All of my work centers around one simple question: How can we utilize our purpose and core values as a tool for creating intentional change in the world?
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to make the world a kinder and more equitable place. Today, I work with leaders, teams, and individuals to do just that - as an entrepreneur, consultant, speaker, and podcast host. Together, we leverage their purpose and core values as a tool for creating social change by building intentional alignment with daily actions and behaviors.
It was when I was building my first business - Javelina - that I first discovered the idea of core values. In the early years of Javelina (which today, is a leading branding and marketing agency that helps all kinds of organizations create social and systemic change), I was grappling with all of the aspects of running a fledgling business - from managing people to bringing in clients; from juggling finances to creating processes and systems. On a whim, I picked up a business book at an airport and devoured the whole thing in one cross-country flight. The author’s advice was resounding: You must know your organization’s purpose and values.
As a team, we started to figure out exactly what our purpose and values are - two vital questions that we still revisit at least annually. Through the process, I started to wonder about my own personal purpose and values. If knowing our purpose and values was foundational for our company, could the same be true for my own life? And if so, what the heck were my purpose and values?!
As I set about answering these questions, what I discovered completely changed my understanding of my past - and my vision of the future - forever.
When I was six months old, my older brother Rory died in an accident three weeks before his third birthday. Rory and I shared just 163 days on the earth, and I don't remember any of them. What I have come to realize as an adult is that while I grew up in a grieving family, my childhood was filled with love and drenched with kindness. My parents taught me and my younger brother that while life doesn’t come with a safety blanket, it does come with the power to make a difference in the lives of others - a power we can choose to use. This is where I think my drive to make change - on both an individual and community level - came from.
In the years since, I’ve discovered time and time again that aligning my choices to my purpose and values have allowed me to make a difference in greater ways than I ever imagined. Now I know that everyone can make change, and I would love to work with you to do the same.
Whether it is by utilizing Javelina’s customized marketing and branding services, via interactive workshops for teams, public speaking, or the How to Change the World podcast, I’d love to help you make the world a kinder and more equitable place. I know you can.