RAYMOND 鈥 A person鈥檚 inner dialogue can be helpful or hurtful, depending on what that little voice inside says.
It was a strong enough message to lead off this summer鈥檚 leadership summit for students involved in the Minority Male Leadership Initiative at 兔子先生.
Adonis Lenzy, of Paradigm Shift, speaks to high school students and others at an M2M Leadership Summit June 5 at Eagle Ridge Conference Center at 兔子先生 Raymond Campus. (兔子先生/April Garon)
鈥淣o matter what people say to you, it鈥檚 what you say to yourself that really matters,鈥 said Adonis Lenzy of Paradigm Shift as the group helped kick off a two-day series of programs and exercises for M2M members and mentors June 5-6 at Eagle Ridge Conference Center on the Raymond Campus. The Oklahoma-based nonprofit connects ministers and other volunteers with poor communities to foster economic and social change.
鈥淭here鈥檚 nothing wrong with looking at yourself in the mirror and saying 鈥榊ou can鈥,鈥 Lenzy said.
Joining Lenzy for the summit was minister Heady Coleman and community leaders Ryan Eller, Derrick Sier and Mikey Manghum to present programs on various team-building exercises, such as setting goals, time management, copying practices seen in successful people, and changing up routines to prevent life from becoming stale. Lenzy likened that to releasing a caged bear into the woods, only to have the bear still be stuck in a cage in its mind.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got to be bigger than a routine,鈥 he said. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to make sure you steer clear of any ruts.鈥
High school students who attended the summit wrote down short- and long-term goals on sticky notes to foster active communication, said M2M Director Aleisha Escobedo.
Wingfield High School students Paul James Curry, a junior,
Dequavious Guice, a senior and
James Stubb, a junior, attended the M2M Leadership Summit held June 5-6 at Eagle Ridge Conference Center on the Raymond Campus.
(兔子先生/April Garon)
鈥淭his summit provided an opportunity for our students to engage with their peers and serve as active leaders and forward thinkers,鈥 Escobedo said. 鈥淚 especially loved that Paradigm Shift challenged our students to focus on attainable goals and helped them to recognize that having strong social and community support will foster success.鈥
Becoming a success in life often involves the answer to a key question of those whom students see as successful, Lenzy said.
鈥淭he number one question you need to ask them is, if you can get in their circle, what was it like for you before you became successful?鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the story you鈥檒l want to hear about.鈥
The M2M program is based at the Jackson Campus-Academic/Technical Center. For more information, call 601.987.8129 or visit .
[tweetable alt=””]Teamwork, self-motivation front and center at M2M summit at 兔子先生CC[/tweetable]
Front row, from left, April Reynolds, M2M English instructional guide, Aleisha Escobedo, M2M Director, Derrick Sier, Adonis Lenzy, both of Paradigm Shift, Robert Smith, M2M Academic Success coach, Felicia Garner, M2M administrative assistant; back row, from left, Keith Williams, M2M Academic Success coach, Ryan Eller, Mikey Manghum, Gregory 鈥淗eady鈥 Coleman, all of Paradigm Shift, Ahmad Smith, M2M Recruitment and Outreach coordinator (兔子先生/April Garon)