Jul 24, 2019
Welcome to She Leads Podcast Season 4, Episode 13! This episode of She Leads Podcast features Florence Davis founder of Focused Vision Design Group. Florence Davis is a designer, developer, and spiritualist who leads her life like the Boss she is. To hear Florence Davis’ take on leadership, listen to her interview as she discusses the importance of integrity, having empathy for others, and the necessity of structure and planning.
Florence Davis’ Bio
Florence Davis is a Spiritualist, Designer, and Developer. She is the Founder of Focused Vision Design Group. A company that provides teaching materials and workshops on all avenues tech and design related. The Front End Creatives Division of Focused Vision Design Group focuses on creating design and technology workshops to help empower people to get to the next level in career and life goals.
Before, Focused Vision Design Group. Florence Davis worked and consulted for several Fortune 500 companies in the Silicon Valley Area. Including LinkedIn, Google, Apple, and Salesforce to name a few. She also taught “Intro to Programming”, at Year Up. Year Up's mission is to close the Opportunity Divide by providing urban young adults with the skills, experience, and support that will empower them to reach their potential through professional careers and higher education.
Seeing the major divide in her own career, usually being the only black female in her career field. She put a major effort into volunteering and teaching. She chose to start teaching workshops on design and development to help close that divide. Therefore Focused Vision Design Group and Front End Creatives were born. Florence wanted to show that technology could be fun and that you have the opportunity to make a lot of money in this field. As well as change your life trajectory, especially if you came from a place where you were underprivileged. Year Up is what really sparked Florence’s entrepreneurial journey because through all the disadvantages she was still able to make it to Fortune 500 companies and eventually start several businesses.
Nicole Walker’s Interview Commentary
I really enjoyed this interview with Flo and I hope you did as well!
I agree with Flo’s stance on our past not defining us!! We are defined by what we believe, what we speak, and the actions we take. We have the power to change our beliefs, words, and actions as we increase our understanding and gain more knowledge if we are willing to do so. Our beginning does not have to determine our lifetime unless we allow it to. The road to redemption will have its challenges; however, the glory of a transformed life is well worth it! We all have the opportunity to create and recreate ourselves as often as needed. And, we all have the responsibility to not allow ourselves to be created by our circumstances. A quote by Joel Osteen reads, “You are not defined by your past. You are prepared by your past.”
I admire Flo’s ability to recognize and admit that she was a reluctant leader in one of her previous positions. I can completely understand this, due to the misconception that leadership has to come with a title and that speaking up will overshadow others. It is imperative that we are unapologetic about our greatness, and do not shrink ourselves to accommodate for anyone. Just because someone has a higher position or title, does not mean that they know all the answers. Every voice matters, and we all are leaders. We have to be comfortable speaking up at all times, allowing our light to shine for the world as it should!
I can relate to Flo’s experiences with feeling depressed about life and wanting more, as I experienced the same. As with Flo having an impact is extremely important to me, as it makes me feel alive and valuable. In many cases people are moved more by being involved in something they believe in, as opposed to having monetary and materialistic gain with no sense of purpose. When you have what others would deem as success and still feel empty inside, it’s time to re-evaluate your circumstances to ensure they align with your goals, values, and vision. A quote by Kevin Kruse reads, “Life is about making an impact, not making an income.”
Nicole Walker’s Takeaway of the Week
Flo mentioned the importance of doing our hard tasks first to ensure the important items on our list are taken care of. This is definitely a struggle area of mine as I am a recovering procrastinator. Pushing things off and waiting until the last minute has been my practice for so long especially for the harder tasks. I am grateful that I no longer enjoy the unnecessary pressure this brings, and am working to improve in this area.
I will continue to make it my business to align my tasks with my core values and desired impact, while working on the hard tasks first to ensure I am challenging and growing myself, showing up in excellence, and not rushing the process.
A quote by Dale Carnegie reads, “Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves.”
Nicole Walker’s Leadership Challenge
My leadership challenge for you would be to think about the one thing you can take away from this episode and adopt into your life. I know it’s hard to absorb too much information at one time and it’s even harder to try and implement too many changes at once. When I attend a training or listen to podcasts I aim to walk away with a least one thing that stuck out to me and one way that I can change as a result. I challenge you to do the same! If you decide to take me up on my challenge I would love to know about your key take way. If you care to share please go to the She Leads Podcast Discussion Group on Face Book and leave your comment under the Takeaway Thursday post for Season 4 Episode 13.
Don’t forget to subscribe to She Leads Podcast for First access to future episodes. And, like and share this episode of She Leads Podcast, “Your Past Does Not Define You with Florence Davis”.
Thanks and until next time “Be Empowered and Empower On”!