The best thing about 2021 is that it wasn’t 2020.
Yes, we are still dealing with COVID, and have lost some along the way.
Yes, we still live in a divided country and there are many living with divided families.
True, not enough progress has been made to course-correct on very critical issues at a critical flashpoint. We still have systemic racism, a gender wage gap, a lack of diversity in top leadership, and worsening weather impacts of global warming.
Yet, in 2021, I had more hope than ever that we might see these things corrected in my lifetime, or at least my kids’ lifetimes.
Why? The C3 community!
I spent the year doubling the people and impact of a community of conscious leadership warriors who are battle-proven at making the world a better place, and are committed to collaborating to accelerate conscious changes where a lot of the power lies – at the corporate executive level.
Not only does change seem more possible, but I feel relieved that these amazing people are “on it” and we got each others’ backs!
We’re ready, or at least getting there!
I have been so amazingly supported and it has made a world of difference in my outlook of the future. My core team, C3 co-manager, Lawrence Henderson, and my virtual assistant, Cynthia Harder, is fortified. And, the team is expanding as our capacity to do even more expands.
Did you know that an expectation of a positive outcome is necessary for your motivation brain centers to activate? Do you also know how much more possible a positive outcome seems when you have a team that is helping you build a community of people with a similar mission?
As a result of being so well supported and so hopeful, we embarked on a brand new adventure to host the Consciousness Conference and present the first Conscious Leadership award. We started something really special that has tremendous potential to assemble the best and brightest minds in conscious leadership to offer a menu of solutions for the challenges of the past we are still not through, the challenges of the pandemic and political climate of today, and the unknown of tomorrow.
I was so unmotivated by goals after 2020. Goals felt heavy, but possibilities pulled me forward. And, when 2021 threw some new challenges, it was having Lawrence and Cynthia on my team that helped me re-engage and persevere.
Because of the amazing support of my core team, the enthusiasm of the community, and the talent and passion of ancillary members of my team, we exponentially expanded our capacity to accelerate the conscious leadership movement AND I enjoyed working with many repeat clients helping them realign their careers to new priorities, stronger values, and improved lifestyles while meeting and working with some of the most impressive, conscious innovators and leaders to maximize their impact and influence by crafting compelling brands and consulting to them on powerful proactive campaign strategies and tactics.
Cynthia Harder is not my first virtual assistant, but she is the most experienced virtual assistant I have engaged. She has been with me now for two years as of September (close to beating Angela’s record of 2.5 years ?). With my previous assistants, I knew I was a pit stop on their way to realizing a different dream, and I loved being a stepping stone for them. I’d like to think that they went on to be successful, fulfilled professionals in part because of our time together and learning from my work with my clients how to promote their value and qualify their employers. However, training and developing talent takes time. If I hadn’t had Cynthia, a smart, resourceful, self-managing, caring professional who takes immense pride in doing her job well, who embraces my clients and cares about their successes, too, and who is organized, persistent and adaptable, I hate to think about how 2020 and 2021 would have been. We have this system that works like a machine whether I have my hand on the controls or not. When the challenges of teaching a virtual class, parenting through virtual at-home learning, overwhelm from successive dismal world events, discouraging event sales, and learning my mom has cancer arose, I was able to take my hands off of the controls of my business and hand them to Cynthia for a while. Besides the ability to do this, there’s the knowing that I can do this and everything will keep going that lifts some heavy burdens from my mind and makes it that much easier for me to bounce back and pick up where I left off, if not a bit further ahead than I was. I am so thankful for Cynthia! I wish everyone had a Cynthia!
Lawrence and I reminisced about the first LinkedIn exchange we had back in May of 2020. I was looking to connect with and collaborate with like-missioned disruptors. Lawrence was my first or second outreach, and his response was perfect – he also was pretty tired of the competition and looking to collaborate. It was like we were speaking the same leadership language. Within the first 20 minutes of our first conversation, we felt our collective energies rise. (I give him the credit for that, considering he is certified in Energy Leadership from iPEC). The co-creation began instantly. We haven’t stopped since. Because he is who he is, co-creation continued rather than stalling when the above challenges arose. He’s got me. I’ve got him. It’s a beautiful thing! I am so grateful Lawrence responded to my LinkedIn message. His belief in me and his appreciation for me help me see myself as the powerful force of creation that I am and keep me wanting to create more.
