as women, we are much more hesitant to literally
to our own horn because we're thinking, oh, they see it, they
don't see it, trust me,tell you have to see may see it,
but they don't think it's like,oh, all that important, right,
you got paper. Then they're actuallylooking at it and they may when
(18:55):
you tell them, well, Ihad to oversee like eighty to one hundred
people, Yet where I organized thisentire five hundred count event that they didn't
know. They don't have to putthe mentrics behind it. That's why you
have missed those metrics how much itwas to show that scope and that depth.
(19:18):
Now you're you're absolutely right. Wow. Um, So what's the biggest
area of opportunity for managers with teamsof people and how they can get better
at what they do? You know, COVID and the pandemic was just you
know, it changed the world.It changed so much. And I think
(19:38):
one of the biggest things that Isee with managers being most challenged in their
area of opportunity is really managing theneeds of the mental health concerns of their
teams. Yes, you know,one of the things I love about younger
millennials and gen Z They're going toput their mental health to the forefront and
it is the number one priority andyou're going to pay attention to it.
And I admire them that right becauseI grew up in a time frame as
(20:02):
gen X where that doesn't hurt ofjust took a sick day or two sucked
it up, got over and wentback to work. And I'm not saying
that was healthy, that's just theway it was, right, And so
I feel like today's managers are reallyill equipped to handle these concerns because there's
rarely a one size fits all solution, right, But what we do know
(20:23):
is that the solution isn't bringing ina mental health counselor over lunch on zoom
and making it mandatory for everybody toshow up, right. I'm saying that
shouldn't be done, but that's notthe real solution. And so when I
think about that that piece and thatchallenge that managers have, it's a lot
simpler. I think managers just needto have more empathy, right, And
(20:45):
we're typically really unempathetic because we don'tunderstand, we don't know what that person's
going through, we don't have experiencewith it. It's odd, it's disruptive,
you know. And instead, Ithink managers really need to be better
listeners and really be better at grantingtime off, Like if it's not a
fire, death or robbery, youcan sometime off. It's okay, Right,
(21:07):
We get so caught up and wantingto get to the bottom line.
We sacifice the very people we needto get the work done. Yes,
and that's that's the big miss,you know. And very rarely in my
time of work, very rarely haveI seen people take advantage of time off
systems. Very rarely do I seepeople, you know, jump on a
(21:29):
bandwagon so they can take time offtoo, or you know, claim it's
unfair. I rarely see that.But what I have seen is organizations create
rules and policies that punish the actionsof many based on the actions of a
few. Ye right, And we'reso untrusting of our employees. We're petrified
of what the masses are gonna do, and so we put these rules in
(21:52):
place that really prevent all scenarios inanything. And that's what employees are fighting
back against. That's what unionization effortsare, That's what quiet quitting is.
That's why gen Z is quitting viatext because we don't trust them, we're
not talking to them, we're notempathizing with them. And not to say
all those issues are so are aroundmental health, but it is causing some
(22:15):
mental health concerners. So I feellike that's one of the things managers and
organizations really need to jump on toreally put some better solutions in place.
Absolutely. Now, one of thethings you mentioned earlier is that you were
as certified facilitator, and you alsomentioned that that's one of your favorite training.
(22:37):
Why do you feel personal assessments areso important? And just in case
some of the audiences up there don'twith DISC is, would you let them
know what? Yeah? Absolutely?So. The DISK assessment is kind of
like a personality assessment, and theversion that I give really helps you determine
(22:57):
and figure out not only your ownstyle, but the styles of people around
you. And so I'm sure we'veall taken some form of a DISC assessment
of Mine's brigs, strength Finder orsomething like that. And the thing that
I found with us, and I'mnot complete, but the thing that I
found with them is that they're hardto remember. Right Like if somebody asked
(23:18):
me my myyer's brigs letters, noclue, I just don't remember what they
are. And so self awareness isthe key to success. The better you
understand not only your strengths, butyour opportunities, your weaknesses. How do
you act when you're stressed out?One of those characters? What drives you,
what motivates you? What are youfearful about what makes you happy.
(23:40):
This disk assessment, that's the beautyof it. It helps you understand that
not only for yourself, but yourspouse, your kids, your co workers,
your boss, your boss's boss.So it's a really powerful tool.
