Robert Greenleaf said, "The best leaders are clear. They continually light the way, and in the process, let each person know that what they do makes a difference. The best test as a leader is: do those served grow as persons; do they become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely themselves to become leaders?"
SLI Coaching and Consulting was created to develop leaders and teams to become individuals who strive to serve those in their care, lead the teams they are connected to, and inspire those around them to be the best version of themselves.
My career has focused on serving others. I have proudly worked as a police officer in Missouri and Minnesota. In this role, I learned the value of community. Building relationships with those we serve and living each day to try and inspire those I come into contact with. When my time was complete in law enforcement, I had the opportunity to pour myself into others through my role in Higher Education as a Faculty / Program Coordinator role. This experience taught me how to believe in people. As an educator, I was not some "gate" they needed to pass through. My role was to share my knowledge and guide students to the goals they had. This, was one of the most rewarding experiences I had.
After spending a few years in higher education, I decided to make the move into administration. What I didn't know was this change was going to be the experience that made me who I am today. within the first two years, I knew this was not the role for me. But how? I worked my way up through faculty and this was the natural next step, right? I found myself at my lowest point. Dreading to go to work, searching for anything I could do not to go to work. The support of my family and my mentor led me to shift my focus from my perceived negativity to defining what I wanted to do with my life. I explored and considered a number of options - but nothing seemed to connect. As I was reflecting on my most meaningful experiences, I noticed that it revolved around the development of others. When asked what I would do if I could do anything, I answered, "develop others."
I made the decision to focus on potential employers that would allow me to focus my energies on others. I had to start over, and I did. I accepted a job with the State of Wisconsin and never looked back. My time with the Department of Corrections gave me the opportunity to re-discover who I was. I made friends that challenged and inspired me to continuously seek to do better. After finding success with the programs we were building, I decided to consider a supervisor role again. I was offered a training director role with the Department of Transportation. I accepted this role as I knew I could offer something to that team. Again, we experienced tremendous success with the programs we built and within two years, I was offered a role to bring together a training and development team that would support 21 state agencies and 40,000 employees. The lessons learned in this role were many - and ones I will share in future posts - but the experience of developing teams and programs allowed me and my team to impact a culture in a short amount of time.
That brings me to today. I have accomplished things I never thought I was capable of doing. However, I have never been happier in my work of developing others. For me, this is what I am supposed to be doing. Each of the professional positions I have held have opened my eyes to new experiences and viewpoints. It is those experiences that have allowed me to develop training insights and professional viewpoints that have already helped many others succeed in ways they didn't know were possible.
I know I am not for everyone - and that is okay. However, if you are looking for someone who will allow you to develop in new ways, someone who can help you discover your best version, and someone who can help your teams develop a culture of success, then I am for you. I would love to talk more about my experiences with you. So, please, let me know how I can help. Let me know how I can help guide you to become a leader or team focused on serving those in their care, leading others to become their best version, and inspiring those you connect with.
You can reach Jason via email at Jason@serveleadinspire.net or by phone at 608-322-9615.