Co-creation was one of the best things that came out of 2020, and it was a theme that carried over into 2021, and, I expect, will be how I will do it all from now on. I realized that co-creation is the key to fulfilling the big vision. I have a library of creative ideas, such as books, movies, songs, and events, that blossomed through the pandemic, and 2022 is going to be about leveraging co-creation to take these ideas from concept through commercial launch. Finding aligned co-creators isn’t easy. (Branding helps!) Knowing now what is possible when you do find aligned co-creators has sparked a new enthusiasm and motivation. My theme for 2022 is… Diversify and Expand.
- In April, I will be instructing again for the Young Entrepreneurs Academy helping 6th through 12th graders manage their newly funded businesses.
- The core team will continue to grow and empower the C3 community to give emerging leaders a stage and offer new opportunities to be a part of the legacy.
- We have already started planning the next ConCon (in person).
- I will continue to develop my résumé and LinkedIn writing team to support the leads with which I am entrusted from my network, and continue working with executive leadership on building a brand and a legacy of their own.
- With a team beside me to support all of that, I will integrate stalled and new creative endeavors for which I am excited to engage co-creators, such as my book, For the Highest Good: How Conscious Corporate Leaders of Today Can Save Tomorrow, as well as an album of songs, mostly unfinished, reflecting reality as I see it is and how I see it could be, and a screenplay for a comedy that came to me one Friday night this month.
- And, the band is getting back together! Harpers Ferry is back at the Bridgeport Ribhouse on March 13, 2022. It’s been a long time since we rock and rolled. Come rock with us if you can.
Though in my house we are not back to our pre-2020 activities yet, we have been enjoying reconnecting with friends and family, getting back to some of our passions, like music, and even discovering new ones, like my girls’ new love of softball.
Though we had been hit hard by some losses and scared we may suffer more still, we are entering the holiday season knowing that my mom’s cancer prognosis is good and the prospect of celebrating with her is so much better. We are very hopeful we will have many more Christmases and New Years with her.
Of course, I am thankful every day for my amazing clients and referral partners. I am humbled every time someone trusts me with their career fate or the career fate of their clients/friends/family. I take it very earnestly. I know how many people benefit from the right leader being in the right role and company with the skills of influence and the mission of impact.
Without further adieu, my traditional Thanksgiving poem:
We made it through the rough
Exhausted and shrunken
Discouraged and dismayed
To find the waters still rippling
Gurgling with grief
Yet moving out to open seas
Mixing in fresh with salty
Curdling in foam
Seeking a current
The destination seemed impossible
I was witness to ripples
And I joined them
Ripples became waves upon the shore
Some were ready
High on the mountain
Others ignore the signs
Washed away on the beach
Just in time, a hand above grabbed
Every terrace has a hand
Ready to lift
Ready to climb
Until we all see the horizon and rest
Karen Huller is the creator of the Corporate Consciousness Ripple Blueprint and author of Laser-sharp Career Focus: Pinpoint your Purpose and Passion in 30 Days. She founded Epic Careering, a leadership and career development firm specializing in executive branding and conscious culture, in 2006.
While the bulk of her 20 years of professional experience has been within the recruiting and employment industry, her publications, presentations, and coaching also draw from experience in personal development, performance, broadcasting, marketing, and sales. Her solutions incorporate breakthroughs in neuroscience, human performance optimization, bioenergetics, and psychology to help leaders accelerate rapport, expand influence, and elevate engagement and productivity while also looking out for the sustainability of the business and the planet.
Mrs. Huller was one of the first LinkedIn trainers and is known widely for her ability to identify and develop new trends. She is a Certified Professional Résumé Writer, Certified Career Transition Consultant, and Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist with a Bachelor of Art in Communication Studies and Theater from Ursinus College and a minor in Creative Writing. Her blog was recognized as a top 100 career blog worldwide by Feedspot.
She was an Adjunct Professor in Cabrini University’s Communications Department and an Adjunct Professor of Career Management and Professional Development at Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business She is an Instructor for the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA) where some of her students won the 2018 national YEA competition, were named Ernst & Young’s America’s Next Top Young Entrepreneurs, and won the 2019 People’s Choice Award.
She is board secretary for the Upper Merion Community Center and just finished serving as Vice President of the Gulph Elementary PTC, for which she received recognition as a Public Education Partner and Promoter from the Upper Merion Area Education Association. She lives in King of Prussia with her husband, two daughters, and many pets, furry, feathered, and scaly.