Last week I asked the question, “how are you impacting your job”. Did you take some time to think about your answer? Today I want you to think about where your opportunities for growth are.
Xavier Becerra is the 25th Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and the first Latino to hold the office in the history of the United States. As Secretary, he will carry out President Biden’s vision to build a healthy America, and his work will focus on ensuring that all Americans have health security and access to healthcare.
Are you wondering why I just threw that in here? I am not ashamed to admit that I did not know who the current HHS Secretary is. I realized that as I was thinking about how many of us aren’t living up to our potential because we are allowing ourselves to be limited by toxic beliefs, fear, and familiarity.
You may have heard me share the story from my graduate school Community Organizing class but I want to share it again here. I went to school part-time in the evenings and most of my classmates were working Women of Color over age 30. There were no more than 3 men. My professor asked us why we were pursuing a master’s degree. Basically all the women – myself included – said some version of “I want to get a better job and make more money”. There was a White man who commuted to Maryland from Pennsylvania for work and school who responded that he wanted to be the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. That struck me at my core. I don’t remember his name nor his face, but I still hear his response which highlighted my opportunity for growth. The HHS Secretary is a position of power, influence, visibility, and financial stability. I, and my female classmates, were playing it safe and playing small.
Where are your opportunities for growth? Where can you stretch and elevate?
So ladies, if you want support on the journey to leverage your opportunities for growth, I recommend a Career Activation Strategy Session. You select one (1) focus area for your individual strategy session and we get to work. Your options:
- Destination – Establish a specific career focus and develop goals and milestones to reach it
- Preparation – Uncover and combat internal and external barriers to career success
- Amplification – Leverage your skills to ace your promotion meeting, performance review, or job interview
Let’s get to work!
Nicki Sanders, MSW, ushers high-performing women of color in mid-level social work and human services leadership through promotion to senior leadership. As Founder and CEO of Nicki Sanders Leadership Consulting, her mission is simple – to eliminate toxic workplaces by developing skilled, empathetic, and goal-oriented leaders who have the vision, support, and resources to create a culture where business prospers, and employees thrive individually and collectively. Nicki has an extensive background in nonprofit management leading high-functioning, multi-disciplinary teams. She is an accomplished professor, coach, trainer, and group facilitator who has combined her gift for authentic relationships, Master of Social Work degree, and over 20 years of diverse work experience to create a life and career aligned with her values and purpose. Nicki is a lover of cupcakes, travel, and 80’s hip hop and R&B music.
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