So when we think about disc theversion that I give, instead of using
numbers and colors and all these things, we use birds, right, We
use the birds. And so thedominant eagle, the interactive parent, I,
(24:04):
S is supportive, dove, andC is conscientious out. And when
you identify the traits of those birdsand apply to people, your world is
going to change. It's gonna helpyou communicate better, talk to your team
better, be more empathetic, takethe personal out of it. So when
people are stressed and angry in theworkplace, they're not taking it out on
(24:26):
you. Look at their style andlook at what their stressors are and how
their style plays out under stress.So it's a really powerful assessment. I'm
a huge, huge advocate of it. It's a really fun training, it's
a simple training, and it hasa lot of sticking power. It's something
that people easily remember how to assess. Wow, now I don't ever recall
(24:48):
taking the disks assessment. I havetaken Maya's Briggs. Yeah, I stj
don't. I'm also can Obe andI think I'm like a five five blond
one something like, but what doesthat mean? But but if I tell
you I'm a ninety nine I interactiveparrot, now you're like, oh,
(25:15):
well, what are the characteristics I'ma parrot. They're colorful, they're talking.
If they're interactive, they're social.And now you start to see that
in my personality. Now you startto see that in the way I teach,
in the way I talk, inthe way I you know, interact
with others. And so once youlearn those are just very easy characteristics,
you can apply that to everyone inyour life. And it's it's such a
(25:37):
powerful tool. That is very interesting. I have to take a look at
the distance. Yeah, absolutely,my website reason that is one that I
have never had the opportunity to takethat one. So yeah, now it's
fantastic. Yeah. So what's thebiggest change, maybe the biggest challenge you've
(26:00):
seen leads have to handle in thelast few years since Yeah, again,
that pandemic was just incredibly disruptive alot. Yeah, and in ways that
I think we're still figuring out anddetermining, you know. But when I
when I think about the challenges todaywith managers, aside from the mental health
(26:25):
challenges that they need to kind ofyou know, get a handle on and
get some training behind, um,I would say it's really managing those remote
and hybrid teams right. Um.When the pandemic first hit and everyone was
working from home, I think sometracking software immediately came out to see how
many people are online and win andI thought, okay, that's intrusive,
(26:47):
but okay, we did a tonof hiring, you know, lots of
people got hired during the pandemic,and now we seem to be, you
know, completely reverting back. There'sa huge lack of trust and lack of
product you know, not a lackof productivity, but that unbelief that productivity
is actually happening, you know.And people are worried about time theft,
(27:07):
and some of those are legitimate concerns, but again it's one of those situations
where let's going back to the oldway of doing things is not necessary the
solution or the solution for everybody.And so I think one of the big
challenges for managers is you know,how do you manage those remote teams?
How do you understand those different stylesof the people on your team? How
(27:29):
do you, you know, managedifferent age groups. You know, we've
got several generations in the workplace.Now, who are your team? Have
you hired remotely that you haven't evenmet yet? You should really mean them
in person? Right, bigly oneall ones, those should actually be required.
And so you know, it soundssimple, and honestly it should be,
but it's not happening, you know, but the mindfulness that it should
(27:52):
and there has to be trust,you have to build those relationships. And
you know, I've just always beenof the belief that, you know,
managers number one priority shouldn't really bethe development of their people, because people
feel invested in and trusted and seea path forward in their career. When
they're giving meaningful, broadening assignments,you're not gonna have quiet quitting. So
(28:15):
it's twofold. On the one hand, we have managers not doing what they're
supposed to do for employees, butwe also have employees completely checking out because
they're not having those conversations with theirmanagers in there exactly. It's funny,
I know, you have mentioned tooabout having a tracking software set are working
(28:36):
remotely, because I've seen in myexcess class. Normally I go to like
a naticle class and the people comewith their laptops. They've put them on
a side or you know, sothat they can like as long as I'm
signed in, I'm good. Yeah, yes, exactly. The mindset of
um why they do that and dotheir look class and then I guess they
(29:00):
go on home and get one onthe computer. But I always we got
to treat people like adults, likewe have to not give always give people
the benefit of the doubt, butwe've just got to set the expectation and
then follow up accordingly. Are therepeople out there of using the system,
Absolutely, but it is the onusof the least management system. And the
(29:23):
fact that these companies are losing thesecorporate leases, is that are our backs?
I don't think so. And soI just think, you know,
there's not a one size fit solutionmaking everybody go back into the office.
