Dear Readers,

     As requested I am posting the commencement address I gave on 

August 21, 2010. I was so proud to serve as  Business Motivational Speaker and  inspirational speaker for ACRT graduation. I love being a  University Guest Speaker and  Motivational Speaker because commencement marks the beginning of a new journey! 

                Class of 2010 you have worked hard to get to this day.  Your class is talented, hardworking and everyone at ACRT is excited for your future. 

As a class I would like you to remember your first day at ACRT.  Remember how you were nervous and it seemed that graduation day would never come.  You made it and you are about to begin a new journey, to enter a job market and business environment that offers challenges and competition.  As ACRT students, you are taught to learn from difficult situations and rise up to create solutions. Your course work, your instructors and your experiences have taught you to look at new ways to overcome problems and form alliances while working as a team to achieve success.

        Your graduating class is made up of working people, military personnel, non-traditional students and people who never thought an education was in their reach.  ACRT helped you by making our education affordable, flexible and designed for your learning needs.  As ACRT students, you have many people who help you and inspire you. It may be an instructor who has become the voice in your head as you make decisions, it may be a staff member who took the time to help you enroll at ACRT or it maybe a family member who believed in you and encouraged you to keep going. 

 As you look at your classmates you can see that they also taught you the most important lesson, which is that a successful team is like an excellent family; you support each other, lift each other up and work through your problems as a family. 

        As you graduate, you will use your education to help others and achieve your dreams. You will use your past, including the tough times and combine it with your passion to create your future.   As graduates, you have been given the tools and inspiration to pursue your dreams. Your talent, dedication and hard work have led you to this day and you have grown stronger.  You are an inspiration to those who only wish for what you have accomplished. You had to risk to get to this day and we learn from  great people who have risked more than others think is safe. Harriett Tubman went back not once but 19 times to save more people. To get complete your education you invested in yourself and you cared more than some people thought was wise.  Mother Theresa cared more than others thought was wise and she helped millions of people and inspired even more people then she ever imagined. As students you had a dream and today you celebrate that your dream came true. Martin Luther King had a dream that would change our world and we have to remember that we must continue to have dreams and goals for our future. Your family and friends are here today to celebrate and show their love and support. They are proud that you expected more from yourself and you set a goal and achieved it.  Abraham Lincoln expected more than others thought was possible and we must continue to expect more from ourselves than even we think is possible.

        As instructors, we share the reality of our coursework and how to apply what you learn in the real world.  As a business owner, Business Motivational Speaker and instructor I meet people everyday who work hard but cannot unlock their potential. ACRT has given you the tools, resources and training but today begins your journey to unlock your potential and ensure your success. Everyone wants happiness and success but few people achieve both. The secret to unlocking your potential lies in learning from your past, forgiving yourself and others, learning to love yourself which is the foundation of building the confidence you will need for your career and your personal life. Life will present trails and you will overcome obstacles if you ask for help, achieve balance and strive for self respect.  In the workplace you will be challenged and you will have to respond not react. If you strive to be that one person that your company cannot live without, your value will guide you to promotion and leadership. In your personal life if you strive to be the one person that your family cannot live without, you will be a foundation for love and happiness.  Being the one, does not mean being perfect or being a pushover, it means being the one person that people can count on to help them grow and unlock their potential.  Over the years I found that people said, call Katherine she’s the one you need or call Miracle Resources they are the ones that can help.  Being the one in business means you are a resource, an expert, you are dependable. In your personal life it means you are the one who can provide, support, love and direction.

If you truly want to be the “one” you have to commit today to taking the oxygen before you help others. When you fly the flight attendant shows you putting on the oxygen mask then  helping the person next to you.  Too many leaders give to others then burnout, promise me you will not be the person in your company or family who gives so much then burns out before you can achieve success and happiness.  To be the one, means you are expectional and you are a leader. You will only achieve this by forgiving yourself, learning to love yourself, giving of yourself and committing to your continued education and personal growth. When tough times come please remember this quote that I wrote when I suffered a personal tragedy.

