Begin With Ashley

Conflict resolution is a vital missing link to building belonging. More details in part one of the latest Impact Leadership article below. #ConflictResolution #Belonging #leadership #LeadershipDevelopment #TeamEngagement

Last week, I had the amazing opportunity to lead a workshop for tech pros hosted by AnitaB.org Atlanta Chapter at The Bakery CoWork. ?? Here’s why this workshop was a game-changer: ?? The tech industry is one of the fastest-growing sectors out there. ?? Yet, it’s also home to some of the widest gender leadership and pay gaps. ?? Women and gender-diverse folks represent over 47% of the corporate workforce, but this number doesn’t fully capture the contributions of gender-expansive or gender non-conforming individuals. ?? That’s why I’m focused on industries like tech, faith-based, and predominantly white or male led companies—to bridge these gaps and foster leaders that will make a difference. That’s where the Becoming a Leader that Makes a Difference workshop comes in! During the workshop, participants engaged in reflective exercises to: ?Understand how their multiple identities (gender, race, sexuality, etc.) shape their experiences and positional power. ?Discover their core values, define and prioritize them. ?Craft a personal values statement to guide decisions. ??Understanding these dynamics allows leaders to create workplaces that acknowledge the different challenges team members face (and address them). One attendee said this ?? "What an impactful self-discovery leadership workshop! Ashley was charismatic and empowering, and I enjoyed the interactive setup of the workshop. It’s a great team building activity as well." Technical Program Manager | Atlanta Let’s work together to empower your team to make values-driven decisions, tackle challenges confidently, and unlock their potential! ?? #beginwithashley #inclusiveleadership #professionaldevelopment #workshops #trainingworkshop #coachforwomen #executivecoach #WomenInTech #GenderEquality?

?? Celebrating 13 years on LinkedIn! ?? Happy to share my professional journey during the past one year: ?? My content received 48,527 views! Glad they sparked conversations. ?? I connected with 353 amazing professionals that led to: >Facilitated leadership workshops discussing bias, microaggressions and positional power >Private coaching clients supporting the personal freedom >So many laughs >Numerous networking events >And even some job interviews along the way Did we meet in-person or LinkedIn first? Say hi in the comments ?? Thank you for being a part of my journey! #careerdevelopment #careercoach #professionaldevelopment #networking #entrepreneurlife

American Express quoted me in an article! At one point in my life I believed that success had only one look! Coming from the fashion industry, I would imagined me with a bright colored tailored suit, pointed toe heels, a briefcase (literally), walking really fast through New York City streets, on my way somewhere fabulous darling (RuPaul's Voice). Drawing my vision from Clueless, Sex in the City and Girlfriends... I thought success meant booked and busy! It meant always doing something– probably rushing, running late or double booking. It also meant 'having enough money' and being rich and as a kid that experienced poverty, the money part was a little blurry. It meant buying things with all the money I was making and taking luxurious vacations. After nearly a decade in the Fashion and Retail industry and another decade in the People and Culture space, success has many "looks." ?? I still enjoy a good high waist wide leg pant and heels (see picture) and I really enjoy my slow mornings. ?? Success for me now means; no client calls on Fridays, slow mornings, going to the farmers market and the nail salon when most people are working AND get this, not rushing! ?? Success means only taking 4 calls a day, daily movement, and talking to friends and family weekly. ?? Success does still has a monetary value and it much more clear for me now. ?? I have an actual number influenced by the lifestyle that I want to have. ?? (Not someone else's number or some generic phrase like, "get rich or die trying.") As leaders, you have more power than you realize to craft what success means to you and to model that for your team. So tell me, what does success mean to you? I'd love to hear it. #entrepreneurship #successful #personaldevelopment #leaders #leadership Read The Article - https://lnkd.in/eyrC2b3s

?? "DEI was not created in a lab in 2022" - @staceyabrams ForbesBLK this year in Atlanta was full of beautiful reminders of why I'm on this journey of entrepreneurship and also why I AM the right person to be doing the work that I do. I believe that my lived experience helped me to develop the skills to navigate conflict, to connect with people from any area of society, and the ability to work any room or stage. Which makes me a great empathetic facilitator and coach and strategic consultant. I am right where God wants me to be. Some other gems from ForbesBLK Summit in Atlanta, GA ?? [DEI isn't optional] "It’s actually a constitutional mandate" | Sesha Joi Moon, PhD Most investor ask themselves, "is this industry large enough to give me a return on my investment?" Many founders aren't prepared with the answer to that question. ?? "Beat the industry at their own game." | Bukie Adebo Umeano Moderator question: "From your perspective, what do you see as part of the problem [re: raising capital for Black funders broadly]?" ?? Many are "underfunded and under networked." | Michael Proman Lastly but definitely not least, Mrs.Fantasia (Yes THAT Fantasia) blew me away! What she shared resonated on a deep personal and professional level. One of the gems from her segment was, ?? "I made failure my friend." As a business woman, parent, and human, "failure" is inevitable and making it your "friend" (not your bestie) instead of fearing it makes this thing called life a bit easier to handle. Shout out to Rebecca Taroon and the team Forbes ForbesBLK for curating this experience centering Black business owners in Atlanta. Also they partnered with Goldman Sachs this year. I was also able to meet other alumni's of the One Million Black Women (OMBW) business program! Pictured with @nicholah and Erayna Sargent, MBA Shout out to @Jessicataylor and @ninameyers that I met from Goldman, I can't wait to see what's next. If you attended this year or last year, what were your takeaways? #forbesblk #OMBW #entrepreneurship #wordsofwisdom #professionaldevelopment #conferences #networking

I have so many people to thank for my experience at RenderATL (Render Atlanta) last week. ?? Importantly, AnitaB.org and Sheila Isbell because without winning their raffle I would not have been in attendance at all! A few highlights– ?? (Tuesday) Thank you to the immediate hospitality from the folks at Intuit during the badge pick up! Tyeisha M. Laila Harrison Tahirah Abdul-Karim Klaven Jones Neena S. and Susan* ?? (Wednesday) FanDuel put together another engaging event with hiring managers and stakeholders present! Software engineers and coders don't sleep on FanDuel. I had a great time connecting with Natasha (Sasha) Smith and Aaron Carson ?? Then Cashapp + Square event did not disappoint! Great music, food, and even in a party atmosphere I was able to meet Jennifer Lewis and briefly chat about DEI. ?? (Thursday) The winner for most life changing and actionable presentation goes to Jermaine L. Murray ???????? ?? Jermaine's 45 minute presentation was titled "Bridging the Gap: Navigating the Tech Job Market for Underrepresented Talent." As someone that works with a lot of HR & People leaders, I was interested to learn about new strategies and any unique perspectives. ?? [Top Tip] Tools for targeted outreach shared were; Apollo.io, SalesQL, and Mailsuite. Job hunting is a full time job, these tools can help make that job more efficient. ?? The winner of the realest + visually rare presentation goes to Ashley Willis at Github! ?? Ashley's 45 minute presentation was titled "Building Trust: The Key to Leading Successful Teams" I enjoyed the Atlanta facts and humor incorporated into the presentation (which is also a great leadership skill to build rapport if adding humor aligns with your personality). From the many things that Ashley shared, her approach of building her team up to replace her and actually allowing them to take over is leadership in action. I've seen so many leaders afraid of not being the smartest person in the room or the thought that someone on their team "will take their job" and that's not leadership. ?? (Thursday and Friday) The exhibitor area was next level! I don't think I saw one single table with a bowl of mints on it (okay, maybe there was one). No shade to those that do that. And, creating an experience that aligns with your company goals, values, or brand will attract people to you with ease. For example, Ken Ramey, ECRE & Cherry at Zillow had massive a home layout design, Bass at Makeswift had a Mario cart competition in a mock living room with couch and everything, @richardlewis with Intuit brought in a arcade style basketball hoop encouraging some healthy competition. ?? I made over 40 LinkedIn connections and have several follow-up conversations scheduled. Networking is often a long game but one I enjoy playing. If you made it this far drop a ?? or ask a question in the comments. #networking #techconference #leadershiptrack #leadershipdevelopment #softskills #careerdevelopment

Thank you Hello Alice for hosting the Engage with Enterprise event in Dallas, Shout out to the team Jillian Benvenuti, Kelsey Ruger and Natalie Diamond. ???? Yes I flew to Dallas, why? It was a great opportunity to learn from corporate experts like JP Morgan Chase and Walmart Business and tech startup DivInc! A couple take aways from the speakers: ?? Dress the part, people are watching. (paraphrasing) - Breana (Feiller) Chan ?? We will always support small businesses. - Elizabeth Gore ?? A great reminder to ask, “Who in addition to you needs to be involved?” during the contracting process - Blake Hogan We also watched 3 founders pitch for the first time and get live feedback from a panel of experts. I absolutely love training and being on panels but a pitch... that's is a unique challenge that I have yet to master in my public speaking toolkit. Kudos to them ???? Kamini Mamdani of Chai.com Kia-Shun Voltz of ShampooTime David Hulett of Borderless Beans ?? new headshot from Willie Howard of Willie & Kim Photography #networkinglife #leadershipmindset #growthminded #leadershipdevelopment #networkingevent #smallbusinesssummit #helloalice . . . New here? I help leaders elevate their company culture! 1. Leadership training + Coaching 2. Curating small business marketplace events inside corporations Follow for more on the ways we do that at Begin With Ashley