Message to Wavemakers from a LEADer

To Fellow Wavemakers,

Congratulations on your admissions to Stanford LEAD program??

Nice to e-meet you from a LEADer. I'm so excited about having you in the LEAD community.

As a congratulatory message, I'm humbled to share my LEAD journey with Wavemakers.

Exploring a community

15 years ago, soon after my son was born in the U.S., we moved to Japan. It was a year when a financial crisis occurred. I didn't get a job in the U.S. when I graduated from a grad school.

I dreamed about coming back to the U.S. someday with my family. I've wanted to give my son an opportunity to have global perspectives.

It took 10 years. And, I made my wish come true. We moved back to America 5 years ago.

The next thing I did was to start exploring a community where I feel “I belong here” and I can be “who I am”.

I have a strong sense of belonging. That stems from my past experience. I've moved many times. Wow, it was 28 times when I counted.

Through interacting with so many inspirational and compassionate leaders with passion and heart from Stanford GSB in business, I was highly motivated to be a part of the GSB community and reached to the LEAD program.

Million dollar advice to myself

At the Summer of 2019, I started the LEAD program, feeling a mixture of anxiety and excitement.

I confess now that I was holding back at the very beginning.

It was because I was not confidence in myself and thought about whether I could survive in the competitive environment (that I imagined).

I wasn't also 100% sure how much online program was practical and viable to create a bond with fellows and the teaching team. Such uncertainties led my anxiety.

Since then, 4 years have passed. It has turned out that I was wrong about all the perceptions I had about myself and about the online program which Stanford offers.

Now I can give advice to myself 4 years ago with confidence.

“Believe in your potential.”

“Don't let perception control your limit.”

“Lean into the discomfort.

“Trust your fellows and the teaching team.”

“And, enjoy the process.”

From “Me” to “We” to “All”

My LEAD journey started from “me”. I thought a lot about how I could build my confidence through the program.

And, it was my Course Facilitators, Jonathan Daves , Lauren Krasny , and Michael C. Wenderoth who unlocked my potential by inspiring me, encouraging me, and supporting me to get out of my comfort zone. I'm thankful to them and so grateful that they are a part of my life.

Although each course is only 8 week long and done by 100% online, I was able to put my full energy and passion into each course because of the full trust and support from Course Facilitators and fellow classmates in such a collaborative environment.

After I completed the program, my aspiration for learning never diminished. I continued to enroll elective courses in the following year and ended up completing 12 courses in 2 years. Awarding a Distinguished Scholar and Intellectual Contribution Awards (voted by classmates) from 4 courses was by-product.

That indeed helped me build confidence and transform my mindset from “Me” to “We”. I became so passionate about creating a bond with a team I work with while each of us aims to be the the best version one's self through collaboration.

Supporting and encouraging my study group members for success with each other became my joy. I had a blast when all of my study group members awarded the Intellectual Contribution Award. It was a moment I was so fulfilled.

In the 3rd year, I even stretched myself and applied to be a Course Facilitator as a way of contributing back to this beloved community, which I never thought when I started the LEAD program.

Giving feedback to my participants and receiving feedback from them is so pleasant. Working with an extraordinary teaching team stimulates my intellectual curiosity. I learned so much from them and am still learning. I'm excited about how far I can go.

The LEAD program taught me the power and huge potential of online learning, which eventually led me to my dream job at Udemy who is global e-learning platform, connecting whoever wants to teach and whoever wants to learn across the globe. That transition evolved my mindset and from “We” to “All”.

Closing remark

In the last 4 years, I connected 14 business leaders to the LEAD program and have seen huge changes in themselves. They said their lives have changed since they joined the LEAD program.

I initially never thought how much my experience at the LEAD program is influential to other people. I can tell now it has started from believing in myself and I've kept I am committed to the community.

I have a belief.

“If I talk about it, it is just a dream.”

“If I envision it, it is possible.”

“If I schedule it, it is real.”

I made my aspiration come true through the LEAD program because I talked about it, envisioned it, and scheduled it. And, I now have a vision of higher self to be a professional coach to support business leaders for their success.

Your LEAD journey has just started. This is only the beginning. Believe in yourself and trust your fellow LEADers. You will be fine. I assure you so many more amazing things are headed your way.

Let us change lives, organizations, and the world together. We can do it.

So, thrilled to imagine when our paths will cross during your LEAD journey.

Welcome to this beloved community!