Meet Dr. Eddie Connor

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dr. Eddie Connor a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Dr. Eddie , thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
I’m reminded of a quote by Dr. Myles Munroe who affirmed, “Vision is purpose in pictures.” For much of my life, I’ve known my purpose but the vision and picture of my future always seemed to be blurry. As a son of parents who are ministers, I was raised to love God and express love to people. Grappling with their divorce and the absence of my father, I battled with how to become a man when I didn’t interact with one. How do I play the role without the script? To make matters worse, in high school, I was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

The pain of struggle came early and often in my life. My life is a stark reminder of the poignant and poetic words of Langston Hughes, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” Sometimes you don’t realize how strong you are until being strong is your only option. Through my struggle to find the can in cancer, I realize that pain is oftentimes a portal to purpose.

For almost two years, I received chemotherapy and radiation to eradicate an aggressive form of cancer. Battling that disease brought about the dis-ease of depression, dismay, and mental discombobulation. Many people didn’t think I was going to make it, but God healed me and I persevered. I found the can in cancer. The battles did not stop there. I was told by my guidance counselor that I would never go to college. However, from being told I would never go to college to serving as a professor at a college is one of my victories. Servant leadership is near and dear to me, which is why I developed the organization “Boys 2 Books.” It’s an after-school program that provides an opportunity to give back as a mentor and empower young males via literacy, leadership, and life skills enrichment.

I’m a living witness that as long as you have a pulse, you still have a purpose. I persevered through chemotherapy, radiation, depression, and an absent father. Yes, cancer made me cry but it didn’t make me quit. What I endured was painful but by God’s grace it became purposeful. I’m blessed to live through dying places and empower people to do the same.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I live by the credo that “Service is the rent you pay for the space you occupy.” I consider myself to be a servant leader by empowering people to overcome obstacles and walk in their unique purpose. By discovering the champion in me I overcome challenges to write 16 books, develop mentoring programs, share my journey as an international speaker and be featured on major media outlets across the country.

As a result, I saw my vision clearer. I believe knowing your identity places you at the intersection of purpose and opportunity. Somebody is waiting for you to become who you are so they can become who they are supposed to be. How long will you make them wait?

This pertinent question led to the birthing of the Access Identity Conference which is taking place in Detroit, MI on Saturday, August 5, 2023. You can register right now at http://www.AccessIdentity.org and use the code ACCESS at checkout to get $50 off. AIC 2023 is the conference that makes a difference by empowering attendees with substantive strategies to increase their ideas, impact, and influence. Our conference encompasses 6 access components of Mental Health/Wellness, Business/Branding, Faith, Financial Literacy, Purpose, and Relationships.

So many community members, entrepreneurs, and leaders are grappling with the challenges of growth, economic woes, unemployment, and innovation in a post-pandemic world. The Access Identity Conference provides solutions and strategies to discover your uniqueness and unlock your greatness.

The conference will feature an array of speakers who will address the needs of entrepreneurs, leaders, and educators with pragmatic strategies on work/life balance, mental health, building your brand identity, business, purpose, faith, relationships, and much more.

Each attendee will gain insight on how to catalyze their greatest resource within and influence their community with pragmatic strategies to transform their ideas into massive impact.

The Access Identity Conference provides an atmosphere of excellence that cultivates community inspired growth and purpose driven partnerships. We champion a culture of camaraderie and collaboration over competition.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Develop your character, be curious, and know your calling. Character development is necessary to unlocking the door to your identity. Character will take you where talent can’t keep you. It will not only take you to the top but keep you on top. Being curious empowers you to ask the tough questions to be a critical thinker in a chaotic world. Knowing your calling speaks to your why and the purpose that you were created to fulfill.

The saying goes, “An entrepreneur is someone who jumps off a cliff and builds a plane on the way down without a parachute.” Undoubtedly, it’s a big risk to reap the rewards but you can’t reap the rewards without taking the risk. If you want to aspire higher and reach new levels, you have to take a leap of faith. Personally, for me to shift from full-time educator and professor to full-time entrepreneur was totally risky. Creating something from nothing, betting on myself, and beating the odds was very risky but all the more rewarding. I did not allow my situation to shrink my vision. If you want to aspire higher and reach new levels, you have to take a leap of faith. Knowing your why and discovering how to level up will be the ultimate reward.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
Undoubtedly my mother, Dr. Janice Connor has been tremendously instrumental in helping me to overcome challenges. Her faith, love and support especially to empower me to beat cancer provided an answer to many of the problems I faced. I would also credit my determination to overcome challenges to my faith in God and a persistent commitment to greatness. It’s all about consistency and discovering your identity. Growing up, I was always the underdog who was overlooked.

Many people didn’t think I would beat cancer much less do something extraordinary in life. As a result, I doubted myself for years. Ultimately through a personal awakening, I made a decision to not allow people’s opinions to become my psychological prison. When I changed the way I looked at things, the things I looked at began to change. All of the adversity created opportunity to share my testimony by teaching, speaking, writing, and mentoring the next generation of young leaders.

I truly believe that nobody can beat you being you. Walking in the power of your authenticity with vulnerability empowers you to be uniquely you. I believe it’s important to first begin with your why. What is your purpose, what are you created to do, who are you, and who are the people that you would like to join you on your journey? By answering those particular questions, it provides a compass to receive guidance from leaders who are in your specific niche. I always say “Somebody is waiting for you to be who you are, so they can become who they’re supposed to be.” It takes courage, character, and commitment to manifest it.

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