the 3‐Step Strategic Pivot Process will help you keep focus on your decisions. You'll see in the book which Pivot Points are recommended under which step and how they align with where you are in the process:
1 Hone Your Vision—About the Decision
2 Shift Your Energy—To Meet the Decision
3 Make Your Move—Toward the Decision
That's how I've done it. Grounded in faith, and using these tools, I've been able to keep it moving. By sharing these tools I've helped others. Nothing gives me more gratification than knowing that my stories of success, struggle, failure, and sustainability have helped thousands of people see that they can make it, too. The stories I share about my life and experiences represent various perspectives about what it takes to make it in business and in life. Few people have created multimillion‐dollar brands in senior corporate positions, legendary entrepreneurial environments, and start‐ups. Not to mention, few have done it as a woman, and as a woman of color. I want to share my journey as you move forward on yours! Here's some of what I'll let you in on:
How growing up in Detroit, among hard‐working people, entrepreneurs, and creative geniuses ignited my dreams. And how witnessing the impact of segregation and integration fueled my determination.
How getting into and studying at Howard University fundamentally changed my worldview of who I could become and what my value could be in the world.
How pivoting my ambitions to higher levels got me into Harvard Business School, a buying position at a major retail store, access to the fashion houses of New York City, and senior executive positions in corporate America and legendary entrepreneurial firms.
What happened when I had to pivot from my ambitions and be true to the traditions of family that called my spirit.
Knowing that entrepreneurship was in my blood, how I pivoted to build a pathway into that world.
What happened when I turned full‐time into entrepreneurship, and the many pivots necessary to create and sustain more than one business.
How I kept pivoting when failure closed doors and opportunity opened others.
As I write this introduction at my dining room table with notes and books surrounding me, I'm reminded of seeing my mom, when I was in grade school, write her master's thesis at our dining room table on my grandfather's manual typewriter. Books and notes everywhere, carbon paper nearby. I feel her spirit cheering me on. It is my sincere hope that my experiences and circumstances may spark a solution to some of the challenges and opportunities you face and that by following these solutions, you too can learn to Pivot for Success and Hone Your Vison, Shift Your Energy, and Make Your Move.
I look forward to joining you on your journey!
Amy S. Hilliard
January 3, 2021
Part I: Hone Your Vision
Pivot Point #1: Finding Your Purpose
Pivot Point #2: Believing in Possibilities
Pivot Point #3: Defining Your Priorities
Pivot Point #4: Envisioning Prosperity
1 Finding Your Purpose
Just as your fingerprints leave a unique mark, so does the gift of your purpose.
WHENEVER I'VE GIVEN a speech, and people come up to me afterwards to thank me for inspiring them to pursue their dream of starting a business or make a strategic move, it gives me a feeling of deep satisfaction. The same is true when I've helped someone with a career decision or business issue. Marketing is my expertise; I have decades of professional experience and I've taught marketing at the university level. Inspiring others is like teaching. When the lightbulb comes on in a student's eyes, and they “get it,” their excitement becomes real. Suddenly, a pathway, an example of something I showed them, or how I did it has opened the door for them and, boy, that's exciting!
The same feeling sweeps over me when it comes to helping others maintain a healthy lifestyle as we age. When I turned 60, I created a blog—Sizzling After 60—to chronicle my journey to thrive at every stage of life; I present my journey as a blueprint for others to follow. Over the years, I've realized that inspiring others is my purpose. In a way, it is my ministry. It is what people come to me for and have for years. It makes me feel good that others are able to move forward positively thanks to what I've been able to share with them. It's my unique fingerprint, and I believe that in its own way, it helps the world. #inspiringothers
Finding Your Purpose Can Serve Others and Move Mountains
That's what Finding Your Purpose can do. We all have a purpose—that unique gift that we can each share with others to positively help a business, your community, and the world. For example, the COVID‐19 pandemic moved the world into a new normal. As such, many of us had to make significant changes in our lives—often suddenly and unplanned. In doing so, Finding Your Purpose and using it may have had to fall by the wayside as bills needed to be paid. I urge you, however, not to discount the power of purpose in challenging times. It is what we all are gifted to do. Finding Your Purpose is listed as the first Pivot Point because I believe that operating from a sense of purpose can be the foundation for so much of what you do in life.
As I shared in my book Tap Into Your Juice, nature provides some wonderful examples of purposeful existence. Everything in nature has a purpose. Birds fly, flowers grow, and the sun can't help but shine. They each do what they are meant to do. It's the same with us, when we discover our purpose. I love how purpose is often described: purpose is the reason something or someone exists. It can also be how something is used or made—which leads to an intended goal or result. Once you discover what your gifts are, you can pivot toward endeavors that use them with determination and resoluteness in your life choices and in service for others. I've found that serving others provides important balance with your values. Finding Your Purpose and using it in your daily life is great for your health, reduces stress, and is an amazing personal superpower! When you use it, particularly in challenging times, you'll find motivation when you need it and the ability to Hone Your Vision, Shift Your Energy, and Make Your Move.
What's interesting for me is that inspiring others doesn't mean that I'm always sharing stories of triumph or of “knowing it all.” Not by a long shot. In 1986, when I was a relatively new product manager at Gillette, I was given the job of managing two of the oldest brands in the Personal Care Division, Adorn and White Rain Hairsprays. I guess they figured I couldn't mess up those highly profitable brands—just keep shipping them, right? Well, obviously this was before the days of social media, and I was getting about 10 letters a week from customers who remembered the old White Rain Shampoo that Gillette marketed in the 1950s and 60s. I couldn't believe it. I figured if that many people were taking the time to write to ask a company to bring back a product, lots of customers might want it to come to back. Gillette had tried a “new and improved” version of White Rain Shampoo in the 1970s; it was fruit scented in various colors and didn't do well. These customers wanted the original, crystal‐clear version back. So, I had to inspire my management to let me bring back this product. It was a process, and I needed to draw on my Purpose to carry it out.
Using
