Leila Tamari – FSM Accelerator 2021

My name is Laila Tamari, and this is my reflection video for the FSM Accelerator. I met Andrew in the spring or summer of 2021, earlier this year, and we were matched through the SCORE program for budding entrepreneurs. And when we met, I thought, this is great, I will just have a few meetings with him and I'll come out with a business plan. And to me, that meant I would have a plan for how I was going to get my check. And as a new consultant, really figure out who I was gonna reach out to, when, just have a plan, some kind of roadmap. But to be honest, I didn't really know what that meant. I just thought it was the key to success at the time, like that it would be on this clean sheet of paper and it would just provide direction and answer all my questions. Little did I know that all of our time together would reveal just that, but in ways that I had not anticipated, and it certainly didn't result in a clean sheet of paper that had just a few directions on it. One of the most valuable things about working with Andrew is that We answered questions that then brought up more questions, and he stated that very early on that this process would not be linear, that this process would reveal itself in mysterious ways, and that it was going to be based on trust and relationship. And that was what really connected with me and my practice, because everything that I do and how I move through the world is through deep, meaningful relationship building and connection. So I was very pleased to have that be one of the foundational aspects of our relationship and also my success as an emerging consultant in the philanthropic space, in the arts and culture space, and in the community development space. Going through the process in the way that we did with Andrew's guidance was immensely helpful for me because it reminded me of things that were necessary, reminded me to stay true to my values and how I move through the world and how I create and deepen and sustain relationships and connection and therefore my work. And I thought as an entrepreneur that I had to be a business, an MIT business or Stanford Business School graduate, and in some ways that's what really attracted me to Andrew because of his credentials there. And I was really happily surprised to see that the ways he was moving were not just motivated from numbers essentially, and not just statistics or think pieces. They were really rooted back in, in me, and it was a reflection of me, and I think that was so powerful and is such a powerful gift to give to somebody. And Andrew's coaching really provides that, and this is one of the main reasons why I would invite others to participate in this kind of process, particularly with Andrew, because of the way he highlights and guides and, and holds relationship as a key aspect of all of this. Looking back at earliest meetings that we had and my own insecurities at that time, and with all the things I just shared, not to compare myself and my way of doing things, my unique perspective, with what society tells us, um, is the right way, uh, to move through the world and to be an entrepreneur, because there are so many ways, and your unique way is what makes you stand out. To get to this place of resolve took several meetings with Andrew and also took a lot of meetings with myself. Essentially, I, um, have come away with other tools essentially that I've created that have been helpful for me. I've looked to other good friends of mine, good colleagues who have been thinking about how to be accountable to ourselves and what kind of contracts with ourselves we have to hold. And I've had to go through those processes multiple times and continue to. It is all practice and That's the journey. It's the destination is all about the journey. And Andrew has also taught me that. And I'm very, very thankful for that gift as well.