Meet Rachelle Law

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?
In 2022, I found myself being told by my Vice President that my service was no longer needed, The company was going in a different direction. I was offered a severance package and sent walking. What might have destroyed someone else, catapulted in the right direction. And I embraced the unexpected gift.

As a child, I learned to appreciate the undesired gift. My great-grandmother, Clarice, gave me the same gift every year. I was in no rush to open it, no matter how perfect the wrapping paper, or how big the bow was positioned on it, because the gift was not something I wanted or desired and at the time I didn’t appreciate it, but her gift to me was what I needed. Her gift to me was the last gift I opened, several pairs of underwear, not necessarily what a teenage girl wishes for at Christmas time. Later that year, she passed away. I would have done anything to receive underwear for Christmas.

The interruption in my career separated me from a position that I didn’t love and had come to be more of a chore than a place to grow and flourish. I was blocked from advancement and it wasn’t the first time, this time I welcomed the rejection and my gift made room for me in service at my church, in the lives of broken people-through writing.

Maybe you’ve been in that place and it feels like a burden has been lifted off your shoulders. I’ve been employed by companies that appreciated my gifts and talents, and not me.

Through the years, we sign on to jobs that give people the upper hand and at their will to dismiss you at any given time, for no apparent reason. In 2022, I made myself a promise; I would only take a journey with someone and for something that aligned with my passion, gifts and talents.

In 2023, I agreed to have a meal with a young Black woman, recently appointed to the position of Executive Director, i.c. stars Kansas City. Shamika Hogan knew very little about me and I knew even less about her. Our connection was my gift making room for me. In the background, the feet of hungry people being shown to their seats, the noise of dishes clattering, and a hint of maple wafting in the air. Shamika and I sat across from each other and the only thing that I could say was, “Who are you?”

Shamika is the woman that opened the door for me to walk through and to operate in my gifts and talents as the Talent Placement Manager at i.c. stars Kansas City.The Talent Placement Manager position offer was something special. It was God’s favor, because my gift and the package that carried the gift was accepted; and has led me on a walk of faith that allows me to fulfill my purpose.

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?

Looking back over my life, I can stand ten toes down and proclaim that each of us are born with a great gift, a gift that we don’t have to go look for, because it dwells within us. We are equipped with everything we need and sharing our gift(s) is the most important thing we have, and if we fail to operate our gift,  we cheat the world and ourselves.

Failure is where I learned the most. Failure taught me to face the truth of disappointment; allowed me time to reflect, to make sense of what went wrong, and to grieve my disappointments and where I made adjustments to bounce back. I learned that if I woke up the next morning that I was privileged to try again; given another opportunity to be the change I wanted to see. Failure and disappointment encouraged me NOT to get stuck and feel sorry for myself, a pity party doesn’t solve anything. I learned to love myself and that made it easy to love others. Knowing and developing my gift, along with my failures and disappointments pointed me to the road to find my silver lining.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?
I enjoy and find solace in reading. All genres, non-fiction, poetry, short story, romance and historical, As a woman of faith, the bible has played an important role in my development. As a writer and a published author of three books; “My Whisper from God, Beauty’s Beast, and You are Beautiful”  available on www.rachelleco.com and two anthologies, my gift of writing can’t be taken away,  my books encourage from the place of the loss of a child, domestic violence, my book “You Are Beautiful!” birthed an organization, How Come How Long, that educates and provides workshops to address domestic violence,  and a mother dying of cancer. The bible is a dependable source that provides guidance in raising my children, marriage, divorce how to forgive, and overall navigating life.

Habakkuk 2:2 (KJV) “…Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that read it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait, for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” The vision is about my goals for the future and how to arrive at them, where I am in life and why I exist.

My gift continues to make room for me in my church home, work, and play. It blesses others for free, and because I share it freely, more doors are open. The gift of words are powerful-death and life lies in and the power of the tongue (words), a power that if not tamed can cause much damage. Words are formidable. We can use them to build people up or tear people down. They can stir up anger or soothe the soul. 

The Bible is the source of comfort. The biblical story of Jesus Christ. He comforts me in all my troubles so that I can comfort others.