The Purpose Behind Blooming Lotus Lab
The announcement had been blunt. Rather than follow-through on their commitment—we were in year 2 of 5—our funding agency was cutting ties. We had 12 months before the program would be shuttered. The second largest teen pregnancy prevention program in the nation. It was like a sucker punch to the face, but sharper.
We’d heard a lawsuit was being filed to dispute the decision. But legal motions take time. Usually years. I was worried about our staff.
“We’ll need to hold onto the team any way we can.” I stated to my colleague as we met to strategize.
We had 40 schools depending upon us. Thousands of young adolescents and hundreds of teachers. To make this year count, we’d need our team of 12 to stay as long as possible. If too many transitioned into new jobs, we’d stall as a unit. We simply couldn’t keep the program moving without them.
My mind started churning out ideas: spot bonuses, retention bumps, extra paid leave. I shared these with my colleague, but with each option she shook her head, dejectedly.
“I’d like to. We just, I don’t think we can afford it.” I had to stifle a gasp of disbelief.
We had the funds. In fact, we’d struggled to spend what we’d been given up to this point. She avoided my eyes and instead, inspected her legal pad, running her pen down a looping list of points.
After two years of collaboration, I’d learned a lot about my colleague.
What stood out most: Fear guided her choices.
Yes, she was smart and knowledgeable, accomplished even. But her appetite for trying anything outside what had been done before was like taking a flying lesson with the Blue Angels. No, nada, not on your life.
It was at that juncture, I felt a rallying cry grow within me. This, this was what was wrong with the world. Too many frightened people, employed in static institutions and married to the predictability of doing what had been done before, exactly as it had been done before. It’s no wonder we kept repeating mistakes of the past.
But our world is changing, dear friends. Did 2020 not teach us this?
I knew it was time to move on.
I knew I had smart ideas, expertise and energy to share. Time to step around the old guard. It’s time to foster change without invitations. Fuck fear. It’s time.
In 2020, centuries-old injustices were brought into the light and the demand for change grew so sharp it was impossible to dismiss. Long-standing inequities—racial, economic, political, health—entered the public discourse. Climate change and a global pandemic refused to slip quietly past.
The scope of these challenges is hard to conceptualize. But the solutions won’t come from frightened people who pretend that doing what was done before is sufficient. We need fresh voices, diverse perspectives and all the talent we can muster as a global community to resolve these issues.
The real question isn’t whether our world is changing, rather it’s:
Will we step up and play a role in what it becomes?
Blooming Lotus Lab was conceived as a response to this need for change. My goal is to foster community and serve as a resource and source of support, coaching and guidance for:
Change-makers seeking roles to magnify their impact
Women pursuing opportunities that harness their talents and grow their strengths
Professionals seeking occupations that align with their values, priorities and aspirations
New grads and midlife careerists who are ready for something bold and different.
In any period of instability or uncertainty, the natural tendency is to retract from risk, stick to the familiar and avoid the unpredictable. But it is only by stretching and reaching beyond what we know and getting uncomfortable that we actually grow.
I know the struggle, firsthand. When I was “released into the wild”, a newly minted PhD, I was utterly unprepared for the frustration and loneliness that accompanied a job search with a terminal degree. I had amusingly gone the “non-academic” route, which was akin slashing my way through the Florida Everglades instead of taking the I-75. After almost a year, I had amassed enough rejection notices to wallpaper a prison. And over time, my golden, stellar self-confidence turned a dull, tarnished green. Besides my jobless status, my greatest challenges were:
1. Not knowing what I was qualified to do
2. Being unsure how to appropriately pitch myself
3. Lacking a solid idea of where I really wanted to be.
As I came to learn, painfully, if you’re not clear about where you’re headed, you’re not headed anywhere good. It’s like parachuting into the Arctic Circle without a GPS. It’s exciting at first, but you’re likely to end up on an ice flow or on a polar bear’s dinner plate. You have no point of reference for heading in any direction. You’re aimless.
Although I was outfitted with lots of credentials, I ended up in roles that didn’t challenge me, didn’t harness my talents and expertise. I was sleepwalking—and when I woke up, I was angry. Mostly at myself. It was painful.
In the intervening years, I expanded and refined my direction. Found a path that promised advancement and landed my “dream job.” But here’s the thing about goals…once you achieve them, you need to set new ones. Hence Blooming Lotus Lab.
Why the Blooming Lotus?
The lotus flower is a metaphor for what is intrinsically possible for all of us – the potential to unfurl, expand upon your strengths and realize your own greatness. But the reference runs deeper than a pretty image.
The life of the lotus flower is also representative of our growth as individuals. Before there is a
blossom, there is a seed and sprout, stretching through dark, murky water that’s thick with uncertainty.
We all pass through periods in which our future directions are unclear. After all, there are few guarantees in this life. Like the lotus, our path to the water’s surface is not always crystal clear. Rocks and crevices may stand in the way. The sprout may get twisted and take longer to rise.
But one thing IS certain: if we continue stretching, like the lotus flower, we push and reach and grow despite fear, we too will break through.
I’m here to accompany you on that journey. To support you in moving past the uncertainty, using science-based approaches to avoid self-sabotage and navigate around thought patterns that can keep you stunted. To support you in realizing the stunning achievements of your design and choice.
Our world is at a crossroads and the ways of the past will not be those of the future.
I’m here to help you find your path forward, to grow it or create it. Let's foster change. Together.
Komentarze