Meaningful Ambition

When I first met Kemo Camara at the TEDxAmsterdam event in November 2023, he told me he had a 100-year vision. That stopped me in my tracks, I had never heard anyone say that.

We talked and he told me about his work and he invited me to the OMEK Summit that would happen in June 2024. I went, was blown away and have been following Kemo and his work ever since.

To say I was thrilled when he agreed to be on the Meaninginful Ambition podcast is an understatement. 

Kemo is the visionary behind Omek, a community-centric platform whose mission is to amplify the talent, voices, and energy of biculturals of African descent.

A social entrepreneur, community influencer, economist, and captivating speaker, Kemo's journey has spanned continents, with impactful engagements across Africa, the United States, and Europe. He held extensive leadership roles and responsibilities in community organizations and co/founded many businesses and non-profit organizations in the United States and Europe.

Kemo has more than 15 years of adept leadership and managerial experience working for multinational corporations, including banks and manufacturing companies. He is a firm believer in representation and equal access to opportunities. His passion lies in activating our collective human potential. That’s why he enjoys bringing people from diverse backgrounds to work together toward a common goal.

Kemo believes that the potential of bicultural talent, especially those of African descent, is massively untapped. When unlocked, it will create empowered professionals who are meaningful contributors to the economy and culture.

"If you don't know who you are, people will tell you who you're supposed to be." Kemo Camara

Kemo has a BA in Business Administration and a Master's in Development Economics and International Studies.

Check out the OMEK Community here, it's free to join and connect with the remarkable people who come together to create magic and opportunities.

And a big shout-out to OMEK's remarkable branding genius (who also happens to be Kemo's spouse), Kirsten Camara of Good Morning Studio.

What was your biggest takeaway from our conversation?

Share your thoughts in the comments below, I respond to every single one.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fireflycoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Make it meaningful,

Stephanie

This conversation with Monika Jiang was an absolute delight.

My first encounter with Monika was when she worked with the House of Beautiful Business. 

Since then, she has done many remarkable things, including the creation of The Oneliness Project.

I was lucky to attend her workshop at Society 5.0 in 2024, if you ever have the chance to be part of one of her events - say yes immediately.

Monika is a writer, speaker, and community builder with Chinese-German roots, developing Oneliness — a philosophical lens on loneliness, relationality, and the world we share.

In Monika's words, "Loneliness is not a crisis. It is a natural response to the world we have constructed — the systems, structures, and stories that reward self-sufficiency, pathologize need, and outsource intimacy to platforms and products.

The crisis is not loneliness itself but the fear of it, and the exhausting lengths we go to in order to avoid it.

Oneliness is a way of being. The recognition that we are always alone and always in relationship, simultaneously — with ourselves, with others, with the more-than-human world, with something that exceeds all of us."

Discover what Oneliness is and how Monika got the word out about her work in this conversation.

You can learn more about Monika and her work here at her website which also includes a links to her Substack, Instgram and LinkedIn. And this is a link to her TEDx talk, Finding Connection in a Disconnected World.

What was your biggest takeaway from our conversation?

Share in the comments below, I respond to every single comment.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠fireflycoaching.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Make it meaningful,

Stephanie

I first discovered the work of Abi Awomosu from a post on LinkedIn from Cindy Gallop (eternally grateful, Cindy). 

After reading one of her articles, I was deeply intrigued. She was sharing ideas and concepts that felt familiar and finally made complete sense when she explained them in the way that only she can.

I bought her book and kept reading her articles. Her voice is one that must be listened to, so I was beyond delighted when she agreed to be a guest on my podcast.

Abi Awomosu is a digital griot, cultural researcher and data leader – a storyteller whose work is to listen to a community, carry its memory, and return patterns that help people recognise themselves and what comes next.

After nearly two decades helping big tech and advertising companies read the internet, she realised the interesting question wasn’t “How do we get AI to generate more?” but “What happens when we let it help us listen better – and refuse the extractive, colonising script we were handed?”

Now she works with challengers, misfits and quietly radical leaders and creatives who want to build from that place.

If you’ve been looking for a third path with AI – not AI worship, not AI rejection, but a clear‑eyed, self‑authored, and sovereign relationship with a new kind of listening medium – this is what follows.

There are three ways you can work with Abi, 1. Speaking 2. AI Literacy Training and Masterclasses (I took her course, highly recommend it) 3. Consulting and Advisory. They are all explained here.

What was your biggest takeaway from our conversation?

Share in the comments below, I respond to every single comment.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website ⁠⁠⁠fireflycoaching.com⁠⁠⁠.

Make it meaningful,

Stephanie

That question, "What would happen if you followed your heart with everything you do?" is the one that Daphne Laan has continued to ask herself for years.

Have you ever asked yourself this question?

It's a big one and potentially confronting to how you *think* you're supposed to run your business.

I met Daphne almost eighteen years ago at an event and we've been in touch throughout the years.

Recently, I reached to her to invite her to be on the Meaningful Ambition podcast, she said yes.

You're in for a whirlwind ride that includes everything from DAVOS to meeting the drummer for Guns N' Roses and loads in between.

