Show Notes:

With the onset of social justice movements like #MeToo, Black Lives Matter, and a global pandemic, a spotlight has been shone on the inequities that exist. This spotlight also highlights the gifts that each one of us, especially women, can give to solve these problems. Today’s guest is Diana Patton, a motivational speaker, author, attorney, and consultant. Diana helps people push past trauma and adversities, to rise above their circumstances, accept challenges, thrive, and to be resilient by sharing practical tips and inspiration to help others live their very best life. She is bringing change and social justice to schools everywhere by working with the Toledo Public School District’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee, and she also works with organizations, such as Solana, who serves the intellectual and developmental disabilities community, as well as community health workers organizations and with young women everywhere. In this episode, Diana shares a bit about her background, what inspired her to become and attorney and help others, and how she connected with her Blackness and reconciled with her mixed heritage. Tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• The spark for Diana’s desire to help others as an attorney.
• Looking back on her family life, Diana knew her experience was different from other children.
• Connecting with Blackness, coming into faith, and reconciling a mixed heritage.
• Diana shares when she identified and learned about ACE (adverse childhood experiences).
• Diana wants young women to know that their adversity can also be their greatest strength.
• Resilience comes from adversity: Diana learned that overcoming her trauma gave her power.
• Diana talks about her work with youth in disenfranchised and disadvantaged communities.
• Transparency and vulnerability fosters connection – you must work on yourself to help others.
• Diana’s mission is equity, social-emotional learning, and trauma informed care in schools.
• Diana’s social-emotional learning program, RISE, and how it has been affected by COVID-19
• Diana believes the pandemic is going to shake up the systemic racist ideologies in schools.
• We need to do our own research, connect with, and learn from those who are different to us.
• Diana’s take on the pandemic, protests, and quarantine.
• Overcoming and rising above spiritual attacks, becoming advocates for ourselves and others.
• Everything in life isn’t about us, it’s about how we serve and show up for others.

Shareables:

“I always found myself trying to help people, deeper than what the law would say. I would be trying to ask questions and talk to people about, ‘Why are you doing it this way?’ Or ‘Why is this this way?’ because I was trying to figure it out in my own personal life. The two weren’t 100% [aligned].” — @dianap_patton [0:16:22]

“You can’t have resilience as a characteristic if you haven’t had adversity.” — Cassandra Shuck [0:20:37]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Diana Patton

Diana Patton on Instagram

Diana Patton on Facebook

The RISE Program

Pivot and Rise Mastermind

Cassandra Shuck

Sourced Strategy Course