The Summit Eco Systems and the Roots
Ayanna Parrent, Owner and Founder of B FREE Coaching and Wellness November, 2018
“There is no reason for any of us to try to change who we are just because we become good (or lucky) at whatever we do in life. Any and all talents we have we are given, and what we do with those talents tells us the most about who and what we are.” — Bill Cummings, Starting Small and Making It Big
I had the pleasure of attending the 2018 Eforall Summit on November 15th. The day was full of keynote speakers, fireside chats, and panel sessions. We had a chance to strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem through strategizing on topics of inclusivity, collaborative culture, sustainable work, shared visions, connected networks and universal support. Key note speakers included David Parker, CEO of Entrepreneurship for All, Bill Cummings of the Cummings Foundation, Brandale Randolph of 1854 Cycling Company and Tarik Trotter AKA Black Thought, The Roots.
The Roots. Black Thought was there in all of his entrepreneur glory. Tarik Trotter by far was the highlight of the summit, bringing it to a new level and honoring a true business mind that some may not recognize as one. He graced us with his thoughts, kind presence, humble personality and yes, a rap worthy of a mic drop. For someone who has built the following that he has, including the music band that is featured on the Jimmy Fallon show, he certainly didn’t appear to be taking anything for granted. In fact, one of the strongest messages he gave us was about continuing to evolve yourself and your craft and to always keep growing. Having him at the summit spoke volumes about who can be and should be recognized as leaders in the entrepreneur arena. I was lucky to bear witness to such a sweet impactful moment.
The end of the summit gave people a chance to get up in front of the group and do their business pitches and receive feedback and suggestions with the help of Tod Fry, Leader and presentations skills coach and Anne Eastabrook, a manager at Golden Seeds. Watching this process was valuable, literally. What became apparent very quickly was the importance of clearly stating your value proposition up front. Who you are and how you communicate that is essential as well. People care about you but they may care more about the value of the thing that you are offering them and can they trust who you are to deliver that to them.
Priceless advice.
The summit was a great experience and was incredible to be amongst so many like-minded, passionate, intriguing people making change for themselves and others. And in the words of Bill Cummings mentioned above- “Our talents are given to us, what we do with those talents tells us the most about who and what we are.” We are all valuable and have something valuable to give.