Learn more about what Daphne is up to here: The Board Whisperers, Planetir, and House of Wonder.

What's your biggest takeaway from our conversation? 

And if you'd like my support in creating your Meaningful Third Act, find out more here.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website ⁠⁠fireflycoaching.com⁠⁠.

Make it meaningful,

Stephanie

This is the essential question that Ada Parris has for us. What kind of ancestor do you want to be?

Ada Parris is a futurist, artist, and relational ecologist, recognised by Forbes Brazil as one of the world’s most influential futurists.

Through The Presence Lab™ and her frameworks, she bridges ancestral wisdom with innovation, helping leaders navigate complexity with integrity and presence.

I saw Ada speak at an event in Amsterdam a few months ago and wanted to hear more so I invited her to be a guest on my podcast.

Ada shares with us her journey in three acts and how she gets the word out about her business (and how that has changed over time). And the fact that she didn't have a marketing strategy.

Some key takeaways. The value of knowing what you're really good at. The power of truly seeing someone, valuing them and creating a connection. 

Because of all of the connections she created during her first act, when she shifted to her second act which focused on community building, those people followed her because they were interested in her and what she was doing.

Shifting into her third act the last two years she had to slow down to write her book (link below). Which included a huge unmasking of who she is and who she thought she was. She discovered she is much more than her biography and all of the things she does.

The way she is getting the word out about her work now is something she calls, 'vulnerable authority.' And realizing it's OK to change your mind. It's OK to unmask, and let go.

"People pleasing is manipulation with a smile." Author unknown

She finds her work so meaningful because injustice has always made her cry, even as a child. The world is not binary, there are paradoxes. We can be part of the problem and part of the solution. Supporting people to fully be themselves at work and in life. What if curiosity is the antidote to fear.

Remember that we are not separate from nature. We are nature. What we are creating is creating us. What we are destroying is destroying us.

Watch or listen to our conversation below.

Check our her work on her website and her work as an artist. And buy her new book, Leadership Legacy: A Manifesto to Create a Mindful Future and A Thriving Planet.

And watch her two TEDx talks, Finding our future in ancestral wisdom and What type of Ancestor do you want to be?

To wrap up Ada shared the quote below to give us all reassurance.

"Nature loves courage. You make the commitment and nature will respond to that commitment by removing impossible obstacles. Dream the impossible dream and the world will not grind you under, it will lift you up. This is the trick. This is what all these teachers and philosophers who really counted, who really touched the alchemical gold, this is what they understood. This is the shamanic dance in the waterfall. This is how magic is done. By hurling yourself into the abyss and discovering its a feather bed." Terence McKenna

What's your biggest takeaway from our conversation? 

And if you'd like my support in creating your Meaningful Third Act, find out more here.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website ⁠fireflycoaching.com⁠.

Make it meaningful,

Stephanie

Meaningful Third Act. What is it, who is it for, and why does it matter.

In case you're curious, in the previous podcast episode I explained the evolution of this podcast from the Meaningpreneur Podcast to the Meaningful Ambition podcast, which now includes Meaningful Third Act.

Here is the link to the list of SDG's I mentioned if you want ideas: https://ourworldindata.org/sdgs

And if you'd like my support in creating your Meaningful Third Act, find out more here: https://www.fireflycoaching.com/work-with-me/meaningful/

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website fireflycoaching.com.

Make it meaningful.

The Meaningpreneur podcast has evolved into the Meaningful Ambition Podcast and here's why.

For over 23 years I've been a Business & Marketing Mentor to business owners. And I started the Meaningpreneur Podcast to highlight the different ways passionate business owners successfully market their businesses.

Meaningpreneurs are passionate business owners who find their work meaningful and who make a difference in their clients' lives.

This will continue, I will still have business owners on the podcast as guests.

The new part is that I've expanded my scope of work, as well as the people I serve, with my Meaningful Third Act initiative.

For even more advice, as well as ways I can support you with your business or with your Meaningful Third Act, head to my website fireflycoaching.com.

Make it meaningful.

Jistke Kramer is a Corporate Anthropologist who has been in business for 18 years. She is a well-known speaker, author of many books, and an inspiration to people worldwide.

You can find out more about Jitske and her work at these two websites: https://jitskekramer.nl and https://humandimensions.nl.

Let's connect on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Make it Meaningful,

Stephanie

This episode is all about what NOT to do. I share the spam messages I received from someone who takes money from people to teach them his creepy method.

Has this ever happened to you?

For even more marketing tips, you can get a copy of my Free Special Report, 7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time ⁠⁠⁠⁠at my website⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Let's connect on ⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Make it Meaningful,

Stephanie

There are so many ways to connect with people and build your network.

This includes connecting virtually, remotely, with video, with text, and the list goes on.

And one of the most magical ways to connect is at in-person events.

NOTE: At minute 7:49 I said I met Elizabeth Gilbert but I meant to say Elizabeth Goddard. ;0

For even more marketing tips, you can get a copy of my Free Special Report, 7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time ⁠⁠⁠at my website⁠⁠⁠.

Let's connect on ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠.

Make it Meaningful,

Stephanie