Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Walter Cullin Jr.. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Walter, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

I like to think that I have two different missions. One of my missions is student-based and my other mission is community based. My two businesses are, “Intrinsically Motivated LLC” and “What’s Your Motive?” (non-profit). The mission of Intrinsically Motivated is to shift the mindset of students regarding their education. The aim is for students to be “intrinsically motivated,” as opposed to being “extrinsically motivated.” It is important for students to recognize the personal benefit of educational achievement. All students should seek to obtain educational success that supports their internal agency, instead of seeking outward validation.

“What’s Your Motive?” is a corporation that aims to question the motives of community organizations and people that serve the youth and community, in pursuit of breaking silos and creating a bridge for collectivity. My intent is to shine the light on all community stakeholders in hopes that we can create a conglomerate that makes intentional efforts to impact the youth and community.

I have been a teacher, mentor, coach, dean of students, associate principal and higher education administrator. These missions are meaningful to me because I recognize the plight of the students and community. It is imperative that proper efforts are taken to mold and shape the way our young people view and value education. Additionally, it is important to note that we are better together. Meaning, working collectively to bring about change, as opposed to doing things in a singular fashion. Creating bridges and a sense of togetherness sets an example for the youth and community, ultimately helping everyone to thrive.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am currently a higher education administrator. My experience has been in health care administration and education. My professional career began in health care, where I worked in hospitals, clinics, compliance offices and insurance advocacy. However, I soon found myself in education realm. I was once a teacher, coach, mentor, dean of students, and associate principal. Safe to say, I have just about run the gamut in education. Working with students and teachers has been a passion of mine for quite some time. Working with young people is rewarding in the sense of being able to impact them as they grow into themselves. As a middle school teacher, I began to recognize that many of my students were conditioned to perform well in school for external rewards (money, candy, recognition, etc.). Therefore, I began to challenge my students to strive to do well for the sake of themselves. Not for anyone else’s approval, but simply because they wanted to do well and be better. This is how “Intrinsically Motivated” came into play. I started out with a classroom mantra that read, “Intrinsically Motivated with No Excuses.” Meaning, no matter what your circumstances are, they will be acknowledged, but they will not be utilized as a crutch or excuse for them not succeeding.

Since then, I have been a keynote speaker for graduations, conducted small workshops for students and I am currently working on an Intrinsically Motivated curriculum. Additionally, I have an educational consulting agency with a friend of mine called, Integrated Community Education Consultants. We provide professional development in classroom management, teacher coaching, and teacher resiliency. We help a lot with school culture and helping new teachers navigate the classroom through relationship-building with their students.

What’s Your Motive? is simply about bringing together those working in the community. Providing exposure and pooling resources in a collective effort to bring about change for all those in the community. I do much of this work through my, “What’s Your Motive? Podcast. This can be found on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@whatsyourmotiveim), Apple, Spotify, and all other podcast streaming modalities. I am all for guests who are interested in engaging in dialogue about education, community, and youth.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

There was this time when I was getting ready to graduate college. I was provided an opportunity to intern at a prestigious healthcare facility in Milwaukee. I did well as an intern and was asked to come on permanently. Unfortunately, I was only able to work there temporarily due to class scheduling conflicts. Nonetheless, I maintained my relationships with those in the organization in hopes of returning after graduation. I graduated and reached out to the guy who mentored me during my internship. He had since become the Vice President of Human Resources. We met for coffee and engaged in conversation. I explained that I would like to work within the organization again, but just needed an interview opportunity. He proceeds to shower me with plaudits about my academic success and my success while interning. He then says, “Walt, someone took a chance on me, and that is why I am in the position I am in today.” I thought to myself, like okay, maybe this is my moment. Just maybe he will be the one to take a chance on me. He then looked at me as he took a sip of his coffee and says, “Someone needs to take a chance on you.” Sadly to say, that day, he did not take a chance on me. I drove home perplexed and discouraged. As a 22-year-old, that was a lot to take in. I did a lot of reflecting. Reflecting on my academic success, professionalism up to that point and my clean image. I wondered heavily about what else I needed to do. I had done everything right, but still, no opportunity was given.

After reflecting and pondering, I decided that I would make something happen for myself. I vowed from that day forward to always lend a helping hand and take a chance on others when given the opportunity. I worked in healthcare for a while after and then I began teaching, where I put my efforts into inspiring and challenging students to want to do well for themselves. I took chances on kids and provided opportunities for them to advance in all areas of there lives. It is my duty to send the elevator down! It is my duty to take a chance on others! I vow to do so as long as I am living.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

My method for keeping in touch with clients and fostering brand loyalty is through authentic relationship building. I foster these relationships via social media and through frequenting other community establishments. I support, encourage and initiate communication for partnership opportunities online (Instagram mainly). Through my podcast, I host my pods at community sites for the sake of bringing them visibility, as well as demonstrating my mission to build in the community. Through these intentional efforts to be visible and supportive to those in the community, I am able to make connections with others through word of mouth. My partnerships continue to grow because of my humble approach to lifting and shining a light on others.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.intrinsicallymotivated4.com
• Instagram: @intrinsicallymotivated
• Facebook: Intrinsically Motivated
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/public-profile/settings?trk=d_flagship3_profile_self_view_public_profile
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@whatsyourmotiveim
• Other: Spotify, Apple: What’s Your Motive?

Image Credits

Photography: Covered by Shericka Marie
IG: @Sherickamarie