That doesn't work anymore. People havechanged lives, moves, caring for elderly,
caring for children, like it's justa different day now. And I
(29:45):
don't think managers and organizations are reallyon board with that. Yet I don't
think they get it yet. Ireally don't because they're looking at that bottom
line. A lot of them evenfeel like two are they realized, Hey,
I can still do the work Ineed to do for them and be
home what I need to do.But again, like you said, it's
the discipline part and the con systembecause even if you're at home and you're
(30:10):
supposed to be on the clock fromwhat to five or three or whatever,
then you really need to make thatsacrifice to make sure that you know,
people put that effort in there todo that because like you said, want
you know, a couple can makeit bad for a few and so that
you have some employees are insisting thatsome of these people come back into the
(30:33):
office. But then your other hand, you have a lot of for example,
the federal government, they're playing forspace. Yeah, a lot of
people for space right. Absolutely,they want to they want to come back
and want them to come back sothey can feel that space up to the
cases. So you know, you, like you say, it really did
(30:56):
change or whole that pandemic. Itdid. It did, And then I
looked to it some organizations. Mylast organization NPR National Public Radio. We
didn't miss it be. We didn'tmiss it be. If you were a
regular listener to NPR, you wouldnever know that those hosts were in their
homes, in their closets with mattressesover the door, Like we got it
(31:18):
done. And I'm not saying thatthat's unequivocally how should we should do a
moving forward, But for those whoare capable and who for those who you
know, show that level of productivity, it can be done. It absolutely
can be done. Absolutely absolutely Wow. So what are some ways that people
can better seek out new career opportunities? Market being so unpredictable? Yeah,
(31:44):
So when I think about that question, I think my answer is going to
sound very philosophical, but it doesring true, and it's to me the
kind of foundation of when you startedjob, sirch So the first one is
just your mindset right, and thesecond piece of it is really understanding and
(32:06):
being able to articulate your purpose,your values, and your motors. And
we go into job searching so oftentaking what the market gives us, whatever,
whatever it says, whatever it says, I gotta do, I gotta
do this this, I gotta havethis, this I gotta have these responsibilities,
these tasks, these skills, insteadof really asking for what we are
(32:30):
seeking. Right, because we don'tbelieve us out there, We don't negotiate
salaries, we don't have a debtreduction plan for when we do get the
salary we want, right, wego into it wanting to really maintain our
lifestyle and focus on making more andhaving a better lifestyle with more money.
So my whole philosophy as a careercoach is to get you to a career
(32:51):
you love. And that doesn't justmean peppering the internet for the same resume.
So the titles and salary and tryingto see if you can and check
off every single one of the responsibilitiesand skills that that job description says.
Right, tendary one dimensional in ourcareer search and just like I said,
accepting what the market gives us,the job market is unpredictable, now you
(33:14):
right, you need to go intothis search with the sense of who you
want to help, where you addvalue, what makes you excited about the
role, What can you do inyour sleep, what's easy for you?
You know, what type of environmentdo you want to be in? And
so I don't think we go intoour job search, you know, with
that mentality, we go in jobboard, job board, job board title,
(33:37):
title title, Oh, I thinkthis paid enough? And we go
and we you know, and it'sjust a mindset change in terms of really
understanding what our authentic vocation is andtaking some real time to do that.
And I don't want people to getdiscouraged. That can't take time. But
you're making the decision, Hey,I'm in this role now and I want
(33:58):
to go find a new opportunity.There's some key mental work I think that
you have to do first before youstep out there. Because the jobs are
there, they're gonna be hiring.The market is up and down, but
if you've got skills, there areroles and opportunities out there. We just
need to get really much more specificabout what we want and how we want
it. And it's out there.It can be done, but we got
(34:20):
to change that mindset first, absolutelyso now and we could pretty much hear
it in your voice, But tellwhat are you passionate about and how do
you incorporate that into your work?What am I passionate about? Well,
first, the first thing that comesto mind, I love to read and
(34:40):
I love to write, and soI'm really big on sharing books and reading
and I'm in several book clubs andall of that, and I always kind
of kind of share that with myclients, particularly the career development books I
know that worked for me and sharingthat information. My model is the answers
in the book. I've heard somany people say so many times, I
(35:00):
read this book and it changed mylife. It changed my perspective. It
gave me the nugget that I needed. And so you're not reading, I
beg of you go read, becausereading, to me is just so so
critical. The other thing that I'vegotten super passionate about, which is a
little bit of a surprise, Ireally like graphic design. I can spend
(35:22):
all day in Campvade doing stuff andcreating stuff. Unfortunate I get to do
that for my business. I alsodo that work for my church, so
for median communications team, and sographic design for me has just really like
I love it so much. Ialmost thought about it. I go this
as a side hustle to my sidehustle. This is fun for me,
(35:45):
but yeah, yeah, but thegraphic design piece I really love to do.
