We were lucky to catch up with Maya Kellman recently and have shared our conversation below.
Maya, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
My resilience comes first and foremost from God. Followed by my parents, mentors, loved ones and myself. I have been blessed by God with supportive family who have instilled humility, respect and positivity in the face of life challenges. Seeing them as opportunities for growth and change. My resilience is deeply rooted in my appreciation for knowing there is someone higher than me and ensuring all things are working towards His plans and purpose for me.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Professionally, I am a qualified Attorney in the island of Barbados. I’ve had the opportunity to practise in both the civil and criminal areas of the law.
During my legal journey, I developed a deeper appreciation for organisational psychology and development. This was a natural progression because I have a background in Sociology and I really enjoyed understanding people and systems. Blending both the law and organisational development together, I decided to bet on myself
. This allowed me to blend law with organisational development (I actually love the latter more!) Interestingly enough, I bet on myself and developed the MLK brand and the MLK Legal & Consultancy which has grown over the last 3 years both locally and internationally. MLK Legal & Consultancy offers high quality learning and development training for teams of all sizes and sectors.
I get to work on some pretty exciting projects in the areas of Change Management, Strategic Planning, Business Strategy, Workplace Wellness and Leadership. I am also a guest lecturer at Sagicor Cave Hill School of Business & Management in Barbados and absolutely enjoy designing programs that help leaders and teams in their roles. I am pretty excited for my new co-authored text on Organisational Development that I am currently working on (one of its kind and made specifically for Caribbean leaders, entrepreneurs and creatives!)
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?
Three qualities that were most impactful in my journey: Humility, gratitude and resilience. Usually dont give advice unless I am asked. However, some words of encouragement- be gentle with yourself, everything is working for you and not against you (even the bad experiences will shape you) and remember you are worthy of sitting at those tables and in those rooms. If they dont see your value, dont be afraid to start to create your opportunities.
Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
My mama and my pops (OG daddy’s girl over here!). Yup, my parents hand down have been so helpful in all my life ups and downs.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mlklegalconsulting.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maya.k.consults/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maya-l-k-161098b6/
- Twitter: https://x.com/kellman_maya
