Finding My Voice: Lessons From 2 years as a Strategy Consultant
A Farewell from Mariah Williams
There I was in front of the room preparing to facilitate a half day retreat. It was a year in, and by then I’d had a few projects under my belt. On this occasion, I was particularly excited because I had the opportunity to work with an organization doing work that I really believed in. There were a few minutes left before we started and I was going over the points I wanted to make when we kicked off the retreat in my head. I reviewed some items with my co-facilitator, and we decided to finally get started. We let folks get settled in and then welcomed everyone into the space. As I looked around the room, the excitement and commitment to spending half a day together was palpable in the faces that stared back at me. It was finally my turn to introduce myself.
I had gotten into the habit of doing my usual spiel: my name, role, and where we were in the process. But on this day, something else came over me. I felt something telling me to share my own story, to humanize myself, and to show how I was an example of someone who had benefitted from work much like that of the organization’s with hopes that it would affirm why a process such as strategic planning was so important in fortifying their future and strengthening their overall impact in the community.
And so I did. I shared.
They nodded and they smiled. We proceeded. And at the end of the morning, a few of the staff members came up to me and thanked me for sharing my own story. They then began to tell me about themselves.
When I think back to that moment, it was really one of the first times that I had actually brought myself into the room as a consultant during my time at The Spark Mill. Before, I felt afraid, unlike myself, even though I often knew I had something meaningful to say.
So, on one of my last days at The Spark Mill when my co-worker asked, “What would you share with someone starting out in your role?”, I pondered this question for a bit, but then it came to me.
This was the most valuable thing I learned throughout my time as a consultant with The Spark Mill. It took me a while to get to this place, a place where I felt comfortable being who I was, recognizing that the lens I held and my lived experiences brought just as much expertise as the degrees I’d earned.
As I say farewell to The Spark Mill and transition into my new position at HOME, this is one of the many lessons I will take with me as I work to lean into my own voice and encourage others to do the same.