And then the last thing I wouldsay is just really being into technology
and particularly AIM. So I'm ahuge advocate right now out of learning tech,
understanding tech, understanding AI, understandingchat GPT. I write about it,
(36:06):
I blog about it, I tellmy clients about it. I'm still
learning about it. I was justin a webinar earlier this week that was
giving an overview of it, andI've been through a dozen overviews, but
I always learned something new every time. This AI have its scary parts,
absolutely. Is it going to eliminatesome jobs, absolutely? Is it going
to create new opportunities? Absolutely?And so I would rather need my clients,
(36:30):
you know, the people that Iimpact and touch and talk to.
I would rather than be on theside of understanding it and learning about it
and knowing about it and ignoring itand not paying attention to it, because
that's how you really get, youknow, knocked out of the park.
So those are three things that youknow. I'm super passionate about it,
and I love to share with peopleall the time. So good, good
(36:52):
to here. So tell me whatdo you have coming up? Anything on
the horizon that you want to tellus about that you you know anywhere you're
gonna be that you might have aboutYeah, no, thank you for asking.
I'm getting there right. So Iwill be a guest speaker in December
at the mid Atlantic Career Councilors Association. I'll be speaking on technology, so
(37:15):
I'm excited about that. Later thismonth, I'll be doing some training around
resumes and interview for the US BotanicalGardens, which is a division of the
architect of the Capitol here in Washington, DC. So I'll be doing some
training there, and then just what'stoday, Today's Thursday? Thursday. On
Tuesday, I just got an emailabout being a guest speaker at another conference
(37:37):
for women's leadership, So I'll bekind of wrapping that up and getting the
details about that, but it'll allbe on my website. Super excited about
the opportunities that I'm being granted,especially to speak and to write. Those
are the biggest areas that I loveto do in training. So I'm just
super grateful and just you know,so blessed that you know, again,
I overcame that fear and just gettingout here and trying to do all the
(38:00):
things you know that I love andstill get paid for it. That's an
entrepreneur. So I'm super super grateful. For it. So tell us if
you had one piece of advice thatyou leave with our viewers and our listeners,
what would that advice be. Iwould say, overcome your fears.
(38:24):
I'm not the first to do this, I'm not the last to do this.
And when I just think back overmy journey over the last you know,
two three years and the changes thathave come about, is really about
overcoming fear. Like we are ourown worst critics and greatest you know,
enemies of you know, self doubtand not doing things, and so just
(38:45):
start. It doesn't have to beperfect, it doesn't have to be the
greatest, it doesn't have to besuper new, but just get on board
with a few people who are inthe space that you want to be in.
Absolutely listen to what are talking about. Listen to some podcasts like it's
it's a lot easier than people makeit out to be. And I'm not
(39:07):
saying it's easy it's a cakewalk,But if you just apply yourself, if
you start to start, just overcomethat fear and start. It's where I
would tell people to land because it'sit's such a blessing on the other side,
it really is. Wow. Sotell us how can the viewers and
listeners find you if they want tocontact you with any questions, anything that
(39:32):
they might want to know about,let us know how they can reach out
to you. Absolutely, So,first off, my email address, it's
info I Info at Ayanna E.Jackson dot com. Super simple. And
then on social media platforms just abouteveryone, you can find me as Ayanna
(39:52):
Career Coach. I just join Threads, the new Twitter. If you're on
Threads, come follow me. Therehave a ball over there, that's a
great platform. I'm also of courseon LinkedIn. You can find me at
Ayanna E. Jackson or my companyA E J Consalting LLC. So I'm
pretty easy to find Ayanna Career Coachacross the board is how you can find
(40:14):
me. And yes she is.I found her on LinkedIn and that's how
we make this. So I knowthat you are very easy to find because
when I reached out to you,you responded. You know, you got
back right away. So uh,it was great having you on the show,
super quick. Thank you so much. Have you shared your nuggets with
(40:36):
us? And actually I'll probably reachout to you again something else you might
another platform you may want to comeand talk about the things that you do,
especially business wise. The Black MissinessFix is a entrepreneur, absolutely sure
so, and I mean the thingsthat you've done and what you're doing.
It would be a great thing foryou to come on and talk about.
(40:59):
Thank you, Okay, thank you, yeah, so, thank you again
for joining us today. It's beengreat to have you on the show.