“Whatever you are going through use it,  if you lose love learn to love yourself, if you are hurt help another, if you lose faith search to find it and always, always fight for your happiness.”

        As a class, you represent hope, wisdom and you are a light that others will look to for inspiration. Class of 2010 this is your time to shine and no matter what darkness you face you will take what you learned and seize every moment and make the most of every opportunity.

You are the miracle of resilience and you have overcome obstacles and you are now a member of a unique and talented group of people. Remember it is better to be an academy graduate than compete with one! So be the one, The one that your company and family cannot live without but most importantly be the one that you have always dreamed you would be!  You are stronger, wiser and more resilient than the challenges you face. Congratulations class of 2010! 

Dear Readers,

     I write with a heavy heart today.  A very dear friend of mine has passed and it is hard to hold back tears.  As I spoke with the family we focused on the fact that he is in a better place, in god’s loving arms, as we reviewed the what if’s ,if he had been in prolonged pain or had to be on life support it was clear that we we striving to see the good in this horrible time. 

     I know that looking at the positives helps us become stronger, motivated and helpful to others.  When I wrote, Discovering Your Dawn, I knew I had to share that when I became negative I created a personal prison. When I share the mistakes I made it has helped others. I have learned that even when I am speaking about leadership people relate to us and learn from us when we share the reality of our lives.

     As a Corporate Motivational Speaker I have seen people hear my message and act on the ways to unlock their potential. My friend who pass ed shared his business struggles with me and helped me see how I would grow my business one day. He also let me share my personal struggles and he and his wife showed me how faith can help you overcome anything.  As a  Christian Speaker I share how God sent people to help me.  My friend Ned and his wife Geri were the first people I ever met who were open about their faith.  They gave me a great gift in my friend Renee.  Renee gave me friendship that changed my life.

    As Renee and I shared our love for her father Ned we remembered how he taught us  Exceptional Teamwork and he always valued his employees and everyone he met.  Ned modeled to me, Increasing your Passion and Productivity and now as a  inspirational speaker I have the blessing to share ways to motivate people and change their world.

    Through my tears I can see the sunset tonight and say “What if I had never met Ned”  he changed my life, believed in me and helped me help others.  God Bless you always Ned you are the very best of what a business owner, a father, a mentor and friend should be.  I am sure God is looking at you saying, “Well done good and faithful servant” 

Love you always,

Katherine

Why do you let fear stop your success? As you learn from your past, do you see moments and opportunities that you regret not pursuing? Learn from them! As a university guest speaker I see that your fear of failing prevented your success and often your happiness. If you had tried and failed, you would have at least learned something, improved for your next attempt and had no regret. If you do not try you will not learn, you will not grow and you carry regret…you just push yourself away from what you want. During the time I was writing “Discovering Your Dawn”, I learned that I should have been there for my friend’s families but I was afraid it would upset the family to hear from me. When we reconnected in 2008, it was a time of healing for the family and me. This healing changed my life and I stopped holding myself back and saw my true potential. My next step was to ask for forgiveness from all the people I hurt during a time of tragedy. I was afraid and many tears flowed about how I should I ask for forgiveness or should I just bury all the pain. The ask to each person built new relationships, cleared up assumptions and healed the past. I struggled with forgiving the men that killed my friends and I knew it was unsafe to meet with them, just like some people you cannot have a relationship with but by forgiving them, you can move on and not give them power to hurt you. When I work with audience members as a christian speaker I hear of relationships that are unsafe and people we need to remove from our lives or maintain a distance.  If someone hurts you and you can forgive them and grow a healthy relationship that is amazing. But I have to acknowledge as a Corporate Motivational Speaker I have seen times when people cannot have a relationship. Sometimes we fear moving away from unhealthy relationships but that contains a risk of continued unhappiness, unhealthy behavior and loss of self.

