Today we’d like to introduce you to Shavonne Clark.
Hi Shavonne, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
You know when people ask the question “What are you naturally good at that takes little effort.” or “What is that thing that you would do even if you didn’t get paid.” Well, mine is public speaking.
I knew at an early age that I loved to talk; in fact, I always got into trouble in school for talking too much. At that time, I had no idea that my love of talking was actually the gift of speaking.
In my early 20s, I joined an organization called Toastmasters International. At first, I had no idea what Toastmaster’s was but I had often heard it being talked about at my church, so I finally decided to attend a meeting. It was in joining Toastmaster’s that I realized I had the gift of public speaking. I was a member of Toastmaster’s for years learning speaking techniques as well as the art of being a good communicator. As I became a better speaker, I began competing in public speaking competitions and went on to win the Toastmaster’s International Speech contest for the state of Georgia.
From then on, I often spoke at my church as well as other events in my community and received a promotion at my job at the time where I was able to provide employee training and I absolutely loved it.
One day; over 10 years ago, God gave me a vision to motivate, encourage, support, and uplift women and to name it Speaking Boldly. I was so excited and immediately jumped into action. I started the company, did all the business requirements to become established, and began speaking at local events and had so much fun doing so.
But, somewhere along the way I lost my passion. I begin to be more concerned with the opinions and feedback of others and not the vision and what God had spoke to me. I became discouraged and stopped speaking. I put Speaking Boldly to the side and went on to live my life and focus on other things. Even though I tried to leave Speaking Boldly alone it never left me.
Over the years, I’ve always felt this tug and feeling like something was missing and that there was something more I was supposed to be doing. It didn’t matter what job I did, how much money I made, there was always a feeling deep down that I couldn’t shake.
About a year ago, I took myself on a journey to re-discover myself. My sons are older now and I felt that the timing was right. I had an open conversation with God about what’s next for me. And He reminded of what he told me 10 years ago. I said “okay, okay, God here I am but I don’t know what to do.” Tell me what to do and I will do it. So everyday I pray and say okay, “What we doing today.”
These daily conversations have led me to create blogs on my website where I share encouragement with women. I recently held an event celebrating women in business and providing a space where we could share, connect and support one another.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has certainly not been a smooth road. Mainly, my struggle has been believing in myself and not allowing doubt and negative thoughts to discourage me. I speak positive to myself daily. I’ve learned to do it scared and I live by the quote; “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
As you know, we’re big fans of Speaking Boldly Inc.. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Speaking Boldly is a non-profit organization focused on empowering and uplifting women by providing them with the tools, resources, and support they need to realize their full potential. Through inspiration, motivation, training, and building connections we strive to foster a culture of confidence, resilience, and self-belief, enabling women to thrive in all aspects of their lives.
We provide education, training, assist in accessing resources, provide advocacy, and empowerment.
Speaking Boldly is not just a business for me it is my passion. I believe we all have a purpose in this world something that we are here to do and I believe that being here to support women in anyway that I can is mine.
What are your plans for the future?
My future plans are to have more events on so many different topics. I want to educate and provide resources on finances, fitness, work-life balance, relationships. These are topics that not only interest me but topics that I think we as women need to have in safe spaces with no judgement but just knowledge, support, and always in love.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.speakingboldly.org
- Instagram: speaking_boldly
- Youtube: @speakingboldly
