The first few days of a new year are a special gift. Once the fuss of the holidays dies down, a quiet sense of reflection surrounds the beginning of a fresh year. We are all gifted with a new chapter, a new chance. Most individuals I know begin each year with purpose, making resolutions and setting goals.
Personally, I have spent quite a bit of time ruminating on how to make 2013 one of my best years yet. I have set some goals for my personal and business life, but this year I want to do more than set personal goals. I want to cast a vision for a way that we, as a community, can come together as conduits and advocates of positive change. My next few blogs will share that vision with the hope that others will embrace and own it with me.
One way we can strengthen our community for both today and tomorrow is by intentionally investing in the younger generation. We, as business and community leaders, are currently in the positions which our youth will one day hold. It is in our best interest, and the best interest of society, to nurture, mentor and teach them.
Consider the impact you can have in shaping these young people. Play your part by being a positive role model for the children and young adults in your life. This could include small gestures of reaching elementary-aged children with positive words of affirmation and encouragement or committing a portion of your personal time to mentoring a teenager who is poised for a life transition.
Whatever you choose to do, I implore you to not passively sit by and let these children go unnoticed. Eventually, these young minds will transition into various leadership roles, applying primarily the skills they have seen modeled for them. We have been given the unique opportunity to “step up to the plate” by investing and preparing these young people to lead effectively. As you set goals for the coming months, I encourage you to consider your part in molding and training the next generation.
– Clifford A. Bailey
speaker, CEO, conduit of change