Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud
As a passionate reader and equality champion my Black History Month Hero is Maya Angelou. Maya Angelou was a poet and award-winning author known for her acclaimed memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings which made literary history as the first nonfiction best-seller by an African-American woman and truly inspired me to gain strength from adversity and understand that everyone can have the ability to own their inner serenity.
If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude
Angelou had a difficult childhood. Her parents split up when she was very young, and she and her older brother, Bailey, were sent to live with their father’s mother, Anne Henderson, in Stamps, Arkansas.
We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated
As an African American, Angelou experienced firsthand racial prejudices and discrimination. At a very young age, Angelou was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. Then, as vengeance for the sexual assault, Angelou’s uncles killed the boyfriend. So traumatised by the experience, Angelou stopped talking. She returned to Arkansas and spent years as a virtual mute. Knowing this, I’m truly inspired that her words continue to echo and inspire people across the world.
My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour, and some style
My mantra in life is to make the best of everything and I strive to apply this in both in my personal and professional life. Life is what you make it, regardless of the struggles you encounter and boundaries you meet, you have a choice to be a better person. This also applies to our clients as employers; the more diverse your employees and the more they embrace equality, the more enriched their business becomes. It really is all about the people…
I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
