We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashley Cole. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashley below.
Hi Ashley, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
Being open. It is that simple.
I am open to hearing how others got to where they are in their journey.
With openness comes curiosity. I have a passion for learning and understanding people that allows me to connect and relate quickly. The feeling of being the only one in the room who looks like me does not affect my eagerness to be open and curious. Whether I am in a room with people 20 years older than me or 20 years younger, there is always something for me to learn.
I am also drawn to other cultures and being within diverse groups of people. One, for my love of trying new foods and two, because I love travelling. I did not know that my eclectic personality and interests would lead me to a life of networking and meeting people and eventually take me to places like Dubai and Turkey.
Along with travelling, networking has provided me with amazing opportunities, such as being on the Board of Directors for the Brea Chamber of Commerce and the Vice President of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s Tomorrow’s Leader Council.
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?
My parents came to America in the 80’s. My dad is from Sierra Leone and my mom is from Belize. I grew up in Orange County, CA and spent time with my family in Los Angeles every weekend.
Throughout my life, I have been drawn to being in service, whether it was volunteering during high school to serving on executive boards in college to investing my time and energy into coaching others into their vision and dreams. After hearing stories of how my grandma served members of the Sierra Leonean community coming to America, it became clear where I inherited my passion for supporting others.
Through my volunteer work, I learned how to build relationships and network, a skill I utilize to this day as a business owner. Combined with my emotional intelligence and leadership development, I connected my ability to think outside the box with committed action. I started events with my sorority that are still hosted to this day. I have seen my ideas hold true in various organizations and small businesses; and I continue to create additional results. This all stems from my passion for being in service to people and the community.
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?
-Be Curious, connect.
Being curious allows us to create a human connection with others. We grow by sharing our stories and experiences with one another, thus enriching and enhancing our respective lives. By caring to connect with another soul, we create a shared bond that allows us to go farther than what we could have imagined as individuals!
-Follow-up, build the relationship.
Connection is only the first step. Following-up and building the relationship is just as important. We get to truly care about each other if we are to grow and achieve our goals. It’s not the quantity of your network that creates impact; it’s the quality of the relationships you have within that network that determines your effectiveness.
-Have Fun!
Yes, there will be ups and downs. However, finding the joy in each moment has given me the opportunity to see the blessing in each event and interaction and create a new possibility that never would have happened if I had chosen to not have fun.
Together, these three qualities have led me to where I am on my journey. My best advice to develop and improve these qualities is to be daring enough to embody them with every new person you meet. You never know where that curiosity, follow-up, and fun may lead you. From new job opportunities to exciting relationships, the world is a playground waiting to be experienced!
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
Steve Jobs’ biography has played an important role in developing myself as a leader and a business owner. Not only did it support me in seeing what it means to be tenacious enough to change the world, it also instilled within me the ability to trust and follow my intuition. While there will be tough times, especially as a solopreneur, his biography empowered me to push through the uncertainty and create possibilities by first trusting myself. Every January, I listen to his biography to remind me what is possible with the power of creativity and trust.
In addition, “Dare to Lead” by Brene Brown and “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Steven Covey ultimately led me to coin the phrase, “synergistic vulnerability,” which has been a guiding North Star on my journey.
Synergistic vulnerability is the willingness to risk being open, honest, caring, and loving. To powerfully accept differences and to create a vision bigger than the individuals involved. When we come together and synergize towards an outcome, the possibilities are limitless. The way Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak came together to change the world is just one example of synergistic vulnerability. Both looked beyond their differences in upbringing and personalities to move humanity forward. Seeing what was possible with computers and technology as a whole could have only been manifested by being willing to risk creating something bigger than they, as individuals, could have ever imagined.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bizsuccesserv.com
- Instagram: @bizss_
Image Credits
Cathleen McGrath
