Determination

Maddy sat demurely in the study room of the local library. We agreed to meet there to discuss how to expand her business. But first we needed to get to know each other better.

She is of undetermined age. I had hints that she was 40; then late 40’s; then I wondered if maybe 50’s was more accurate. She never said her age. Coy perhaps, but most likely demure because she worried about it.

Maddy’s story unfolded bit by bit. A successful speaker that served as trainer in part. That role became more pronounced and she was asked to train staff groups of larger and larger organizations. At first her topics focused on improved effectiveness among work teams. Later it grew to management teams and then executives.

Once in the executive suite Maddy was pushed to bring her messages to more people in the organization, including end users of the company – consumers. Maddy’s role had become a culture, at least for that client.

The core of Maddy’s message was diversity and the acceptance of it within our work groupings. Diversity at one level serves to separate people from each other unless it is valued. Then diversity enriches that same circle of people. That’s the message.

Maddy researched her topics. Gender roles in group settings was one. Men and women working side by side but perceived in ways that separated rather than unified. Ethnic backgrounds were another point of diversity – black, brown, pale or beige – each spoke of cultures unknown to the others. What were the unifiers? Which were the dividers?

And why? Why would diversity serve as a means to separate groups into subsets that didn’t work well with one another?

Age was another diversity point of interest. How could different ages of people cause their interactions to be so unpredictable? Or perhaps, predictable? What made this a dynamic in the first place?

Maddy’s research focused on their life stories, their experiences over time. What were the great issues each group was exposed to that might have formed their perceptions of the world? She began to track age groups. Those who grew up shaped by the Great Depression and World War II. Those born after World War II (1945) and up to 1966 was the next age group, the Boomers. Following that were the Generation X youth (1967 to 1980) and then Generation Y kids (1981 to 2004), sometimes called Millennials.   

Each of these groups lived through major social and world event happenings that shaped their lives intensely. The Great Depression can easily be viewed as life changing. So can the long, tortured drama that unfolded as World War II with both European and Asian theaters of war. A vast era of battles, death, treachery, bravery and victory. Sacrifices. The war changed people. It made them careful, measured trustworthiness, and hard working. There was work to be done in rebuilding regions destroyed by war. There were new technologies to shape industries and create new careers.

The Boomers were hopeful ‘doers’ who built homes, families and industries to lead the world to a new age of economic stability. And then, each succeeding group felt their way into the world’s life and found an identity. Individuals found their calling and their frame of reference to self in the turmoil of an unfolding age. The social dynamic was lived by them and so shaped as well.

Maddy helped people understand how and why people of different ages acted and lived the way they do. In doing that she built respect and appreciation for differences. Diversity as an asset became Maddy’s calling card.

Speaking engagements became organization coaching, consulting and analysis. From the top down Maddy trained people from the executive offices to the front line of customer interaction. Client organizations became whole and performed well. Before, diversity had complicated operations and lessened performance. After, diversity became a strength and enriched both the operating environment but performance as well.

Maddy was in demand. She balanced her work and embraced more clients to her busy schedule. Her family life was pushed to the side. Then her personal needs became a problem. She careened out of control, became ill, and missed appointments. Her decline became cataclysmic to her business life. She entered a dark period of despair and mental illness.

Four or five years later and Maddy has awakened to her new age. She knows there is a void in her biography that needs to be addressed. More so, she needs to push beyond survival and recreate her career. And she is doing just that.

Our paths have crossed and we are working together to find a balanced approach for Maddy to follow. Her skills are just as sharp as ever. Her appreciation of diversity now enlarged by yet more dimensions. She has much to say, teach and train.

Maddy’s back.

June 3, 2015