When we fear, we let the fear dominate our actions. I know each decision I made could have a positive and sometimes negative effect. I finally decided that my book may bring up painful memories and it may hurt someone but the thousands of people who have read the book and share that it has helped them let me know I made the right decision. I knew I would have to pay a price for writing “Discovering Your Dawn” and I had to face my fear to show my past and my mistakes in an effort to help people unlock their potential. I used to be afraid to let my scar show and to talk about my friends who were murdered. I realized that my scar is a symbol that my parents love me. My parents made the decision to have an experimental surgery that no one knew would work. My parent’s decision saved my life, what if my parents chose to fear and I did not have that surgery? My friend’s murders have defined who they are and this year I have decided that is not acceptable. I am not afraid anymore because people need to know who my friends were and how important their lives are. My motivational speaking  and my book shows how my friends helped me and our other friends. I will not let fear stop our story from helping people. If you choose to not fear you can have what you desire, enjoy success and even if you fail, you will have no regret because you tried. Sometimes not everyone is happy with your risk but as you consider the risk consider the reward for you and for others. Fear can dominate your life…how long are you willing to let fear hold you back?

Do you know the secret weapon that can help you in 2010? 

Confidence is your tool to overcome obstacles andas a christian speaker I share my testimony and my times of no confidence and I am blessed that my story helps people.  In business motivational speaking I am finding audiences are more open about their struggles than I have seen in the past. The economy, increased debt and relationship issues have made it difficult for people to have hope and be confident.  In 2009 I was blessed to be the womens speaker for several amazing organizations. I felt a connection to the audience when we discussed the following issues about confidence:

Confidence

Is perception reality?

What does confidence look like?

 Standing Tall

  Positive Attitude

Self Motivation and being proud

Good Communication

  Powerful

Dress for success

Walk and Talk

Make others feel good

Unstoppable

Examples of confidence: My college students made this list(remember everyone on this list is being paid to be confident and create a confident image)

 Gabrielle Union

 Beyonce

 Jada Pickett Smith

Angelina Jolle

Jennifer Love Hewitt

Danzel Washington

  Tom Cruise

  Will Smith

  Brad Pitt 

What is the benefit of being confident?

  Success

  Respect is given

More Opportunities

 Gain Trust   Doctors/ Military as an example

  Rubs off on others

  Gives off energy

 Better outcomes if you are confident

When confidence is absent?

  Potential outcome of failure

Bring down others

  Codependence

 Negativity

 Fear

No Trust

Depression

 Reluctant 

Fake it till you make it? Does that work?

 Does this work?

 Do you really look confident when you act confident?

What if you could figure out why you should be confident?

Uncovering your lack of confidence:

 Negativity- do you have a valid reason for the negative thoughts?

Are you allowing someone else’s judgment hurt your confidence?

Are you looking for negativity because you fear success?  Is guilt feeding your negative thoughts?

Consider confidence as a choice: If you wake up look in the mirror and think about your past mistakes, the times you were rejected and anything bad someone said about you, you have set the tone for your day. 

If you wake up look in the mirror and think about your times of success, the nice things people say about you and the obstacles that you have overcome, you have set a tone for the day that helps you be open to challenges that may lie ahead. You confident attitude can protect you and help you! 

I wish you all the best in 2010 and remember my campaign theme for 2010  “Whatever it takes”  make a campaign theme for 2010 and live by it to help you grow confidence, happiness and success! 

Dear Readers, 

Thank you for checking in on my blog.  I have been busy helping my daughter move to her dorm at The University of Akron.  Sorry I have not posted in awhile but please know this site records your e mail when you view

the blog so I will send an e mail to stay in touch!  This past weekend was difficult, our house seems so empty without Kayla but we are so happy for her.  My inspiration is remembering when my parents helped me move in

to The University of Akron and how excited I was to begin college.

In college I found my very best friend,  professors who believed in me and inspired me and administrators who hired me as a student and taught me my best lessons in leadership.  As an

inspirational speaker I use tools and resources that help audience members change their life.  My research has led to best practises and the best tools based on your audiences needs.  I listen to the needs of the event

planner and gather information on what the audience members are facing so I can provide tools and resources that motivate, inspire and energize.  

As you enjoy today please inspire someone, encourage someone and journal so you remember the moments that inspired you!