We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sonia Jackson Myles. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sonia below.

Sonia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

I am often asked “How did you come up with the idea to start a global movement for girls and women?” How did you come up with the name “The Sister Accord?” I believe that the things that we have a deep passion, curiosity and desire to solve, can often reside in our subconscious mind. During my experience in corporate America, I had a mentee from every continent, with the exception of Antarctica, and saw what I call a “Humanity Insight” that girls and women are socialized to not like themselves or each other, no matter where they grew up around the world. As a result, the behaviors that I observed in my companies revealed that women were often dealing with challenges getting along and supporting each other in the workplace. Men, on the other hand, would support each other, even if they weren’t friends or friendly with each other. I went to sleep one night and literally saw The Sister Accord coming to life in a dream. I saw my book cover. In my dream, the book was on the shelf in a store. When the first bookstore accepted my book, I took a picture and it was exactly how I saw it in my dream.

Because The Sister Accord began as an idea that was really an ideal, I began to think about what the executions could be that would bring to life what I was trying to convey to girls and women. You are enough, you are amazing and brilliant, so you don’t have to engage in behavior that dims the light of another girl or woman. Where do I begin? I began with a The Sister Accord Resolution and then expanded the resolution to the creation and publishing of my first book, “The Sister Accord: 51 Ways To LOVE Your Sister.” We have now completed our 7th printing of this book that many say is the gift that keeps on giving. The book was nominated for an NAACP Image Award in the Debut Author category and the calls started to come in, from around the world, sharing how my simple strategies for building healthy relationships among girls and women were making a positive difference around the world. My early speaking engagements and a simple website were the vehicles that gave me the opportunity to reach people around the world.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am the youngest of four children in my family and grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. As a child growing up, I was always passionate about being kind and helping others. I remember my mother registering me for charm school and I became a model for Montgomery Ward (wow– that really takes me back). I grew up with a lot of love and support in my family and my siblings were 11, 12 and 13 years older than me. I wanted to create my own path and so I made decisions that were different than my siblings. This led me to (at the last minute) change from my plans to attend Michigan State University to attending Florida A&M University (FAMU) in Tallahassee, Florida. Originally, I thought I wanted to be an engineer, but quickly decided that business was the field of study for me after working at General Motors as a Co-op Student. I love the world of business and marketing and received my bachelors and masters degrees from FAMU. I also studied at Harvard and Duke University via Executive Programs.

I was in the career center one day at FAMU and met a person who changed the trajectory of my life! He was a recruiter for Ford Motor Company named Craig Shatzer. He asked me if I had ever considered a career in Purchasing. I told him that I love to buy things but wanted to understand how that would translate into value for a company. As he started to share what the role would require, my eyes lit up. I had found a discipline that aligned with my desire to make a positive difference within a company from day one. One negotiation of $.10 off of a part would create savings of millions for the company.

This encounter with Craig changed the course of my life and was instrumental in how I have been able to launch successful businesses. The business acumen that I developed from a career in Purchasing has been a key to my successful entrepreneurial journey. I have managed over $20 billion during my corporate career working for Ford Motor Company, The Gillette Company and Procter & Gamble. I learned every aspect of managing a business as I coached and supported my supplier partners. My experience has made a huge difference for me. I now have the ability to take everything that I achieved in corporate America now with my clients for The Sister Accord LLC dba The Accord Group LLC, which is my consulting company.

I am most proud of the fact that my dream of serving girls and women around the world has led to so many people sharing that my work has saved or transformed their lives. My deep and profound love for humanity has led to so many people living their best lives and bringing their dreams to life! My Leadership Development and Executive Coaching Program, titled Dreamwalking, has made a positive difference in corporate America. I have men and women sharing that my program has helped them to be better husbands, fathers, wives and mothers. Knowing that I am doing what I was created to do brings me so much Joy! I’m so grateful for the way that I have Designed My Destiny! My platform of Leading with Love and Kindness has caught on in a very special way with clients and my social media following.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I had such a wonderful career in corporate America, but knew that if I wanted to bring The Sister Accord to life, I was going to have to leave a role that I thoroughly enjoyed after working so hard and diligently to achieve the levels I desired. This was a very difficult decision for me. There were many sleepless nights as I pondered “Can I be successful as an entrepreneur?” “Do I want to give up everything that I’ve worked so hard for?” I had a desire at the time to become a Chief Procurement Officer. My desire to do what I was created to do was stronger than my corporate goals and I decided to resign from Procter & Gamble in 2013 to start The Sister Accord Foundation, a 501c3.

I was trying to decide how I would come up with the capital to start my first business. I checked my stock option account and had more in the account than I thought I had. I knew that this was a sign that I had to bet on me. I sold stock and used the funds to start my business! Although it has not been an easy road, it has been a very fulfilling journey.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

After establishing the Global Media Sourcing organization for Procter & Gamble, at a time when they were the largest advertiser in the world, I shared with my team that although we were spending billions, the most effective form of advertising is word of mouth. This has been my story as I have grown my business. I structured my business to have virtual components and so when the pandemic occurred, I was already prepared to continue to deliver for my clients. Everyone asked me how did I know to do this. It was part of my strategy to be as efficient and innovative as possible. I have always been a disruptor and creative in my approaches during my corporate career. It gave me the confidence to also think the same way as I started my Entrepreneurial journey. In corporate America, there is an aversion to risk, as an entrepreneur, I had to learn how to embrace risk and make intelligent risk-taking decisions. This attracted new clients who were looking for the innovation and platforms that I had created.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thesisteraccord.com, www.thesisteraccordfoundation.org, www.soniajacksonmyles.com
• Instagram: @thesisteraccord
• Facebook: The Sister Accord Page
• Linkedin: Sonia Jackson Myles
• Twitter: @thesisteraccord
• Youtube: The Sister Accord Channel

Image Credits

I have the rights to all photos.