Sarita is a lovely name, but not very pervasive. Imagine my surprise when a colleague and I had just been discussing an upcoming event featuring author and motivational speaker Sarita Maybin, and the phone rang with Edgar letting me know that he'd made it to Sarita, TX on his journey. What a unique and marvelous way to assure me once again that everything is beautifully connected!
Showing posts with label Comerica Bank Women's Business Initiative. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Comerica Bank Women's Business Initiative. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Opportunities and Challenges
Yesterday I had the great privilege to host Comerica Bank's 2nd Quarter Women's Business Symposium Luncheon and moderate a discussion with a stellar panel of powerful, accomplished women. Anna Babin - President of the United Way of Greater Houston, Catherine Mosbacher - CEO of Center for Houston's Future and Ann Stern - President of Houston Endowment shared their expertise, experience and aspirations regarding the "Opportunities and Challenges Facing Houston".
Collectively their organizations impact everyone in the region, through innovative planning for the future, leadership development, strengthening families and neighborhoods and supporting and improving education, human services, health, arts and environment. It's easy to understand the importance, but hard to quantify the impact of the Center for Houston's Future's research, planning and civic engagement. On the other hand the sheer numbers for the other organizations are incredibly impressive, but only tell part of the story. Houston Endowment has invested $1.4 billion in improving the region and awarded scholarships to more than 10,000 Jones scholars. Last year alone, United Way served 790,000 family members.
It was powerful hearing all three leaders independently articulate the same priorities for the vibrancy of our region - improving education and addressing wealth disparity. And it's not surprising that the two issues are linked. The more we learn, the more we tend to earn.
The return on investment for educational gains are remarkable, especially for early childhood education. And the regional economic impact of increasing completion of 2 and 4 years degrees by only 1% is estimated to be over $4 billion.
Anna, Catherine and Ann agreed that Houston is a remarkable place, strengthened by our diversity and generous spirit. Through investment, voting and advocacy, volunteer service and collaboration we will continue to be a great place to live, work, learn and play.
Collectively their organizations impact everyone in the region, through innovative planning for the future, leadership development, strengthening families and neighborhoods and supporting and improving education, human services, health, arts and environment. It's easy to understand the importance, but hard to quantify the impact of the Center for Houston's Future's research, planning and civic engagement. On the other hand the sheer numbers for the other organizations are incredibly impressive, but only tell part of the story. Houston Endowment has invested $1.4 billion in improving the region and awarded scholarships to more than 10,000 Jones scholars. Last year alone, United Way served 790,000 family members.
It was powerful hearing all three leaders independently articulate the same priorities for the vibrancy of our region - improving education and addressing wealth disparity. And it's not surprising that the two issues are linked. The more we learn, the more we tend to earn.
The return on investment for educational gains are remarkable, especially for early childhood education. And the regional economic impact of increasing completion of 2 and 4 years degrees by only 1% is estimated to be over $4 billion.
Anna, Catherine and Ann agreed that Houston is a remarkable place, strengthened by our diversity and generous spirit. Through investment, voting and advocacy, volunteer service and collaboration we will continue to be a great place to live, work, learn and play.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Communications Strategies Every Leader Needs to Know
Dianna Booher captivated our audience at Comerica's recent Women's Business Initiative luncheon in Dallas as she energetically shared communications strategies we all need to know. It's clear that Dianna is a communication expert by examining just a few of her 45 book titles that collectively have sold almost 3 million copies in 16 languages in 23 countries.
The true measure of authoritative, persuasive and credible communications is in the results. What we say and intend is not always what a listener hears. Though most people would interpret a one in a million chance to mean "no way", it can be interpreted by the listener that there is still a chance.
In many communications, there is only a 50% chance that the conclusion intended was reached. Her tips for improving understanding include:
Dianna's presentation provided a vivid reminder that excellent communications skills can lead to extraordinary careers and relationships.
The true measure of authoritative, persuasive and credible communications is in the results. What we say and intend is not always what a listener hears. Though most people would interpret a one in a million chance to mean "no way", it can be interpreted by the listener that there is still a chance.
In many communications, there is only a 50% chance that the conclusion intended was reached. Her tips for improving understanding include:
- Specificity
- Verification
- One sentence summary
- Elaboration
- Example
- Restatement of the one sentence summary
Dianna's presentation provided a vivid reminder that excellent communications skills can lead to extraordinary careers and relationships.
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