If you’d like to listen to the following piece, via audio:
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If I were to create a slideshow presentation of my work, portfolio of impact, and career path, it might feel a little all over the place. As you watch me click through each slide, it may not seem there is a through line, or anything that links my journey to a typical work history.
My resume has a noticeably absent education section, because there is nothing about my experience that reads traditional. I’ve found it’s easier to answer why there is no education listed, than it is to explain that I was homeschooled in Nebraska before it was legal, and as a result, did not receive a diploma. It’s easier to explain the missing section on a piece of paper than it is to share that I tried college, but as a young single mom, I was forced to choose between picking up extra shifts to pay the bills, or sacrificing the few hours of sleep I was already adapting to, in order to finish a college degree.
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When I organized a women’s running club in Chagrin Falls, and then co-founded my family dance party business, Rock ‘n Tot, in Cleveland, Ohio and Washington D.C., I referred to myself as an accidental leader.
When we lived overseas and I helped spearhead initiatives (including an English-learning collective in India introduced by First Lady Michelle Obama and several school-based projects at embassy schools in Singapore), I called myself a volunteer.
When I founded and grew an online community to more than 17,000 individuals from all around the world and led them through change leadership and change management in 2017 (from Facebook to a more private social platform), I referred to myself as a happenstance community builder.
I’ve testified at City Council and State Legislature inside the Nebraska State Capitol building in support of gun violence prevention and criminal justice reform. I have spoken as a keynote for Union Pacific Railroad’s Lawyer and Legal Risk Conference, Creative Mornings (an international lecture series), and overseas in The Hague for an audience of more than 250 folks in the global mobility/expat industry.
I’ve had executive leadership experience with oversight of multi-million dollar land and property acquisition and development projects. When we moved back home to Nebraska, I worked on affordable housing in the nonprofit world, designed an innovative housing stability program (non congregate shelter) for pandemic crisis response with a local homelessness prevention organization, and have since co-launched an incredible nonprofit organization that in less than two years, has leveraged $50M in braided funding, deployed millions of dollars in loans and grants to achieve impressive goals, and we are about to launch an impactful loan fund to counteract the devastation of redlining in Omaha, Nebraska.
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Often, I hear “wow, you’ve really done … a lot of things” which I think is code for “friend, you’re all over the place!” For most of my adult life, I literally have been all over the place, in ten different postal codes. For many of those years, I focused on volunteerism, started movements and created lasting impact. That doesn’t translate super well into a two page resume.
I have innate ideas and traits that align with being a Midwesterner and a perspective from my years abroad which skews toward insisting on empathy and equity for those who are different from me. I have a nuanced understanding of established systems and how they play out in the Midwest, the East Coast, foreign countries and places in between.
My through-line values sit squarely with contribution and collaboration. Equitable economic advancement tops the list of what I fight for. Humility, integrity and love are the mechanisms by which I get invited to the table. Accountability, meaningful dialogue and innovation are incredibly important to me. Add justice and collective healing to the mix, and that’s me in a nutshell.
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I’m reintroducing myself — to myself.
Take it from the power of moving and redefining.
It’s an invitation to others to understand
I recommit to the boldest plans I’ve got. -Chani Nicholas
When I ran for city council in 2021, I wrote a piece about the imposter complex for Darling Magazine, and discussed the concept of telling my imposter complex to take a seat. It’s the same for my fear. It exists. Fear can fuel. Fear can be irreverent. Fear can motivate. Fear can save my life. So the same concept applies: my fear can take a seat, in the corner, where I can keep my eye on it.
“I will live in irreverent fear of my purpose for the rest of my life.” -Caroline Wanga
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My word of the year for 2023 is entelechy. Another focus for this year is an exploration of peace and ease. So what does that actually look like, day-to-day?
What does Peace feel like for me? It looks like an empty calendar during the work week between 8-10am every day, and the feeling of remembering to grind my coffee beans the night before. Peace also means I have space and time to be in my zone, trusting the process of my creativity finding its flow - fighting back against the inner dialogue of laziness. Peace equates to less furrowed brow and tight shoulders, and adds up to limited interruptions. Peace is thriving, and echoes a freedom from external expectations and influences. Peace is also the pursuit of personal trust in myself.
Ease brings forgiveness and support. Ease allows me to identify how dis-ease presents in my body and how it influences my consumption choices. Ease sounds like miracles and feels like healthy circulation. Ease allows for healing, articulation of priorities, and makes space for adjustments.
In the exploration of my values, I’m focused on joy, consistency, devotion to self, and presence. Then I join those values with my talents (visioning, communication, bridging, getting shit done, clarity in the mess), and repeatedly ask myself questions about the work that comes my way:
Is this aligned with my core values?
Does this allow me to share my talents?
If my core values are embodied, how would I act?
If I honored and “gamed” my talents to full potential (entelechy!), how would I act, how would I decide?
Showing up authentically is a power we each have. Be a model. Be who you are. Contribute to the change you know you want to happen in your spaces. You can make change where you spend your money. Don’t be silent. -Anita Hill
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We’ve never been here before. We have never had this collection of knowledge or this container of experiences, paired with this current environment. We must begin making choices and decisions in ways we’ve also never done before. Our problems are so large and multi-faceted, the *only* way to approach them is with leadership that represents a diversity like we’ve never known before.
My current iteration of work looks like a kaleidoscope of the following work:
Communications (Comms) and Marketing for small housing supportive / housing adjacent nonprofits who do not yet have a full-time staff person working on media, website, storytelling
Housing Programming / Housing Development consulting for nonprofits who desire to build programs and housing projects to serve their clients with greater housing stability.
Transitions and Organizational Health for individuals and orgs navigating big changes (Leaving Well).
Facilitation and Convening for social justice / groups and organizations seeking participatory and liberatory practices.
This phase is a wild combination of fully opening my arms and my heart to more: more aligned work, more easeful impact, and more compensation for my contribution.
What does your slide show look like?
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Currently:
Reading Burn the Boats and The Power Manual: how to master complex power dynamics.
Building the foundation for upcoming summer workshops! Want to join virtually, or know someone who should attend? June 8th Leaving Well workshop
Prioritizing self-care with my Pink Moon Gua Sha tool and other amazing products. Treat yourself: PINK MOON
Drinking some really incredible non-alcoholic options from Boisson. My gosh, there is a N/A red wine that makes my heart sing, and I may be obsessed with the Aplós night-time drink. Check it out: BOISSON
Smitten and obsessed with this incredible resource from Abby VanMuijen.
🧡 - What’s happening in your world? I’d love to hear from you!
I love this! Ease is my word this year. It’s also the year I was (finally) diagnosed with ADHD which makes my resume (which looks very scattered and similar to yours) not only make more sense, but also gives me comfort that I’m a multidimensional human doing things that show all the many facets of who I am and how I can be present and help out in this world. I wouldn’t change anything. Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you for this, Naomi. So much spaciousness, acceptance, and serious intent. Inspiring.