Meet Alison Korman

We recently connected with Alison Korman and have shared our conversation below.

Alison, thank you so much for joining us and offering your lessons and wisdom for our readers. One of the things we most admire about you is your generosity and so we’d love if you could talk to us about where you think your generosity comes from.

Generosity…hmmm…an interesting word. For me, generosity exists in a perpetual energetic cycle.

Often icons of generosity are perceived in terms of unselfishness and grand gestures – think Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, etc. Their great generosity also involved tremendous personal sacrifice.

While I believe that most people are inherently generous, what often limits its expression is a perceived lack of time, energy, and/or other resources that would demand a kind of martyrdom that is beyond most people’s ability or desire to maintain.

I circumvent this by identifying and pursuing actions that live at the intersection of my Self-Interest and Altruism as much and as often as possible. For example, The Young Shakespeareans incorporates everything in my life that I enjoy, have ever been good at. Recognizing the value of the work, and the intense joy and empowerment it brings to the community, and simultaneously to me, makes it very easy to donate my time, energy, and creativity to it. In this way, my involvement manifests simultaneously as both generous and self-serving.

On a material plane, loosening any attachment to “stuff” and “status” has been extraordinarily helpful and freeing. While I like nice things and experiences as much as anyone, I more enjoy sharing them then keeping them to myself. As I evolve, worrying less and less about other’s judgement of me (particularly if what they value is different from what I value) allows me to be spontaneous in applying my initiative, focus, time, and energy.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

THE YOUNG SHAKESPEAREANS is my personal “All roads lead to Rome” – that is to say that it is a platform that incorporates everything that has been important to me throughout my life.
– Creativity & the Arts (Performing, Visual, Literary, anything);
– Children;
– Education;
– Community;
– Self-Awareness and Alignment;
– Agency & Empowerment (not domination over others);
– Meaningful/Purposeful Existence.

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?

VISION/ANALYSIS:
Being dead-honest with myself to determine/develop my personal “Sweet Spot”:
– INTERNAL: “What am I good at?” – Identifying & Relying on innate strengths – easier to develop and apply;
– INTERNAL: “What do I enjoy doing?” – Expertise/Success require practice/repetition – easier to continuously “rinse and repeat”;
– EXTERNAL: “What does the Market need?” – Outward view to determine what product or service others need that is either unfulfilled in general
or for a particular population/sector, or could be done to better result, or more efficiently, or scaled to serve a greater number of people.

CREATIVE/INNOVATION/ENTREPRENEURIAL:
– Looking dead ahead, then far afield, then all around – gaining a short, long, and SPHERICAL perspective, both backwards (historically) and forwards;
– Seeing the Dots/Connecting the Dots, Discerning Patterns;
– Being Agile, Improvisational, and Unafraid to make mistakes, then own, analyze, and fix them and solving;
– Noticing and addressing new problems while moving continuously forward.

OPTIMISTIC/COMPASSIONATE PURPOSE:
– Maintaining Critical Analysis while Recognizing and Releasing Critical Judgement;
– Finding the Intersection of Altruism & Self-Interest – an energetic cycle that self-perpetuates, and self-feeds.

FIND YOUR TRIBE – DEVELOP YOUR OWN CULTURE:
– This is probably the most important thing. Personally, I would prefer to do something boring or onerous with people I enjoy, than do something I enjoy with people I can’t stand. Of course, better to do something I love with people I love and respect, who love and respect me in return. Love and respect are different than blind adoration which is dangerous.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I am always looking for partners/collaborators if/when they are:
– Interested in creating equitable opportunity for children of any origin, race, ethnicity, economic standing;
– Idea driven and knows how to manifest (method/execution);
– Kind, Compassionate, and preferably with a good sense of humor about themselves and our crazy world.

[email protected]

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theyoungshakespeareans.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theyoungshakespeareans/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TYSLosangeles
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alison-korman-3868b499/

Image Credits

Photographers: Sungwan So, Nate Weaver, Paul Horn