And I will be back in touchwith you. Thank you. What's going
on? So, but right nowI'm going to talk about some upcoming events
that I have coming up, andthat is for to let everyone know that
(41:24):
they should not forget to pre ordertheir copies of the Own It anthology It's
Your Life, Own It Unapologetically andthe Journal three hundred and sixty five days
to transformation. To pre order thepaperback book and journal separately, each will
(41:45):
be twenty four ninety nine for ifyou purchase just the one, or to
order the complete set both the bookand the journal, it is forty nine
ninety nine. To order your copies, you can email me at info at
each XWSI dot com, or youcan go to my link of www dot
(42:07):
my website, I should say wwwdot EXWSI dot com. The Success Store
click on at the top the successstore and also the links are there where
you can order them through my website. Also, make sure to tune in
to the Black Business Olympics this month. It's going to be July twenty fourth
(42:29):
through July thirtieth. And of course, the Black Business Olympics is a fundraiser
to provide scholarships and laptops to highschool seniors going to college and K through
twelve entrepreneurs. The Black Business Olympicsshowcases black businesses, black business owners and
(42:50):
corporations all around the world. Andif you'd like to be a speaker to
showcase your business, you can emailme at info at EXWSI dot com and
here it comes. I want youto get ready. Get ready, then
start packing or get your bags ready, get your suitcases ready because the next
(43:13):
show up to rise up twenty twentyfour Women's Retreat, we will be heading
to Jamaica. So make sure thatyou start now to update or get your
passport because as I understand, it'sa bit of a weight. May take
about three, I don't know,three to six months for you to obtain
your passport if you don't already haveone. So you want to get that
(43:35):
started now so that won't be adeterrent Again, make sure you get ready
for the twenty twenty four Show Upto Rise Up Women's Retreat and I also
coming soon you'll be able to jointhe women Show Up to Rise Up Network
and the mission of course of theWomen's Show Up to Rise Up Network will
(43:57):
be to empower and to connect allwomen in their career, business, professional
and personal lives by helping them togain resources, gain buying power, increase
their revenue and accelerate their personal businessand career growth through unlimited opportunities. And
as a member you will be youwill have access to coaching, training,
(44:21):
different events, workshops, resources,networking and much more. All set too.
If you have not viewed my TEDxtalk that I did in Vancouver,
Canada, make sure to do so. My topic again is show Up to
Rise Up. You can watch iton YouTube. If you do, you
(44:43):
can put my name in the searchbox doctor Madeline and Lewis, or you
can email me at info at EXWSIdot com and I will send you the
direct link. Make sure to checkit out as I'm excited because as of
today it has one hundred sixty eightthousand, eight hundred and sixty nine views
(45:05):
and of course, my goal isto reach one million plus, So thank
you and for all of those whohave already viewed it and thanking thanking you
in advance for those that will supportand share the video, and we'll be
doing so. I am also acontributing writer to the own It magazine where
(45:27):
I share nuggets and resources every month. Own It Magazine is a resource for
personal and professional business development, somake sure you get a copy or either
you can get a subscription. Andfor the subscription of the magazine, you
can go to my website www dotEXWSI dot com or again you can email
(45:52):
me info at EXWSI dot com.I'll be glad to send you a digital
copy so you could take a lookat the magazine and see what you'll be
getting. And that will be allof the announcements. So again, I
want to thank my guests, MissAyanna E. Jackson for joining us today.
(46:13):
She shared some great nuggets, soif you did not take notes,
you can always go back and listento this episode. I want to thank
all my viewers and listeners for joiningme today. This has been the successful
women's show. I am doctor MadelineAnne Lewis and if you like to reach
out to me. You can alwaysemail me at info at exwsi dot com
(46:37):
or go to my website www dotexwsi dot com and while you're there may
show you download my three part videoseries on three things every woman should do
to position herself for executive leadership.And don't forget to sign up for my
(46:59):
online core which is Cracked the CareerCode how to Lead with Confidence, Charisma
and Credibility. To sign up forthe course, you can go to www
dot Crack the Careercode dot com.You can also reach out to me on
any of the social media sites.I'm easy to find. Again, just
(47:21):
put in my name and it shouldpull it right up. Don't forget to
subscribe to the channel, my YouTubechannel and also the talk for TV channel.
Like this episode, and make surethat you share, Share Share,
because we had some great nuggets todayfrom Ayanna E. Jackson. Again,
(47:42):
this is a success for women's show. We are here every Thursday at two
pm Eastern Standard time. I'm yourhost, doctor Madeline and Lewis helping women
to accelerate the path to success.Thank you all again for joining me.
I love you all to life.So as always be well and stay safe
(48:06):
out there I got the eye ofthe time, and
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Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!