Ep. 01— Why Coffee on Leadership?
Why we started the podcast:
Hello to a global pandemic that changed everything for the way we do gatherings, and development, and workshops, and community.
If you were there in the beginning, we met weekly in my living room and talked about the intersection of leadership and identity. A rotating room of 8-12 women would show up every Friday morning for 4 years before they would head off to work or class, and it was an organic way to do developmental conversations with the student leaders who worked at the university where I was on staff. Those Coffee Houses were sacred for me as a leader because they helped me process my journey too. Despite facilitating, I often uncovered something new and beautiful about my leadership philosophy and how we should be engaging with our communities. Every early morning was worth the time, energy, and endless amounts of coffee served.
Fast forward a few years and I had left my leadership role at that university, so I started hosting CoffeeHouse 2.0 in my backyard for a lot of those women who were now finishing grad school, in amazing jobs, exploring new adventures, and looking for a network. And 24 women showed up, then 22 more, then I moved to other locations (my office and a local coffee shop willing to host) and tried keeping it thematic so I could get back to those small groups of 8. And each time it was exactly what I wanted the developmental space to be: casual and driven by cross-disciplinary conversations around leadership and the intersection of personal and professional development. If you are in any of those networks you are the OG CoffeeHouse crew and I am forever grateful to showed up and by doing so, showed me a greater vision for my own leadership.
Jump forward again past experiences, leader development coaching, workshops, lectures, podcast interviews, and STOP —
Hello to a global pandemic that changed everything for the way we do gatherings, and development, and workshops, and community.
Hello, recalibration on what matters, who we love, where we share knowledge, and gain access, and pour our time and resources into.
Hello, Coffee on Leadership Podcast.
Truthfully, this was a little dream in the back of my mind for a couple years when one of my coaches mentioned it, then it became something I wanted more after trying to navigate the digital learning space and searching for the podcast where women in business, leadership, entrepreneurship, higher education, homeschooling, [you name it], could come and gain wisdom and insight in their leader development.
I am a professor, so it might be micro-lessons on topics for whole leader development.
I am a book-lover, so it could be quick reviews or ideas.
I am a mom, so it may be integration points for working parents.
I am a community-builder, so it might be the nudge to go find a mentor.
I am choosing “risk” for 2020, so it could be ways to address your goals.
I am a leadership developer, so it most likely will include something for you as a leader—yes, you.
I am a coach, so there will be questions for reflection.
I am an educator, so I want leadership learning to be accessible to you.
I am a connector, so I will share ideas and wisdom for you to go find and dig deeper into.
I am a leader, so I will deliver content that inspires you to lead well too because I believe everyone has a purpose and some sphere of impact and influence.
If you are here, thank you. If you want to know more of why I want you to listen, check out Episode 01:
